Sir Norman Foster speaks about the birth and rise of sustainable thinking, technological solutions, and the influence of Buckminster Fuller. Running time 32:05.
Video Here

2008 Mar 31st - Mon at 6:00 PM

MICHAEL BEN-ELI, Ph.D.: Sustainability: The Five Core Principles

Potluck dinner & presentation by a leading international consultant and sustainability educator who was a close associate of Buckminster Fuller.

Location: Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS) - 101 San Antonio Rd. - Petaluma, California 94955

bfi-internal.org/sustainability/principles

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We are hosting a bloggers challenge to raise money for teacher-submitted projects in schools.

The projects have to do with sustainability, and include the following topics:

1. student research on recycling programs in Texas
2. indoor gardening programs in San Jose, CA
3. maintaining a student newspaper in Los Angeles, CA
   (Journalism has had a rough time in that city, and we need to help sustain different media voices)

4. support a course in sustainable development and conservation in Chicago, IL
5. Community Action on Global Challenges in Providence, RI
6. Modeling groundwater flow and aquifers in New York, NY
7. alternative energy projects in North Carolina

Visit the challenge page for more details on projects and to contribute.

- Ralph Hyre

On-line course covering Bucky and other pioneers of sustainability.
http://www.mcad.edu/showPage.php?pageID=1598

The Synergetics of Student Success workshop is part of SyRF Systems, The Synergetic Redesigning of Fitness. SyRF Systems was created by Lorne Young and integrates the most ancient science from the East with the most recent science from the West for total mind, body and spirit fitness. This synergetic system creates innovative, realistic and practical techniques and strategies that teachers can employ to help our students achieve success both inside and outside the classroom. These strategies develop attention and focus, transform stress, improve academic and athletic performance and lead the way to the development of character including integrity, leadership, caring and compassion. Research on students in all grade levels has shown significant and measurable advances in these areas. Teachers and students describe this system as “exciting…life-changing…fun…transformative”. In this workshop participants will be actively engaged in the practice of this system and will be given the opportunity to join the expanding SyRF Systems Research team. This workshop has been presented in many schools and educational conferences across North America with future presentations during the summer 2007 in Chicago (IBNA Annual Regional Conference) New Mexico (United World College of the American West) and Toronto, Canada (Upper Canada College). For more information on this and other workshops or to view the book SyRF Systems, visit www.SyRFSystems.com or email lorne@syrfsystems.com or call Lorne at 416-523-2748

Elegant looking indeed, but what will make this vertical wind turbine perform any diffferent than other vertical axis sytems that have apperared over the years, only to receed quietly into obscurity.  Common knowledge says that energy output per dollar invested cannot compare to the advanced  horizontal turbines that are spreading like wildfire.But according to Treehugger, the UK company called "Quiet revolution LTD might be offering something revolutionary -- at least in terms of simplicity of design (very few moving parts result in vibration free and virtually silent operation) and double- duty functionality by integrating LED lighting in the blades to provide decorative lighting or even messaging. The product was developed by XC02, an appropriate name for an engineering and design studio dedicated to providing low-carbon solutions in the built environment.


According to Treehugger: Trials were carried out at the end of last year and with the results XCO2 say that the Quiet Revolution will be capable of producing 10,000 kWh per year based on an average wind speed of 5.8 m/s. “If you had two of them that would satisfy the 10% renewable energy requirement for a 1200 square-metre office building,” says their marketing director Julia Grove.

• Physical dimensions: 5m high x 3.1m in diameter
• Generator: Direct drive, mechanically integrated, weather sealed 6kW permanent magnet generator
• Power control: Peak power tracking constantly optimises turbine output for all sites and windspeeds
• Operation mode: Max wind speed: 16m/s; Min wind speed: 4.5m/s
• Design life: 25 years (annual inspections recommended)
• Rotor construction: Carbon fibre & epoxy resin blades and connection arms
• Brake & shutdown: Over-speed breaking above 14m/s wind speed, auto shutdown in high wind speeds (above 16m/s)
• Remote monitoring: Event log can be accessed via GSM Dial up. Remote monitoring stores operation and kW hours of electricity generated
• Warranty: Two years on components

» Click here to visit Treehugger.com for more information

The Centre for Design promotes environmental sustainability through a directed program of research, consulting, professional development and knowledge sharing.

