Depending on your level of interest in such things, it may or may not be hard to fathom, but did you know that it’s estimated the average American per capita fuel cost is a staggering:
$17.40 for one day… $121.80 for one week… $500.00 for one month? [As of February 11, 2011]
Two leading environmental advocates are teaming up to commemorate the first anniversary of the Gulf Oil Spill and preview the 2011 Earth Day celebrations with a Day Without Oil gathering to promote reduced use of fossil fuels:
~ Day Without Oil is a grass-roots project that wants us to imagine one day without oil. You can participate by signing the pledge to: Refrain from using gasoline or other fossil fuels for one day, and donating the value of one day’s oil consumption – $17.40 to an environmental organization on the front lines. Funds donated go directly to your selected organization.
~ One of the recommended organizations, DC Greenworks is the Washington, D.C. region’s preeminent greenroof advocate and educator (also known as a one stop shop for green roof consultation, design, and installation). And, they “help resolve urban environmental and economic problems by fostering local enterprise, job training, and community stewardship, especially in underserved communities in the Washington, D.C. area.”
This year, they have partnered with Day Without Oil and are co-hosting a reception to promote environmental stewardship on this first anniversary of the BP disaster and worst oil spill in our history.
Where are they holding the event? On a greenroof, of course!
Specifics:
“Don’t Be Crude”: Day Without Oil Reception
Thursday, April 14, 2011 6:00 – 8:00 PM 1454 Belmont St NW Washington, DC 20009
The “Don’t Be Crude” event will be held at the greenroof built by DC Greenworks at City Overlook, the home of the Board Chair, Gail Montplaisir.
“Our hope is that this event will raise awareness and action by environmentally concerned citizens about our need to reduce dependence on oil and enhance our work in the region.” ~ Gail Montplaisir
The Day Without Oil project was created by Provincetown, Massachusetts, artist Jay Critchley, who estimates that the average American uses the equivalent of three gallons of petroleum per day, which includes cleanup costs and subsidies.
“While this day’s focus is on oil, it’s also about our personal obligation to change our behavior and help to create stricter energy policies to combat global warming but inspire and support global change. Let’s begin the transition to renewable energy and a healthy planet.” ~ Jay Critchley
Download the DC Greenworks invitation here. If you live in the D.C. area, appreciate the need to reduce our dependency on oil and want to socialize with like-minded people on top of a lovely greenroof, this event is something to consider! If not, you can partner with Day Without Oil and create your own. Visit their website to learn more, see some videos and read the blog.
Tomorrow at 8:30 PM, local time – anywhere and everywhere – on Saturday, March 26th, 2011, lights will switch off around the globe for Earth Hour and people will commit to actions for our Earth that go beyond the hour…
“Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turned their lights off for one hour to take a stand against climate change. Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries/territories participating.” ~ Earth Hour
Earth Hour is organized by the World Wildlife Federation (WWF). With almost 5 million supporters and a global network in over 100 countries/territories, it’s one of the world’s largest and most respected independent conservation organizations. WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the Earth’s natural environment and build a future where people live in harmony with nature.
On Saturday March 27, 2010 Earth Hour had its largest support ever. A record 128 countries and territories joined the global display of climate action, and iconic structures and landmarks from Asia to Europe and Africa to the Americas switched their lights off. People across the world from all walks of life came together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet.
This year, the Hungarian International Airport in Budapest will switch off an entire airstrip for Earth Hour at 8.30pm on Saturday night in a symbolic display of its commitment to go beyond the hour. What are you doing?
For 2011 the organization is asking for us to go ”beyond the hour” and take action to make our world a better place by sharing your act with the world. Greenroofs.com has been doing this for four years now – it’s really just a show of solidarity to reinforce our commitment to sustainability at the global level, but it surely has a deeper meaning – but do we really get it?
For me, Earth Hour is a collective beam of hope (albeit darkened!) yet akin to the unfurling leaves and buds that signify the eternal springtime of life. It’s kind of the harbringer of Earth Month, which is April (OK, I don’t know if it’s really called Earth Month, but it should be).
Because Earth Hour is observed on a Saturday every year, it’s pretty easy to “go dark” for all of one hour – in the past, Aramis and I have entertained ourselves by leaving the house, turning off all the lights and going to see a movie – hey, they’re going to have the electricity on anyway, but we don’t have to, right?; doing various activities via candle light – grilling and sipping wine outside on the deck; playing card games; and more recently actually discussing the larger picture of the urgency to switch to sustainable means of energy for every day electricity needs and beyond (OK, with wine in hand). And we blacken out parts of the Homepage, too. We all know we need to take some action to curb climate change and become less dependant on Earth-depleting energy sources – this is a yearly reminder.
“Climate change is the greatest human induced crisis facing our world today. It is totally indiscriminate of race, culture, class, nationality or religious belief. It affects every living organism on the planet – including all of us.” ~ Archbishop Emeritus Tutu
It’s not all doom and gloom, either - Earth Hour has also created some fun activities to raise awareness at all age levels and so the the whole family can get involved, like creating a latern for Earth Hour and a kids’ game where you turn out as many lights as possible as quickly as you can.
The point is to remember to become more aware of our actions and switch off your lights for Earth Hour! Rally your friends and family and make it a night to remember. Make one single action representing the start of your personal journey of commitment to a more sustainable Earth. So how else can you support it? Click below to find out:
Earth Hour is asking us to consider what else we can do to make a difference, after the lights go back on. Whatever you do, this is just one thing we can do to continue the dialogue. Learn more by watching the awesome video below:
Our daughter, Anjuli Velazquez, has been writing, filming and editing our “This Week in Review” video since August, 2010 and each week you can expect to learn What’s New here on Greenroofs.com. She’s become quite popular, and we thought it would be a great idea to start posting her transcript, too, to make things easier to research. Click on the photo below to see the video, or here. Enjoy!
- Hello, I’m Anjuli Velazquez and welcome to This Week in Review for March 18th, 2011 on GreenroofsTV.
