Archive for the ‘Green Building’ CategoryPortland, Oregon has something up its sleeve: The OSC, or Oregon Sustainability Center, a building that will utilize innovative design and architecture to capture and reuse energy and water. Though the building is far from completion, the project hopes to meet the standards of the Cascadia Region Green Building Council’s Living Building Challenge when it’s finished.
What is a living building? Simply put, a Living Building generates and uses its own energy and captures and recycles its own water, all while avoiding the use of toxic chemicals and substances in its construction and operation. The criteria for Living Building status are varied and stringent—stricter than those for obtaining LEED status—and what makes it even tougher is that they are performance-based: the building and its operations must meet sustainability standards for at least 12 months after it is built. The OSC building will be over 200,000 square feet, will house over 700 office tenants, and will provide office and classroom space for over 1,400 students and faculty. According to the Oregon Sustainability Center’s website, “To meet net-zero energy, OSC must reduce typical energy use by 70-80% to supply the building’s energy needs on-site with renewable resources. And it must do the same with water. This has never been done on this scale before.”
On top of that, the OSC is a part of something even bigger: “OSC is also the proposed anchor for Portland’s first EcoDistrict, a strategy that combines high performance buildings with infrastructure – boosting energy efficiency, water efficiency and livability. This evolving strategy will benefit through research to better understand how the building can interact and partner with its surrounding neighborhood.” (Also from the website).
The International Living Building Institute can be found here. If you’re interested in learning more about EcoDistricts, you can start here. (images from the OSC Website). Ever wonder how eco-friendly soccer city is? Check out this video featuring the architect and how this stadium that will host the opening and closing games amongst others With the stadium 3 years in the making, the video explains how they reused materials, water, and built on the site of an existing stadium. Other articles on the sustainability of the World Cup: South Africa 2010 World Cup: Eco-Friendly Stadiums Nike Creates World Cup Jerseys From Landfill Plastic Ready to make a change in NYC’s eco-friendly nightlife scene? Make sure to vote for Fair and Square. The Fair and Square goal is to bring about New York City’s first Fair Trade bar, which will serve wine, beer, and even artisanal liquors. This will certainly change the current bar scene: it’s a company desperate to show they care, and an opportunity to encourage responsible decision-making.
In addition to a trendy bar, Fair and Square will provide a daytime coffee shop, a place for ethical city-dwellers to relax in peace. The comfortable and stylish place will serve Fair Trade products to further improve the lives of all Earth’s inhabitants. Fair Trade provides relief for impoverished communities who are belittled by the traditional sales method. Fair Trade ensures that those workers receive the most value for their product, and that buyers receive the best quality. As Fair and Square proudly states, “The solution is to trade fair & combat global poverty with our purchases.” Well, let’s help them out! Visit the Fair and Square Web site for more information or if you want to vote. It only takes a second, and it will greatly benefit those in foreign countries, and across America. Voting ends June 14, so make sure to act quick! Look out, New York City– the Fair Trade bar is coming!
This Friday, eco-friendly fashionistas at EcoSalon are hosting a “pop up shop and green fashion tweet-up.” It will be held at Green Spaces [SoHo] in New York City. It’s a great opportunity for people to see the high-end design of these green designers, and to spread the word to some of fashion’s most influential crowd.
EcoSalon’s Editor in Chief [Sara Ost] and Fashion Editor [Amy DuFault] conveniently collected a group of green fashion designers to showcase their work and further carry out the green movement. Easy access to environmentally friendly fashion all in one place! Some of the big designers include Lara Miller, Doucette Duvall, and NatureVsFuture, but there are many more to be expected. This event will change the green fashion world as we know it, so make sure to stay tuned! A preview of the designers and what to expect in the future:
I’ve always been a fan of the Re-Nest blog, which is part of Apartment Therapy. Their mission is “helping people make their homes more beautiful, organized and healthy by connecting them to a wealth of resources, ideas and community online.” Which fits in nicely with Verde’s mantra of urban green living and reducing your carbon footprint in as many aspects of your life as possible. My favorite though is their Green Home Tours. The homes are always unique and feature a range of eco-friendly products. Check out my top 5 and click on the images for the full story!  Samantha and Ron's Tranquil Oasis  Rama & Celeste's Former Mattress Factory Loft  Paul and Lisa's Green Dream Home  Chicago's Smart Home, Redesigned  Camela & Chris's Reclaimed Family Farm We all wonder what we can do to improve our home without damaging the environment, but sometimes it’s hard to find viable answers. So we’ve composed a list with the three best green home trends of 2010, as well as ways to make them affordable and fun! Energy Efficiency: Not only is saving energy incredibly beneficial to Planet Earth, but also lifts a load off the wallet. One of the simplest ways to decrease our carbon footprint is by purchasing LED or CFL light bulbs. LED light bulbs are extremely efficient. Though they can be pretty expensive, LED’s last up to 10 times as long as standard light bulbs by using only 2-10 of electricity. That can be up to 1/30th of traditional fluorescents. Another option is CFL light bulbs, which are very popular right now. Although they contain mercury, they are still much more energy efficient than standard light bulbs. Other great options may require a bit more work, but certainly retain some incredible benefits. These other options include R 38 insulation, high efficiency AC systems, passive solar orientation, solar panels, energy rated appliances, and tankless water heaters. Make sure to do your research and compare prices, and you’ll be pleased to see how much money [and energy] you’ll save in the long run.