The Centre is recognised internationally as a leader in the development of design methods and tools that support sustainable product design. Our programs focus on sustainability and eco-efficiency as a source of innovation and responsible business development.

The Centre has access to extensive national and international networks including research centres, companies and institutions that enable the development of best practice products, buildings, services and policies.. This also keeps us informed of current policies and regulations, and the latest trends in sustainable design and innovation across all major sectors.

The Centre for Design has a strong multidisciplinary research team and access to specialist expertise and resources from within RMIT University. Collaborative projects are undertaken with industry, government and community stakeholders to develop pragmatic solutions.

The Centre for Design is based in the Faculty of the Constructed Environment at RMIT's city campus in Melbourne. RMIT is one of Australia's largest and most respected technical and design universities.

» Click here to find out more

From Lorne Young | Upper Canada College, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, email | 416-488-1125 ext 3411

Content: Throughout this three-week (110 hour) integrated curriculum unit for grades 7-9 (adaptable to higher or lower grades) several general principles are emphasized and employed to maximize the benefits of an integrated unit. The systems approach, whole systems thinking and the underlying principle of synergy are the central, core concepts that all of the curricular areas will revolve around.

The following scenario is presented to the class:

The Synergetic Organization for Sustainability on Earth (SOS Earth) is recruiting/advertising for 4 individuals to make up a Research Team that will be spending 5 years on an uninhabited, ecologically sensitive island off the coast of British Columbia. The goal of this team is to be a model for the rest of the planet and to demonstrate that it is possible to live sustainably with the environment, without degrading it, for an extended period of time while doing important research on endangered species. The team must accomplish the following:

• Design a research station where the 4 team members will be able to live sustainably and self-sufficiently for the 5-year term
• Design an energy production system that will provide sufficient energy for the station
• Design a food and water production system for the 5 years
• Design a waste and recycling system
• All of this within the climatic and geographical limits of the island
• The design of the station and its components should be constructed to a realistic scale, ie research into the requirements and appropriate size of the various components is necessary

» Click here to find out more details

© PHILIPS (by Capital Photos)

Phillips Design is developing advanced LED lighting for home use. This novel Icosahedren application enables both color and intensity to light to be adjusted at the source.

"Although replacing incandescent bulbs with white LEDs has great potential for improving energy use efficiency, I find the possibility of embedding light-emitting quantum dots into our industrial materials to be even more interesting. The breakthrough here isn't just in making it possible for LEDs to replace standard light bulbs -- although that's certainly big. The real breakthrough will come in the ways designers can start to rethink how illumination is used in our physical
environment."
» Click here to find out more
» Phillips Lighting

Inhabitat.com is a weblog devoted to the future of design, tracking the innovations in technology, practices and materials that are pushing architecture and home design towards a smarter and more sustainable future.

Inhabitat was started by NYC designer and architecture student Jill Fehrenbacher as a forum in which to investigate emerging trends in product, interior and architectural design. San Francisco based Sarah Rich is the managing editor. Contributing writers include Nicki Mellado and Kyle Martin.

» Click here to visit Inhabitat.com

from gizmag



Reminiscent of Fuller's vision for the Dymaxion House and advanced mass producable autonomous dwelllings, Architect Marcin Panpuch has designed a hight tech spherical house which can either float on water or be lifted by crane and fixed to a tower beside other such spheres. Stairs, kitchen, bathroom and toilet are all located in a central core which also serves a conduit for ducts, cables and pipes. Sound familiar? The ailing US auto industry might be well served to start seriously thinking about diversifing their under utilized production capabaility into production and leasing of hyper-homes. Panpuch's inspirational design won a 2004 commendation from the Royal Institute of British Architects' annual Future House London Competition and Exhibition.

The Idea - London is one of the cities that grew from the river and a great deal of its development has happened thanks to the river. Recently Londoners have turned their backs on the river, because of the pollution.It is no longer a great pleasure to spend time in close proximity to the Thames. But perhaps if people feel more involved with the Thames they become more responsible for it's quality.