- Our Project of the Week is The Department Store, Stephen Marr Hair Salon Greenwall built in 2009 in Takapuna, New Zealand. In 2010 The Department Store was named top retail concept store in the world by Monocle magazine. One of the centerpieces of the store is the lush interior greenwall on the top floor. The double-sided greenwall, designed and installed by Natural Habitats Landscapes, is New Zealand’s first interior greenwall. The wall is 10 meters long by 2 meters high and boasts well over 1,000 individual plants. It divides the upper level, promoting unique spaces that can be used for presentations like fashion shows. The building has had skylights installed to ensure the wall is given as much natural light as possible, and so the use of supplementary man-made lighting is kept at a minimum. This greenwall is an original and breathtaking piece of artwork, but also offers some incredible environmental benefits, like: increased thermal insulation to buildings, noise dampening, and creating cleaner and better quality air, which means healthier buildings and people. From a commercial perspective, the greenwall increases the building’s value and has also been found to raise employee productivity.
- To learn more about The Department Store, Stephen Marr Hair Salon Greenwall, click on our project of the week photo on our homepage.
- Check out Linda’s latest Sky Gardens Blog posts about the New Zealand greenwall, and the “CitiesAlive 2011 Call for Paper and Poster Abstracts.” Green Roofs for Healthy Cities is pleased to be working with the City of Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society as co-hosts for CitiesAlive, the 9th Annual Green Roof & Wall Conference to be held later this year in Philadelphia from November 29th to December 3rd. GRHC says they’re looking for papers that display novel ideas on taking a green approach to storm water management through the use of green infrastructure, indoor greening and residential green infrastructure. All applications are due by April 15th, and for more information you can visit this blog post and/or e-mail Luna Ghose at lghose@greenroofs.org.
- Do you think green walls can’t survive in the cold; they don’t look good in the winter, they are only viable in the south or indoors… well, think again! Contributing Editor George Irwin writes about Winter Interest with Green Walls in his latest column and shows some pretty interesting photos of various looks.
- Green Roof Jobs: Joy Kuebler Landscape Architect is seeking resumes for a Landscape Architect/Designer with 5-6 years experience for their busy Buffalo, NY office, so make sure to check this job and many others in JobLinks if you’re looking to work in our industry!
- March 18th – 27th: is the WMG Water Harvesting Certification in Phoenix, Arizona.
- March 22nd: is the 2011 Green Roof Technology Workshop in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
- March 23rd – 27th: is the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show in San Mateo, California.
- March 24th – 27th: is a Green Roofs for Healthy Cities – Green Roof Boot Camp in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
- March 25th – 26th: is the GreenScaped Buildings Spring Open House in San Diego, California.
- March 25th – 27th: is the Better Living Show – Home, Garden & Lifestyle in Portland, Oregon.
- And don’t forget that on Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 8:30 PM (local time, wherever you are), lights will switch off around the globe for Earth Hour and people will commit to actions that go beyond the hour. With Earth Hour almost upon us, the organization’s thoughts, as well as ours, are with the people of Japan during this incredibly challenging and sad time for their country.
- Kathleen E. Carey of the Delaware County Daily Times reports on “Green LEEDs to platinum: SAP America earns distinction for utilizing environmental sources for newest building.” The Newtown Square campus of SAP America Inc. in Delaware County is holding one of the highest environmentally sustainable distinctions in the world with its new Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum level construction. Just some of the features that have led to its LEED Platinum certification are: its entry to the building – the passageway features a floor comprised of recycled materials, including seashells and pieces of crushed bottles and glass; glass panels surrounding the building with the goal of directing 90 percent of daylight to reach 75 percent of the employees; underneath the floors are tubes that transfer the natural temperature of the Earth which is generated from the 10 geothermal wells in the rear of the property to the inside of the building; and a rooftop garden that spans more than 1 acre which features lavender, rosemary, sedum and butterfly bushes.
- Katie Kosier of Care2.com talks about “Removing Barriers to Green Building.” With the help of Philadelphia based Re:Vision Architecture, Pennsylvania’s largest electric and natural gas utility company, PECO, installed a 45,000-square-foot vegetated green roof on its headquarters in central Philadelphia. It’s the largest in urban Pennsylvania and the roof absorbs more than 1.5 million gallons of rainwater runoff annually, it reduces air temperature in the summer and it also provides a beautiful habitat for wildlife. Principle Scott Kelly of RVA, says “For us, it’s about removing barriers to green building.” You can find more information about the PECO Greenroof in our International Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database by typing in Project ID number 851.
- To learn more about these stories and new ones posted daily, go to our In the News or newslinks section of our website.
- Have something you think we should know about and post on our website? You can send us your green articles, videos and images to editor@greenroofs.com.
- Stay up-to-date with what’s going on at greenroofs.com by subscribing to our greenroofsTV channel on YouTube, following us on Twitter, liking us on Facebook and being a member of our network on LinkedIn.
- By the way, did you know that now you can watch YouTube videos just like this one on DirecTV? That’s fun!
- Still haven’t picked up one of our 2011 Greenroofs & Walls of the World 12 Month Wall Calendar yet? Go to greenroofs.com/calendar.htm and order some today! Thanks to George Irwin for this great photo!
- This has been This Week in Review for March 18th, 2011 on GreenroofsTV. I’m Anjuli Velazquez and I’ll see you next week!
We all know that airports occupy and consume huge areas of land mass, destroying ecosystems and creating massive urban heat islands of impermeable, hot surfaces. Take, for example, the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) shown below -notice how the highest temperatures, shown in red, are the roof surfaces of the ATL terminal and concourses, followed by runways, parking and cargo areas:
You may remember that back in 2005 I wrote the paper “European Airport Greenroofs – A Potential Model for North America,” which looked at impacts of using a greenroof within airports as well as some of the potential barriers to greenroofs. I highlighted three massive and highly successful examples of greenroofs in place at the Amsterdam,Zürich, and Frankfurt International Airports.
At the time, only one greenroof had been installed at aviation facilities within the U.S. or Canada - at the King County International Airport Terminal Building (2003). The FAA and others had been hesitant given wildlife management issues, in particular the real threat of bird strikes.
Since then, many additional greenroofs have been constructed at airports worldwide with, not surprisingly, the City of Chicago leading the pack as part of their O’Hare Modernization Program (OMP).
I had the pleasure of revisiting the issue last week at the Atlanta Aero Club at the beautiful Capital City Club in downtown Atlanta, where I was invited to give a short 5-minute presentation for their bi-monthly luncheon by the Club’s President, Steve Champness.
