Collection by Jessie Philipp
Smart by Design: Eco Conscious & Tech Forward
Villa Welpeloo in Enschede, the Netherlands, doesn't look like a recycled building, but Jan Jongert and Jeroen Bergsma of 2012Architects began the design process by first scouting the local area for items to recycle. The "harvest map" of possible suppliers from within a nine-mile radius of the building site included Google Earth scans for brownfields and abandoned-looking buildings for scrap material.
Strategic site planning and smart technology help the 3,200-square-foot Great Gulf Active House achieve hyper-efficiency. The Toronto-based architecture firm, superkül, used triple-glazed windows; a solar hot water system; zoned heating; a fully automated HVAC system, skylights, and roller shades; LED lights; and spray foam insulation, among other green strategies.
Timothy Beatley, a professor of sustainable communities at the University of Virginia, says hospitals should be community centers. "[Khoo Teck Phuat Hospital in Singapore] makes me hopeful because it shows how healthcare facilities can be designed to include nature," he says. "While there is no recorded evidence, my gut feeling is that this building does heal. This is a hospital people want to be in."
When the Casali family gave Michael Krus and Prishram Jain of TACT Architecture free rein to work with unconventional materials, the architects responded by creating a geometric 4,300-square-foot smart home encased in aluminum panels by Agway Metals. The front facade features Cor-Ten steel fabricated by Praxy Cladding.
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation Headquarters (Los Altos, California: 2012)
The forward-thinking headquarters of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, created in 2012, embodies the vision and mission of the philanthropic concern, a reflection of the Hewlett-Packard founder’s passion for the environment and technology. An angular grid of configurable office suites encircling an open courtyard, the Bay Area site reflects the region, sporting salvaged wood, local stone, and a red cedar exterior. And while the structure itself, a Net Zero Energy Building that earns LEED Platinum certification, is impressive, the architects at EHDD did one better by shaping culture as well as space. An energy audit revealed that the staff’s emissions were generated mostly from transportation, so EHDD added video conferencing suites and a shuttle to pick up staff from the nearby rail station.
Photo by Jeremy Bitterman
With the help of Carver + Schickentanz Architects, Jason and Melissa Burnett were able to push their Carmel, California home's renovation from LEED Silver status to LEED Platinum-certified. With eco-friendly innovations like a retractable skylight for natural ventilation, double-pane windows to keep in air and heat, and sustainable landscaping with native vegetation, it's no wonder this mid-century-modern redesign is one of our green favorites. Click here to see the home's interior.