The Thames is tidal and one should take advantage of its significant changes in levels. Taking into account the current situation of the housing market, can you imagine yourself living in the centre of London? Perhaps not. But you can afford a car and you may be able to afford city car parks and congestion charges. So if the housing industry takes on board experience from the car industry you might pay the same for your house as for your car.

Yes there is a land issue but there is also the Thames. The river could be the answer to your housing problem. You could own a house and be able to live both in a quiet area of east London and in the middle of the capital, enjoying the vibrant atmosphere and beautiful river views, right on your doorstep.

The river could take you and your house everyday from the suburbs of London to the centre without the need for high-energy consumption. The house itself could become a mode of transport.




Design objectives - Currently houses are largely static and unresponsive. Modern and future materials, technologies and design allow us to create dynamic, evolving places that respond to the complexities of life.

The home will soon be a source of energy rather then a consumer. It will become more of a work place as well as a home. The London house, more than any other, will have to meet density requirements of the future.

The proposed design not only uses the river, estuary + docks, but can also be stacked in a "tower of houses" using a crane on top of the tower. The house module can be relocated as often as required by family and work demands; a city tower, a river home, a rural retreat.

The proposed house can satisfy future needs for mobility, energy production, and applicable changes to the place we live and work.

The proposed design takes into account today's problems of the housing industry, which is decentralized, resistant to change, wary of new technology, and labour intensive. Most people live in places that are low-grade, low-tech, inflexible, difficult to upgrade, high maintenance, and ill-designed.

Environment - The aim is that the house will produce as much energy as it consumes. The energy is produced by photo voltaic cells and accumulated in batteries. "The main floor" is designed to store heat during the day and distribute it at night. The water tank can also act as a medium for heat storage.

The house is designed to be naturally ventilated using the stack effect - the air intake is situated at the bottom of the transparent screens and allows air to migrate up to the top of the core at each floor. All the devices that control the internal environment of the house (sun screens, air intakes/exhausts) are designed to be manually and automatically controlled. All waste produced by occupants is designed to be stored while the house floats and when moored the waste is disposed of to the public utilities.




Design - A sphere has 25% less surface area than a cube of the same volume; minimising the perimeter means reducing the heat loss.

The designed "sphere house" is divided into three floors that are organised around a core - "services/distribution wall". Open plan design allows easy changes to work and living spaces. The central core includes stairs, kitchen (social and family assembly point), bathroom and toilets. The service/distribution wall accommodates all ducts, services, central heating system and electrical connections between floors.

The upper floor is designed as a highly flexible living space with up to two entrance points allowing you to connect to the outside. The lower floor houses working space, sleeping area and the main entrance. The sleeping area is divided by a light partition system. The system can be easily repositioned or, by adding additional components, can create further bedrooms. The working area is open plan space that can be organised according to home occupier's needs.

The lowest floor is designed to accommodate batteries (ballast), storage, water tanks, heating system and central IT equipment necessary for automatic operation of the house. Layers of light, composite materials create the external envelope: the transparent cladding, shades with photo voltaic cells cover the upper part of the house.

The lower part of the envelope is divided in to two parts: under water and above water. The under water part of the envelope is designed as a light insulated aluminium body attached to the main frame. The above water part is covered by transparent cladding and retractable screens for privacy.

» Read more about Marcin Panpuch's vision and design objectives

» RIBA London

from gizmag.com



The circular kitchen is a new approach to kitchen design based on the changing needs of apartment dwellers and modern lifestyle. After centuries of conventional kitchen design, the self-contained circular kitchen challenges many of the notions of a normal kitchen, treating it more as an appliance than a dedicated, inflexible room. It can be easily added or relocated to any space, be it apartment, office, holiday home or factory and comes complete with all the facilities and storage space of a conventional kitchen. There are no conventional cupboard doors, so access to the kitchen’s various components is by rotating the central unit through 180 degrees, or the top unit which rotates through 360 degrees.

The concept of the circular kitchen came to master joiner and furniture designer Alfred Averbeck whilst practicing his trade in Germany during the mid-nineties.