Steve and his better half, Nancy Petroline, (both pilots) are friends of ours and felt the mixture of my passion for greenroofs and the very important fact that the President of Delta Air Lines, Ed Bastian, was the Keynote Speaker was prime for me to address greenroofs as sustainable design at airports here. Plus, the President of Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, Joe Lombardo, was also on hand and both airline leaders received awards to celebrate their unique and important contributions to the airline industry.
“The Atlanta Aero Club is dedicated to providing a forum for matters affecting aviation in the Atlanta area, both commercial and general; recognizing and awarding those making the greatest contribution to furthering aviation in the Atlanta area; communicating and disseminating information affecting aviation; and promoting all aviation and recognizing its importance to the metropolitan area and to the State of Georgia.”
It was great to hear Ed Bastian again, and he shared his own passion for Delta Air Lines as a successful company coming through restructuring as well as a firmly dedicated hometown company (the number 1 employer here in Atlanta), highly invested in both its customers and employees. In fact, last month Delta marked 70 years in Atlanta with a celebration for employees and partners, and a $1.4 billion profit profit sharing payout was distributed on February 14.
Regarding investments, Delta’s plan is to allocate more than $2 billion in enhanced global products, services and airport facilities through 2013. In addition to improving Sky Clubs and upgrading its domestic fleet, Delta will offer full flat-bed seats on more than 100 widebody aircraft, feature personal, in-seat entertainment for both BusinessElite and Economy class customers on all widebody flights, and complete new terminal facilities for international customers at its two largest global gateways – Atlanta and New York-JFK.
I was excited to speak to the approximate 150 members and guests of the Atlanta Aero Club, who were mostly pilots. Although I’m not a pilot, many of you who have been following me for years know that greenroofs is my second career ~ in January, 1996 I went back to school and received a Bachelor’s of Landscape Architecture from The University of Georgia in 2000 ~ while flying internationally as a flight attendant for Delta Air Lines (which I still do, at a minimum). I feel very fortunate to be able to combine my two careers – so you can see my particular interest in greening our airport roofs!
After some additional research and feedback, I began to add to the list of aviation profiles we have listed in The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database. Here’s the scoop:
We know that Chicago has led the way in North America in greenroof implementation for the past decade, including its airports. Above is an an aerial photo with ”Urban Heat Island Priority Tiers” superimposed which identify hot spots at the O’Hare International Airport (ORD) while showing current and proposed greenroofs here.
Although Frankfurt International Airport (FRA) has a combined coverage of over 500,000 sf, the largest individual continuous greenroof at any airport in the world is found on the 4-acre FedEx Main Sort Building at O’Hare.
Located next to an active runway, the 174,442 sf roof was installed in May of last year and is just one of four buildings with vegetated roofs comprising the massive FedEx Cargo Relocation Project, totaling about 190,000 ft.
O’Hare also boasts the first FAA Control Tower in the U.S. with a greenroof, so we must be feeling pretty good about constructing them now at airports, now, don’t you think? According to the Chicago Department of Aviation, there is currently 229,355 sf of green roof space at O’Hare International Airport, with an additional 108,816 sf proposed at the United Airlines Cargo Facility (as of February, 2011).
Chicago’s Midway Airport (MDW) currently has 3,179 sf of greenroof space on the parking garage, with another 17,640 sf of greenroof proposed for the Consolidated Rental Car Facility. To learn more about Chicago’s greening initiatives at airports, see their Airports Going Green website (where you can even see PowerPoint presentations of the last two annual Airports Going Green Conferences), the Sustainable Airport Manual, and visit the Chicago Department of Aviation’s FlyChicago.com website.
In the U.S., we now have at least 17 airport area greenroofs totaling almost 300,000 sf, and Chicago’s not the only government leader, either. Take Portland Oregon (PDX), above, for example, the U.S. Army and Air Force, and Heritage Flight, below:
Here are some other cool living roofs atop airport buildings found internationally:
See what we have by searching The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database by selecting “Aviation” under Building Type > Application Type – if you want to define it, select a county, city, etc.
Does this mean that’s all there is? Of course not. This Projects Database is a living research document and because it’s community driven, we reply on everyone to help us keep it up to date. In fact, I have seen airport greenroofs myself at Narita International in Japan (NRT), Madrid (MAD), and Paris’ Charles de Gaulle (CDG) – (see a couple of photos below) – that aren’t included because I don’t have enough info.
And I know there’s more at Paris’ Orly International Airport (ORY), Bordeaux (BOD), Stuttgart (STR), Münich (MUC), Bremen (BRE) and Düsseldorf (DUS), with many others planned or on the boards. So, I’d like to ask our greenroof community to please send in your photos and info on greenroofs across the world and I’ll share the profiles for all to see, like Jörg Breuning, of Green Roof Service, has been doing for years – see below Fire Brigade at Stuttgart International Airport:
Because of time constraints, I couldn’t get into key design considerations with regard to the correct site selection of growing media and plants, but just touched on the importance of having a multi-disciplinary team on the Airport Wildlife Landscape Management team. Here’s my updated version of the “An Overview of Greenroofs at Airports: Greening Rooftops as Sustainable Design” Power Point which I presented last week to the Atlanta Aero Club:
And since I wasn’t limited to just five minutes, I added a few more slides of examples, plus ended with a couple about combining photovoltaics with greenroofs – hey, if we’re going to be sustainable, we may as well go all the way!
I’d like to give Steve Champness another big Thankyou! for offering Greenroofs.com and me this great opportunity to introduce vegetated roofs to many, and encourage sustainable design with greenroofs (and walls) at our public, private, and military airports worldwide. We need more leaders such as the City of Chicago, the City of Portland, OR, and others to continue to push building integrated greenery forward.
It’s easy to understand how Atlanta’s largest urban heat island, Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, can be significantly mitigated by incorporating living, breathing, greenroofs. Maybe Hotlanta won’t be so hot any more with some local support, strategic planning, and government and corporate visionaries.
Aramis and I were excited to attend and exhibit at CitiesAlive!, the 8th Annual Green Roof and Wall Conference on November 30 through December 4, 2010 in this beautiful harbor city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, co-hosted by Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC) and the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). Neither of us had been here, and we really had been looking forward to seeing this naturally gorgeous city surrounded by majestic snow covered mountain peaks, and we weren’t disappointed!