Bamboo in the Home: There are countless benefits to using bamboo in your home. Whether used for hardwood floors or countertops, it’s easy to install and maintain. Bamboo is an incredibly durable material, so it also works well for dishware, especially if you have kids! Bamboo is also very pretty, so it looks fabulous as an indoor and outdoor plant. It can be fairly cheap to purchase, especially compared to traditional flooring and countertops. Perhaps the greatest benefit of bamboo, though, is the fact that it’s the world’s fastest growing plant. This makes it the perfect renewable source. Also because of its abundance, it’s super easy to come across a quality and inexpensive lot of bamboo. There’s no reason not to try, especially since you’ll love how the bamboo looks in any situation!
Sustainable Home Products: We’ve given you tips for more efficient energy and green building, so to complete the triangle, we now address green decorating. In the bedroom, use organic cotton bedding. Living areas can be spiced up with decorative throw pillows. You’ll love the limitless options of designs, textures, and colors! When decorating your kitchen, use products made from organic clay or recycled glass. Your kitchen will be beautiful and eco-friendly! In the bathroom, don’t forget organic towels and natural soaps to keep the place bright! Finally, when decorating the dining room, think organic table toppers and accents. No matter what part of your home you plan to decorate, there is always a sustainable product fit to make it look great!
These are only three suggestions for ways to make your home more environmentally friendly. For more ideas, make sure to check out Verde Lifestyles! And don’t be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone when decorating and researching new green home ideas. The green movement has finally spread to the travel world! After much demand, several eco-friendly hotels have been popping up all over the globe. Although the most environmentally-friendly vacation includes taking a hike and spending the night below the stars, there are now other viable options. While there are several outstanding green hotels, we thought you’d most enjoy this one: voted the most eco-friendly hotel in the world, the Hamanasi Resort in Belize is the best in its game!
Hamansi began building with environment conservation in mind. They built around the existing trees, leaving animals’ homes and “nature’s air conditioners” intact. When they ran out of space? They built luxury tree houses in the forest! Down on the beach, Hamansi left a strip of vegetation six feet wide past the point of high tide. This little strip heavily reduces erosion and minimizes silting, which eventually chokes the reef. They have set aside over 10 acres around the hotel, keeping it as a stunning nature preserve. This preserve adjoins the swampland savanna which overlooks the Maya Mountains.
Not only is the Hamansi Resort built on eco-friendly ideals, but they maintain these practices in daily routines. All fruit and vegetable scraps are added to the compost pile and used to maintain the rich lands. When replanting, they minimize the use of pesticides and chemical based fertilizers. Old room linens are used for cleaning tools [just like we suggest!] to eliminate waste. The icing on the cake? Any leftover products are distributed to local community! The Hamansi Resort produces virtually no waste, recycles every product, and gives back to the planet by maintaining nature’s natural beauty. Hamansi is a great role model for every resort out there!
A blog post about garden sheds? Yes, I know! But there is your traditional garden shed used for storing garden tools and then your garden shed that is not only sustainable but that can act as an office, entertaining room, or conservatory. Check out my favorite finds…  Ultra Energy Efficient Shed by Energyspace “A state of the art workspace that makes a minimal or zero contribution to global climate change in every aspect of its design, construction, energy-use, and life cycle.” Not for the faint of heart, these manufactured sheds are insulated, sited for passive solar gain, and have solar panels on the roof.  Modern Greenhouse Office Shed Who wouldn’t want to a. have a greenhouse in their garden and b. use it as a workspace?  Reclaimed Wood Shed This shed was built with wood from a fence, a great summer project to tear down the fence and build a shed!  Solardome If you work at home and often find yourself distracted, how about a Solardome in the backyard! They are light and airy and come with a lock.  Trailer Office Shed If you have an old trailer, why not move it to the garden? It has all of the space you would need for storage and amenities for an office that’s only a stone throw’s away from home.  Greenroof & Skylight Shed Ok so maybe the sky lights are a little much, but a green roof is perfect for a garden shed. Since we’re all trying to better the world by “going green,” why not do it in every possible aspect of daily living? Environmentally friendly home decor, fashion, and travel have taken the world by storm, so why not apply earth friendly behaviors to nightlife? One of the most fun, beautiful, and responsible nightclubs in the world is Greenhouse, located in New York City’s legendary Soho district. Besides having unbelievable decorations [including bamboo/grass walls and a crystal rain effect], this club aims to fulfill its environmental responsibility. Below are some of Greenhouse’s unique qualities that keep it #1 in eco-friendly nightlife. Now you can go green when you go out! Greenhouse is L.E.E.D. certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. It strictly uses LED lightbulbs, which use 1/30th of the energy of regular club lights. There is even wind-generated energy to cover its electricity usage. Greenhouse’s 6,000-square-foot space includes waterless urinals and low-flow toilets to reduce water usage, in addition to bamboo walls and floors. Even high-rolling club goers goers make a green contribution by signing up for a table with bottle service and purchasing eco-friendly Vodka 360. Var staff wear uniforms made of organic materials designed by Edun. Next time you’re in New York City, make sure to support the green efforts because helping the Earth has never been so glamorous!
Environmental hero, Dan Phillips, started a Texas construction company that builds low-income houses solely from salvaged pieces. The company, Phoenix Commotion, has been around for 12 years and is responsible for the construction of 14 homes. Each house sits on a lot that was either donated or purchased at a reasonable price. Phillips claims that over 80% of the materials are recycled, coming from previous construction projects and giant trash heaps. In this case, one can confidently state that trash really can be beautiful. Some creative ideas:
Scrap Wood Siding
Cattle Bone Chair
|
© 2011 Verde Lifestyles™ | Powered by Volusion | 