Averbeck was witnessing the rapid evolution of apartment dwelling, and the quite different needs of a new generation of professionals who wanted more space for living and less of their apartment's space devoted to the traditional kitchen.

"I asked myself, why should a single person, whose career requires travel and long hours devote so much of their small apartment to a kitchen," said Averbeck.

"From what I was seeing, there was a growing segment of the population who were career focussed. These people don't cook at home much, are often interstate or overseas, and they are using 10-15 square metres of a small apartment at relatively high cost, when they would rather have more space for a small office or a bigger living area." So Averbeck began work on designing a very compact kitchen using the latest technology to reduce the size, and enable the kitchen to be moved and relocated easily, and did not need to have a dedicated room, or indeed, even be anchored to a wall.

The concept of an independent unit came early and many designs followed as the idea of a decorative unit that could be closed off and locked evolved.



What's more, it's completely lockable via the slatted sliding door and with such a small footprint (1.8 square metres), it is suitable for spaces that conventional kitchens are not. The circular kitchen consists of an outer circular wall with fixed rear wall and a sliding slatted, lockable doors.

The inner core rotates 180 degrees and is equipped with all the conveniences of a conventional kitchen, including a stainless steel sink with chrome single lever mixer, a waste bin and drawers. The upper circular shelf rotates through 360 degrees to house crockery, glasses, etc. Inside it has its own lighting, electrical sockets, electronics, water and waste disposal.

By utilising the volume of the circular kitchen fully, it has been possible to offer a storage capacity equivalent to that of a large conventional kitchen. "It contains the equivalent of 12 cupboards from a conventional kitchen", says designer Alfred Averbeck.

There's also the facility to specify the Circular Kitchen with all the appliances necessary - refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave, fully integrated coffee machine, ceramic cook top with 2 or 4 cook zones, a built-in microwave/oven-combination and a Range hood.

As with any kitchen fit-out, there's an infinite choice of decor, colours, fittings, benchtop finishes and depending on the selection of equipment the Circular Kitchen will cost between EUR5,000 and 12,000 (US$6500 to US$15,000).

» Click here to read the full article

Mass Deployment Refugee Housing by Alice B. Phillips and Jeffrey Warren of vestaldesign.com

from Vestal Design:

The SHRIMP (Sustainable Housing for Refugees via Mass Production) is an attempt to bring housing and other relief to large displaced or homeless populations, especially those who have suffered in a natural disaster. Providing shelter to a family of four, it folds up into 1/4 of a shipping container for efficient deployment.



Massive Deployment
Taking cues from IKEA's flat-packing furniture, this shelter starts its life as a 10' x 9.5' x 8' box, or exactly 1/4 of a "hi-cube" shipping container. Because of this standard size and self-contained design, the SHRIMP can be dispatched in extreme quantity; Maersk container ships, for example, can hold 6,400 containers. That equates to housing for roughly 100,000 people, on a single ship. Need medical or administrative centers, or even schools? Every 100th or 1000th SHRIMP can be a specialized unit, creating a complete mobile community. And using the solar distillery on the SHRIMP's roof, fresh water needs are significantly reduced.




Pack It Up

The SHRIMP has pontoons which automatically inflate, using compressed air canisters - assembly takes minutes, not hours. Because many container ships have cranes, this eliminates the need for docking infrastructure - units can be unloaded anywhere there's water. As standard-sized shipping containers, the SHRIMP can also easily be trucked across land. In addition, the simple wooden interior is modifiable with tools available in most places, allowing units to be customized or even converted into more permanent homes.




Sustainable Living
SHRIMP units can be refitted for reuse, and use sustainably farmed wood (see Forest Stewardship Council). They can also be retrofitted out of shipping containers, which are piling up in the US: "It costs $2,000 to ship an empty container back to its source, he said, but China can build new ones for $1,200," writes the Virginian Pilot. The SHRIMP draws upon that waste stream, providing both humanitarian aid and waste management.