Celebrating its 125th Anniversary on April 6 of this year, Vancouver, B.C. is “Canada’s Cultural capital.” Originally inhabited by the Coast Salish people – the ancestors of the Squamish, Burrard, Tsleil-Waututh, Musqueam (Xw’muthk’i'um), Tsawwassen, Coquitlam (Kwayhquitlam), Katzie andSemiahmoo Indian bands, Spanish explorers first “discovered” Canada’s west coast in the early 1590’s. Captain George Vancouver arrived 200 years later, and fur trading, gold mining, and tree logging soon followed by the mid 1800’s. Vancouver’s cultural diversity is reflected everywhere – you have a huge selection of shopping, restaurants, bars, pubs, and nightclubs in various locales throughout the city.
Vancouver also has professed a steadfast commitment to sustainability – their long term goal is to lead the world in green building design and construction, and it promises to be “the greenest city in the world” by 2020. Vancouver’s targets include requiring all buildings constructed from 2020 onward to be carbon neutral in operations and reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in existing buildings by 20% over 2007 levels. Reportedly, Vancouver has the greenest building code for new homes in North America, but they don’t plan to stop here - they believe the technology already exists to support a more ambitious new construction requirement: net zero or carbon neutral new buildings. Read the “GC 2020 Draft Green Building Action Plan” here.
“These green building innovations will create thousands of new jobs, create a significant economic stimulus, increase the value of buildings, reduce property owners’ operating costs, help Vancouver become more resilient to climate change and energy price fluctuations, and position Vancouver as a global leader in green building technologies and expertise.” ~ Talk Green Vancouver/ City of Vancouver
As you may know, Corporate Knights, Canada’s magazine for clean capitalism, recently ranked Victoria and Vancouver, B.C. at the top of the list of Canada’s most sustainable cities – see the 2.9.11 Press Release.
Our hotel and venue were both beautiful and green. The luxurious Pan Pacific Vancouver Hotel is situated atop a pier at the magnificent Canada Place complex on Vancouver’s dramatic waterfront. And its iconic white sails have made it a prominent landmark for the city (currently being renovated).
Part of the Green key ECO – rating program (rated 4) itself, the Pan Pacific is conveniently located just a short walk above or below ground to the multiple award-winning venue, the LEED® Platinum certified for New Construction Vancouver Convention Centre. This expansion project is also known as the Vancouver Convention Centre West, and last year it served as the international broadcast and media center for the XXI Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games. (Haven and I included it in 2007’s Top 10 List under the #2 category, Bigger is Better – Mega Greenroofs.)
In addition to its massive 261,360 sf living roof – the largest in Canada - seawater heating and cooling, on-site water treatment and fish habitat are built into the foundation of the Convention Centre’s West Building, making the expansion project one of the greenest convention centers in the world. Located both on land and in the water, the views were breathtaking and spectacular! The floor-to-ceiling glass allow for maximum viewing pleasure of the North Shore mountains and the harbor, its boats, and even sea planes landing at will.
Planted with more than 400,000 indigenous plants and grasses from the Gulf Islands, the roof provides a beautiful flowering natural habitat to birds, insects and small mammals. Many people worked on this project- see this gorgeous video taken by David Buge with Bruce Hemstock of PWL Partnership Landscape Architects narrating on top of the Vancouver Convention Centre:
Although the greenroof is inaccessible to the public, the designers cleverly have allowed glimpses of the various angles and vegetated planes on two separate levels for visitors to enjoy, see below:
And the interior is just as cool andeco-friendly as the massive six-acre native plant greenroof overhead. For example, a phenomenal mosaic of cedar and hemlock pieces covering the interior walls creates a warm glow and adds multi-dimension to the expansive space.
Kudos to GRHC and BCIT for securing this fabulous, uber-sustainably designed venue!
Back to the CitiesAlive! Conference and Trade Show: We arrived on Tuesday, November 30 to make sure we were on time for the following day’s pre-conference activities (this was also the first day of tours, but we were too late to make it).
On Wednesday, GRHC offered five half-day education classes and one anticipated new one, the Introduction to Rooftop Agriculture – a topic that is really hot right now. Additionally, they had four 1.5 hour education sessions which all sounded interesting! But since I had to choose, I attended the 4-hour “Integrated Water Management for Buildings & Sites” seminar presented by Jeffrey Bruce, FASLA, GRP, President of Jeffrey L. Bruce & Company (and Chair of GRHC), while Aramis set up our exhibitor booth and attended the Corporate Members Committee Meeting.
I had heard mixed reviews about the course from its initial launch in Washington, D.C. last year, that it was certainly informative but a bit dry. But as someone with a degree in landscape architecture and a fairly good background in stormwater management, I enjoyed it. It wasn’t particularly dry, just quite technical and very in-depth in terms of definitions, policies, and procedures – although it said it was an introductory class, I would say it was definitely not for beginners! Developed by GRHC and the Association of Irrigation Consultants (ASIC), with leads Jeff Bruce and Lynda Wightman of Hunter, it embraces new approaches to design for Net Zero Water consumption.
The course covered water types and sources, and how we may manage water and energy resources more effectively including application and recapture methods. Jeff is a very good instructor – patient and extremely knowledgeable (his company also developed the course) -and the class was very interactive. We had some lively discussions from a really multi-disciplinary group of professionals from across Canada and the U.S., both from private practice and government at various levels. And the 98-page “Integrated Water Management for Buildings & Sites” Participant’s Manual is a veritable Bible of Integrated Water Management information.
Greenroofs.com was proud, once again, to be a Media Sponsor for the 8th year. The CitiesAlive! Opening Plenary on Wednesday night, sponsored by Architek.ca, was extremely interesting as we were greeted with a lovely traditional Coast Salish welcome from Elder Rose Point of the Musqueam First Nation and welcome song from Gerry Oleman, photo above from BCIT.
GRHC President Steven Peck was the Master of Ceremonies and he spoke about the many efforts and accomplishments of the industry association in the past year, including many firsts. We also heard from City of Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, who proclaimed his city would be the greenest in world, and from Rod Goy, the Acting Dean of the School of Construction and the Environment at BCIT, who spoke about their commitment to greening the built environment.
