Name Name
titledescript
On England's Suffolk coast, architects from London firm Haworth Tompkins have made unlikely bedfellows of prefab architecture and historic building preservation. Dovecote Studio was created from the ruins of a Victorian-era dovecote, which was used as a frame for a Cor-ten steel "lining". The inner form was lowered by crane into the aging brick structure. Say the architects: "The......read more
Cement production accounts for five percent of global CO2 emissions, which is double the emissions from all airline traffic. That spells a massive greenhouse gas problem, just so society can continue to build and expand its infrastructures. But there has to be another way, right? Cement is the glue that holds concrete together. Concrete is so ubiquitous as to be nearly invisible. Producing the......read more
When the owner of a Silicon Valley property decided to renovate his family home, he also decided to make good on an idea he and his daughter shared: building treehouses in an oak grove on the edge of the property. While not exactly treehouses per se, these three tea houses nestled among the stands of oak should do the trick. Designed by Swatt Miers Architects, the glass-paneled tea houses......read more
The food-based locavore movement is maybe best defined by the "100-Mile Diet," which involves eating only what's available in your region. Now, that concept is being applied to architecture with the "100-Mile House," an approach to homebuilding that involves using only materials available in your immediate environment (duh). The idea is being promoted by the 100 Mile House......read more
The California Energy Commission today unanimously approved upgraded building energy efficiency standards that one commissioner called "the strongest in the nation." The new standards, which take effect Jan. 1, 2014, include a host of common-sense standards designed to save energy, from insulating hot-water pipes to making sure that air conditioner installations are inspected for sufficient air......read more
“I think you have to paint the stick orange." - Canadian designer Bruce Mau, asked whether a carrot or stick is the more effective way to change people's habits. The Massive Change author discussed sustainability and rebranding climate change on Need to Know. An ordinary car did something extraordinary in Europe last week, when a production model Volkswagen Passat set a world record......read more
Adventurer extraordinaire and record-setting cyclist James Bowthorpe is busy prepping for his next madcap quest: a journey down the 315-mile length of the Hudson River in a kayak made of NYC construction waste. "We see cities as something separate from the wilderness, but the former evolved from the latter," says Bowthorpe, who undertook a similar expedition down the Thames. "I’m......read more
"The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way." - William Blake Two hundred years later, Blake's words ring truer than ever. In Santa Monica, city officials are moving forward with a plan to remove 54 mature fig trees as part of a new urban design project. Artist Gillian Ware, who divides her time between the UK and Los......read more
The economy of Mahallat, Iran is driven by the stone-cutting industry, which accounts for nearly half the city's economic activity. As with most heavy industries, there are significant environmental effects; in this case, it's stone waste that doesn't get used. Tehran-based practice Architecture by Collective Terrain makes intelligent use of the scrap stone with Apartment No. 1, a contemporary......read more
Dietmar Eckell has a thing for ruins. The German photographer travels the world to capture eerily beautiful photos of decaying things and places, from forgotten military sites and decomposing cars to crashed planes and abandoned buildings. Of the many excellent photo series on his website, God's Ruin is one of our favorites. The collection of images stunningly depicts ancient churches and......read more