» Click here to visit Vestal Design

Inspired Infrastructure By Thomas Fisher, Architecture Minnesota from UTNE reader, May/June 2006


The United Nations' Millennium Development Goals call for significantly improving the lives of at least 100 million of the world's 1 billion slum dwellers by 2020, with an emphasis on providing access to safe drinking water and sanitation. Reaching those goals may seem beyond the ability of architects, but John Gavin Dwyer doesn't think so. He and his Minneapolis firm, Shelter Architecture, have designed a self-contained structure that would supply electricity, clean water, and toilet and bathing facilities to the people who need them the most.

Called the Clean Hub, the 10- by 20-foot unit has a V-shaped metal roof that collects rainwater and an adjustable array of 16 photovoltaic panels that can generate up to 2,640 watts of electricity. A reverse-osmosis system cleans water stored in a below-ground reservoir, where the gray water from showers and sinks is recycled. The toilets are waterless and self-composting. The building itself has impact-resistant stress-skin walls and secure entry doors, supported by a steel tube and a concrete-pier foundation that can adjust to sloped terrain and poor soil. The Clean Hub can serve temporary settlements such as refugee camps, but its 30-year life span makes it most suitable for semipermanent slums that lack basic infrastructure.

Servicing those global human settlements was the driving idea behind Dwyer's clever, compactly designed creation. After studying the work of a number of other architects, Dwyer realized that a new approach was necessary. "Most were doing housing, when the real need was for infrastructure," he says. So Dwyer developed the Clean Hub as a utility box that can be mass-produced and suit almost any site or climate. After consulting the Minnesota chapter of Architecture for Humanity, Dwyer "sent 70 e-mails to various U.N. offices," he says, "and the one in Nairobi finally got back to me." The office helped him connect with potential manufacturers, including General Electric, which worked with Dwyer to develop a business plan for the project. In the end, GE expressed an interest in manufacturing the Clean Hub, but not in financing or marketing it.

Dwyer doesn't seem deterred. "The World Bank spends $15 billion a year on slum upgrades," he notes, "and for only $1 billion, we could build and deliver enough Clean Hubs to meet the U.N.'s Millennium Goal of improving 100 million lives." Shelter Architecture is pursuing several grants to raise the $20,000 to $30,000 needed to build and test a prototype. In the meantime, Dwyer's efforts demonstrate what architects can do to make a difference in the world. "At first, the U.N. wondered why an architect was interested in the subject," he recalls. "Architects can be proactive at a global level and articulate the value of doing things better."


» Click here for the original article

World Peace Dome - starting from Zero by Mitchell Joachim & Michael Sorking Studio (left) and Fab Tree Hab - Local Biota Living Graft by Mitchell Joachim, Javier Arbona & Lara Greden


Mitchell W. Joachim is a PhD candidate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Architecture: Computation Group). His dissertation is entitled Tall Building Clusters for Ecological Cities - An Integrated Code of Structures, Streets, and Skies. Prior to MIT, he completed two master's degree programs; at Harvard University (MAUD) and Columbia University (M.Arch). Currently he is a researcher at the Media Lab Smart Cities Group, collaborating with his advisor William J. Mitchell on the General Motors/Frank O. Gehry Concept Car.



Prior to MIT, he completed two master's degree programs; at Harvard University (MAUD) and Columbia University (M.Arch). Currently he is a researcher at the Media Lab Smart Cities Group, collaborating with his advisor William J. Mitchell on the General Motors/ Frank O. Gehry Concept Car. In parallel with Gehry Partners in Los Angles, he has been actively working as an architect on the Brooklyn Atlantic Yards Project. During his time in Cambridge, he has been the Moshe Safdie and Associates Research Fellow award winner and a Martin Family Society Fellow for Sustainability. Previously he has been an architect at Pei, Cobb, Freed and Partners, and the Michael Sorkin Studio in New York City. Mitchell has served as visiting faculty in sculpture at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. His work is published in "How Harvard would remake Atlanta", (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2001), Michael Sorkin Studio: Wiggle (Monacelli Press, 1998), and "The Guru of Impossible Engineering Creates a Car", (Popular Science, 2004). His winning design of living structures - Fab Tree Hab - with Habitat for Humanity and the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art has been honored with a nomination for the INDEX Award and exhibited internationally.


» Click here to see Mitchell Joachim's outstanding Portfolio