The always popular Paul Kephart of Rana Creek Living Architecture was the eloquent keynote speaker and shared his vision as a restoration ecologist and designer of living architectural systems. He also spoke about several of his collaborations with unique and large scale projects including the Gap Headquarters, Transbay Terminal Bay, the California Academy of Sciences, and the Croton Water Treatment Plant (Mosholu Golf Course) in New York which, when completed, will be the largest continuous greenroof in North America at nine acres.
Afterwards the Trade Show opened, the socializing started and didn’t stop until late. Thursday dawned overcast but the sessions started bright and early at 8:30 am. As usual, there was a huge number of expert international speakers in every track, with four tracks in all – Policy, Design, Research, and Expert Discussion Panels. In my opinion, it’s almost too massive a program, since it’s impossible to experience even a fraction of all the excellent presentations. What most people did was jump from session speaker to another to ensure they could hear their favorites. I think the ideal would be to send four people from each company or organization to attend each and then get together and debrief, but, really, who could afford that.
I found that I ended up splitting the next two days worth of sessions between the Design Track and the Expert Discussions. I started off the first day, Thursday, December 2nd, with the Barriers and Opportunities to Advance Collaborative Design Practices panel and heard from Paul Kephart, landscape architect David Yocca of Conservation Design Forum, and environmental engineer Greg Allen from Sustainable Edge. Jeff Bruce moderated, and these four highly seasoned professionals provided an intense interplay of personal opinion and practical experience, with plenty of audience interaction adding to the pot of working with disparate professionals.
The Temperate Green Roofs session followed and we learned about The Ted & Lois Hole Green Roof Healing Garden in Edmonton, Alberta. Designed by the wonderful Kerry Ross, Project Architect with IBI Group Architects and Ernie Webster, Landscape Architect with IBI/Landplan, this 22,500 sf hybrid extensive/intensive green roof is located at a new facility for holistic healing, the Royal Alexandra Hospital. Designed to commemorate Lois Hole, the former Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, and her husband Ted, it serves as a passive healing garden and visual amenity. The trees, shrubs, tall grasses and flowers were selected to represent the natural flora of Alberta, and were supplied by the family nursery. Some of the beautiful features include lots of seating areas, a water fall and reflecting pool, colorful glass screens, and places for art.
I hopped over to Expert Discussions – Standards Development for Green Roofs and Walls – Future Directions, Challenges and Needs with Mike Curry of Midwest Trading, Dr. Robert Berghage of Penn State, Kelly Luckett of Green Roof Blocks, and Blair Bennett of Soprema. Moderated by Zachary Williams of CarlisleSynTec, it was pretty interesting. There was a lot of candid sentiment about the process and practical issues from from what appeared to be an audience of mostly engineers, architects, city planners and the likes. Everyone wanted to know how their product or system might fare and how to get involved, and maintenance issues and ensuring maintenance contracts were included in deliverables were also a hot topic.
But I hopped back after about 20 minutes because I didn’t want to miss Nate Griswold from American Hydrotech and his presentation about the Lincoln Center for the Performing Artsand some of their unusual challenges with this project shaped like a hyperbolic paraboloid. Problems arose with the varying slopes as well as the high amount foot traffic and as a result, a new steep slope product and assembly for this type of greenroof was developed.
Unfortunately, I missed out on most of The Hugh Garner Green Roof Project – an integrated process, presented by Monica Kuhn of Monica E. Kuhn Architect, Inc. and Carolyn Moss of Moss Sund Architects, Inc., but I learned more about it when we featured this great multi-unit residential Housing Co-operative in downtown Toronto as our first Greenroof Project of the Week for 2011:
The GRHC 2010 Awards of Excellence Luncheon followed and twelve awards were given this year – eight for awesome buildings withgreenroofs andgreenwalls, including local favorite, the Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion Project. Below is Peter MacDonagh, one of the principals of The Kestrel Design Group, who received a Special Recognition Award of Excellence for their work withThe City of Minneapolis Target Center Arena, which we featured in our 2010 Hot Trends Top 10 List in the #9 category, “Green Sporting Venues.”
There were some other really cool projects, see them all here, as well as four deserving individuals honored within our industry.
One of these was Kelly Luckett, above, AKA The Green Roof Guy, who won a Civic Award of Excellence for his hard work on the RP-14 Wind Design Guideline (read his Green Roofs, a Civic Award of Excellence, and a Lifetime of Memories article). Talk about someone who really should have been recognized! He has put in years of his life (not to mention probably tens of thousands of dollars from his own pocket) to further this important issue for our industry. And he was really excited and humbled about receiving it, too. I can only say how humble and proud I felt when he acknowledged me for giving him a platform to write. Way to go, Kelly!
The Lifetime Achievement Awardsceremony was truly poignant and inspiring as a special tribute was held for two legends of the roof garden/greenroofing industry. Author of “Roof Gardens, History, Design and Construction,” W.W. Norton, 1999, the late Theodore Osmundson, FASLA, was honored. Theodore Osmundson became a Fellow of the ASLA in 1963 and was ASLA president from 1967-1969. We heard about his lifelong passion for landscape architecture, and roof gardens in particular, from his son, Gordon.
Inspired by the Rockefeller Center Roof Gardens in New York City, industrialist Henry Kaiser hired Osmundson in 1958 to design the beautiful 3 and a half acre public park, the Kaiser Center Roof Gardenin Oakland, CA, which became Osmundson’s best known work. Gordon Osmundson, also a successful landscape architect, has taken on the task of working on a second edition of his dad’s highly successful “Roof Gardens” book.
Cornelia Hahn Oberlander, OC, FASLA, FCSLA, LMBCSLA then graced the stage and spoke about “Reflections of six decades designing natural sites.” Educated at Harvard University, she expressed her love and gratitude for landscape architecture where she has shone brilliantly as a leader in garden roofs, and spoke about her early work while raising a family. She shared the visions of some of her numerous important projects, including the stunning Visitor Centre Green Roof at the VanDusen Botanical Gardens.
Designed by Busby Perkins + Willand Cornelia, the center is slated to meet the Living Building Challenge 2.0 (as per the Cascadia Green Building Council) as well as LEED Platinum standards. To receive its Living Building certification, the center will have to operate for 12 months with net zero energy while providing all of its own water.
Thursday afternoon was spent in and out of our Exhibit Booth on the Trade Show Floor, popping into a variety of sessions, and simply catching up with lots of people!
The Trade Show floor had a good turnout, and most exhibitors we spoke to were pleased with the quality of visitors to their booths (meaning designers and specifiers). I have to say our Greenroofs.com booth was hopping most of the time, and we had tons of visitors – thanks to all of you who came by to say hello!
This may have been due to our lively and lovely in-house booth mates, Contributing Editors Patrick Carey (and GRHC Trainer), Haven Kiers (also a GRHC Trainer), andCaroline Menetre, above, who camped out here off and on. We had some interesting booth neighbors, including the vivacious Kathy of BusyBee Gardening across from us, seen below, as well as neighbors Craig of MYKE® Pro Premier Tech Biotechnology andGenevièveNöel of Mubi Regenerative Consulting, below her:
Dr. Clayton Rugh of Xero Flor America, above, andXero Flor Canada were also close by and I have to say Thank you! to Joy Schmidt for giving me a copy of the lovely book “Vancouver 2010.” All about the 17 Olympic and 10 Paralympic Games days, it features stunning photos of Vancouver and their Xero Flor greenroof technology that covers approximately 56,000 sf of the Millennium Water Project - Vancouver’s Olympic Village. Here are more Trade Show pics:
That evening, Green Roofs for Healthy Cities put on a really nice, invitation-only GRP Reception for the first year’s class (2009-2010) of graduating Green Roof Professionals. It was casually elegant and beautifully set up - the beverage and food selection was wonderful and the service was excellent. Aramis and I saw a lot of our friends and colleagues here, and met quite a few new ones, too.
We heard Sara Loveland and Ashleigh Uiska (with Dusty Gedge) threw an awesome afterparty, but we had our own much smaller version with our band of Contributing Editors and colleagues. By the way, Sara won our free yearly Premium Listing in The Greenroof Directory.
The Friday sessions were just as bustling and varied. I sat through (and thoroughly enjoyed) Green Wall Case Studies II, starting withInterior Living Wall Biofilter Projects – Lessons Learned from Pioneering Experience from Dr. Alan Darlington of Nedlaw Living Walls and Birgit Siber of Diamond andSchmitt Architects. They shared stories of years of research and project monitoring, and how living walls have the capacity to break down hundreds of different kinds of contaminants found in indoor air; they demonstrated how a biofilter can substantially reduce the need to bring in fresh air by generating its own clean air indoors.
One of my favorite presentations was next, Innovative and Cost Effective Biofilters for Residential Applications from Robert Cameron and Dr. Robert Berghage from Penn State University. They have an experimental site on campus as well as the one Rob Cameron built at his home using a combination of materials on site, some donated, and some leftover from experiments from other Penn State projects. They conducted studies showing that living systems do not need to be highly sophisticated to work beautifully.
Rob Cameron asks, How can we take wasterwater and make it a resource? Using plants, from food crops to ornamentals, he showed us how the living wall with “Living Columns” – basically vertical plastic corrugated tubes – act like a constructed wetland and can filter out pollutants from an entire household. At his own residence he integrated these living columns with a greenroof for downspouts and rain water harvesting, and combined a living wall with an extensive greenroof to provide a vertical garden for tomatoes, peppers, herbs, and other veggies.
By the way, George Irwin of Green Living Technologies (GLT) was scheduled to speak during this session, and was deemed a no-show. Since he’s a Contributing Editor here, Caroline texted him to see where he was – he answered that he had indeed let GRHC know early in the week that something major had come up and would not be able to make it.
That morning I also sat in on a couple of sessions from Local Interest – From Barn Raisings to Green Roof Raisings: Community-Built Green Roof was presented by Bryce Gauthier, Director of the Projects In Place Society. What a great story! Projects In Place has taken the concept from the old community-based barn raisings and applied it to building sustainable projects. Using almost 100 volunteers including BCIT students, this small non-profit installed a 500 sf greenroof in two days on top of a business on the edge of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Projects In Place Society posted their CitiesAlive PowerPoint on their website, make sure to see it.
I skipped Retrofitting Existing Buildings With Green Roofs by Dr. Karen Liu of Xero Flor International because I had already seen and loved her similar (I hope) presentation at 2009’s CitiesAlive! in Toronto. Instead, I listened in on the Expert Discussion- How Green IS Your Green Roof: Devising a LEED Style Credit System for Green Roofs – Challenges and Opportunities with Steven Peck, Kerry Ross, Dr. Robert Berghage and Chuck Friedrich of Carolina Stalite.
Talk about a charged subject! Some argued that we should not create yet another rating system, but should rally to make the highly universally accepted (yet sometimes controversial) U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)’s LEEDprogram work better for our industry in terms of rating greenroofs. Others argued that GRHC knows our subject best and that starting new made the most sense rather than trying to fix another existing product. Having both my LEED AP andGRP designations, I have opinions, but will share them in another post.
So even though I was extremely interested in this subject, I returned to the Design Track andLocal Interest to hear about The Visitor Centre Green Roof at the VanDusen Botanical Gardens from Ken Larsson of Sharp & Diamond Landscape Architecture and the lovely Cornelia Hahn Oberlander, which was a treat, indeed!
Cornelia is a force to be reckoned with, and her exuberance shone through the entire presentation. It is a fascinating project – 3/4 of the 20,000 sf roof is greened, while 1/4 is “blue;” the undulating roof is based upon the shape of a native orchid – this project would have fit nicely in our Top 10 List as an example of the #3 position,“Biomimicry as Eco-literacy and Holistic Design.” Maybe for 2011. Lunch on the Trade Show Floor followed, along with the Poster Sessions.
Next up was Haven’s and my session where we were right in the middle of The Big Picture View, and we were very pleased at the turnout. Kerry Ross started with her extremely informative Nordic Adventures: a field study of green roofs in Norway. She highlighted cold climate greenroofs from a recent Scandinavian trip; through her research and documentation of projects has been able to better promote greenroof design and maintenance within Canada.
We followed with our Top 10 List presentation, and it was jam packed! This was the first time we had co-presented together, and Virginia (Jennie) Russell from the University of Cincinnati, our moderator extraordinaire, kept us in-line with methodical announcements for us to pick up the pace. So, it was a bit rushed, but fun (see our PowerPoint here). So many great projects to show, so little time!
We were honored to be in the same session as Cornelia Oberlander, who followed us and presented along with Ross Dixon of Phillips FarevaagSmallenberg. They shared their experiences with the Rooftoptop Renewal – The Redevelopment of Robson Square – An Intensive Green Roof in Downtown Vancouver.
This iconic rooftop civic center courthouse complex and public plaza was originally completed in 1983 by Arthur Erickson Architects and landscape architect Cornelia Hahn Oberlander; replacement of the original waterproofing membrane and restoration of the plantings is currently underway, and is expected to be completed sometime within this year. Refurbishments included surveying to see which tree specimens would be saved and evaluating the best methods for removal, safe keeping during construction, and then replanting.
The Closing Plenary opened with its own lively Top 10 List invitation to join GRHC at the 9th Annual CitiesAlive 2011 in Philadelphia by members of the Philadelphia Local Host Committee. Co-hosted by the City of Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the next Green Roof and Wall Conference will be held in the City of Brotherly Love from November 29 to December 3.
The Panel Discussion Peak Oil, Urban Farming and the Roofs and Walls of Our Cities: Creating a Future We Desire wrapped up the Conference. Delivered by visionary yet practical Keynote Speaker Greg Allen, PE, LEEP AP, of Sustainable Edge, the presentation was forward thinking but set in a very grim reality – we must release our bonds with oil and embrace sustainable energy strategies as well as develop local urban farming on our rooftops and walls to ensure food security – basically we need to explore alternative food options more intelligently.
Panelists included Thomas Mueller of the Canadian Green Building Council, Vancouver Councilor Andrea Reimer, KeithAgoada of Sky Vegetables and Jeff Bruce, and a lot of people raised their own concerns about food supply and quality control, organics, and infrastructure for urban agriculture in the sky. Greenroofs.com was definitely in sync, as Haven Kiers and I had Tower Oases as Skyrise Urban Ag in the 2010 #1 category for our Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof and Greenwall Design.
We enjoyed our Habitat Havens Tour the next day on Saturday, and especially our tour guide, the lively and informative Tyrel Sutton from Flynn Canada. We had a beautiful, clear day to roam around four rooftops (really three, more on that later) that were selected because they were designed to either replicate a specific ecosystem or to provide food for birds, butterflies, or bees. We were lucky because the tours on Tuesday were rainy – in fact, at least one was cancelled.
There are quite a few publically accessible projects around Vancouver, and the Local Host Committee put together a 9-stop Self-Guided Green Roof and Wall Tour list that was included in the program. We didn’t see much, but Caroline did – this is her photo of the ING Green Wall, left, designed by CitiesAlive exhibitor Green over Grey – Living Walls and Design Inc.
I would say there were maybe 700 people at CitiesAlive. With the exception of a few hiccups – spotty snacks, flimsy conference program, tour time changes - overall, I felt that Steven Peck and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities did a fantastic job of planning and executing this first “international” conference. Kind of funny since they’re Canadian, but this was the first time the conference was held outside of the U.S. Plus it was the first time under its new name – CitiesAlive. (As you’ll recall, the previous seven incarnations were titled “Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities.”)
And the Vancouver Local Host Committee (Rod Goy, Marita Luk, Andrea Martinello, Blair Bennett, Nicholas Rousseau, Dr. Katherine Dunster, Helen Goodland, Andrea Linsky, Andrea Kausel and Lyn Ross) should be commended, too, for their outstanding accomplishments and participation in this successful conference! Visit Green Roofs for Healthy Cities’ Acknowledgements page, where I borrowed this photo below:
In general, people were very happy with everything, with minor grumblings about not enough food at the Opening Plenary and dessert on the Trade Show floor after the Awards of Excellence Luncheon. Also, for the first time, CD’s of the conference proceedings were not available, but you can purchase video recordings of the over 60 speakers that go along with each’s PowerPoint presentation (“Full Compilation Streaming Media – Audio Synched to PPT”) from GRHC for $120.
In reflection, we should be happy the conference agenda is so big – I’m sure Greenbuild had similiar growing pains, talk about a massive, multi-day, multi-track program! Or ASLA, or AIA, for that matter. It simply, very clearly, illustrates the tremendous growth of our greenroof and greenwall industry, and acceptance of building integrated greenery into mainstream design. It is impossible to attend each presentation, so it’s great that GRHC developed the Living Architecture Academy – an online learning center with technical papers from all the past conferences and proceedings. Having such a resource at our fingertips is inmeasurable.
Regarding the Trade Show, we’ve all noticed a trend of some past exhibitors not exhibiting lately, sometimes due to the challenging economy, scheduling conflicts, or feeling resources could be better used elsewhere. So, I would also just like to add that all of us who are members of GRHC should pay a big thanks to all of the companies who have exhibited in the past, and who faithfully continue to do so. Being international for many of us, for Vancouver it was more cumbersome and expensive to ship everything, but conferences couldn’t be held without the support of exhibitors and sponsors. I would encourage everyone doing business within our industry to exhibit and work together to make our committment and exposure even better. Here are a few more Trade Show pics:
One of the very best things about all these conferences is the chance to meet new colleagues and see old friends from across the world and catch up on each other’s lives and happenings – we were happy to do this with the always effervescent Dusty Gedge of Livingroofs.org, Kerry Ross and her husband Bob, Chuck Friedrich and Ernie Higgins of ItSaul Natural – Mr. Natural (also from Atlanta), Contributing Editor Dr. Bill Retzlaff of SIUe, and too many other folks to mention! Many of our “usual” German colleagues were missing (Manfred Köhler and Roland Appl, among others), probably due to the numerous previous international congresses where we saw them, but it was great seeing several folks from the City of Portland’s Beaurau of Environmental Services and lots of international students, too.
I wish I had had more time with a bunch of people – the always wonderful Maureen Connelly from BCIT, Jennie Russell, and Andrea Martinello of N.A.T.S., for example, but there will be other conferences!
I’m sorry I couldn’t attend Maureen’s panel session of Expert Discussion: Taking Green Roofs and Walls to the Next Level in British Columbia – A Pathway to the Future! because it conflicted with our Top 10 presentation session. It included the fanstastic Deputy City Manager of the City of Vancouver, Sadhu Johnston – previously Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley’s Chief Environmental Officer and Deputy Chief of Staff, where he headed up much of their greenroof program.
In my opinion, Maureen Connelly is the true greenroof champion in Vancouver with her many years of dedication and research at British Columbia Institute of Technology’s Centre for the Advancement of Green Roof Technology, and should be commended for an outstanding job – keep up the great work, and thanks BCIT for all that you do! (See their project profile in The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database here.) Their Mission Statement:
“The mission of the BCIT Centre for Architectural Ecology – Collaborations in Green Roofs and Living Walls is to conduct world-class, innovative research on green roof and living wall systems and to provide research-based education across disciplines, to students and practitioners.”
The BCIT Centre is evaluating the function and performance of extensive greenroofs and living walls in the rainforest climate of coastal B.C. Through collaborations with industry, government and academic partners, their vision is to help advance the widespread adoption of these technologies in this region. It would have been great to have visited the research facility, but, just like any working trip, there simply wasn’t enough time. Make sure to read BCIT’s “750 attend BCIT-co-hosted green roof conference” of December 13, 2010, where you can also see a huge gallery of photos.
We were here five nights and every day was devoted to conference events – although we didn’t get out to see the city and surroundings, many of our friends did (like Caroline and Janet Faust of JDR Enterprises). Caroline was fortunate enough to go up on a seaplane and took this wonderful aerial photo of Vancouver, above. Like most people, she also visited Whistler Mountain, one of North America’s top ski and snowboard resorts (and snapped this fun snow picture left).
The two greenroofed places I really wanted to visit but didn’t was the awesome Vancouver Public Library (also known as Library Square Building) with its pioneering rooftop built in 1995, and the fantastic 2010 Olympic andParalympic Winter Games Olympic Village, also known as Southeast False Creek and Millennium Water with about 287,000 sf total of greenroofs.
Read my 2.17.10 Sky Gardens post about it here. We featured Millennium Water in 2007’s Top 10 List in the #1 category – Visionary Proposed Projects since the City of Vancouver mandated that at least 50% of the buildings should be covered in green. Next time!
Not content to leave things alone, upon leaving the Vancouver International Airport (YVR), I had to take a bunch of photos of the 17-meter high YVR Canada Line Station 4 Living Wall, designed by the talented Randy Sharp of Sharp & Diamond Landscape Architecture. As you may know, the Canada Line is Vancouver’s new rapid transit rail link connecting YVR to downtown Vancouver, and visitors are greeted by this beautiful green wall of green and silver euonymus, mondo grass, and licorice fern. Read my 3.26.10 Sky Gardens post about it here.
We will defintely return to Vancouver, B.C. as a vacation destination, where we can take in all the sights and locations of this gorgeous city at our leisure! That’s it for now.
If you haven’t already, make sure to read our December, 2010 Guest Feature Article by Janet Faust of JDR Enterprises, “CitiesAlive! 2010,” where she did a great job in describing her reflections of this eighth yearly conference. Her account of compares the experience to a fine wine and Janet comments how these Green Roofs for Healthy Cities’ conferences have gotten better with age! If you’d like to present at the 9th Annual CitiesAlive! Green Roof and Wall Conference in Philadelphia, the Call for Paper Abstracts will be released in a few weeks.
Next up will be a series of posts about individual tour sites from each of these unique cities we had the pleaure of visiting last year: Mexico City, Singapore, and the lovely Vancouver, B.C., Canada.
Singapore (Singapura in Malay) is officially the Republic of Singapore, a gorgeous island country off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia. Although only about 600 sq km in size, Singapore is the world’s fourth leading financial center and its port is one of the five busiest in the world, playing a key role in international trade and finance.
Due to its prime location at the Equator, with its climate of perpetual summer and high rainfall, Singapore offers a rich diversity of flora and fauna, and influences from a multi-ethnic society make dining, shopping, and entertainment top draws, too.
Interestingly, it’s also known as The Lion City, although it is not believed that these animals ever lived on the island.
The inaugural International Skyrise Greenery Conference was held here from November 1 -3, 2010, but we stayed for about 7 days – hey, if you’re going to travel half-way around the world, you may as well stay a while and see as many sights as you can! This was before getting stuck in Narita, Japan, one night on our trek – that’s another story. But we made the best of it, and since we had been there before, we ended up eating at a Chinese restaurant in our hotel by the airport (go figure).
And what did we find the next day on our way to our ANA flight to Singapore at the Narita International Departures Terminal? Extensive greenroofs! See below:
The International Skyrise Greenery Conference organizers were CUGE (The Centre for Urban Greenery and Ecology), a project of the National Parks Board of Singapore (NParks), and the International Green Roof Association (IGRA). This 3-day international conference focused on the latest technological developments and new areas of application in the field of greenroofs and vertical greenery.
Greenroofs.com was a Media Sponsor, and participants were able to receive a huge discount through us! We feel they did a fantastic job all around. I’m not sure of the attendance numbers, but I would estimate around 550-600 people, with a large (and very friendly) contingent from China – about 75 delegates. We met folks from all over including many lovely Chinese professionals – plus delegates from the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, The Netherlands, Italy, the UK, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Belgium, The Philippines, Indonesia, Denmark, India, Iran, Macau, and probably more!
All the speakers here were awesome, too, and the projects on the tours were simply over the top! No, really. Check out the simply amazing SkyPark at Marina Bay Sands below – the one hectare Sky Park covers three 55-story hotel towers and cantilevers 65 meters over the edge. Yes, this is a graphic below, but it really looks like this! I did take the photo below it.
I’m not trying to compare any other conference city to Singapore – it would be unfair to all other locales and simply impossible to compare cities apples to apples, let alone top it. We’ve never seen a cleaner and greener city in all our travels – even Roland Appl of ZinCo, who lives in the beautiful green Stuttgart area, was flabbergasted (sorry, it’s the only word that describes it) at the sheer amount of greenery and detail to greening practices.
Did you know that every tree in Singapore is tagged with a microchip to account for maintenance practices, and it’s a misdemeanor to trim a tree without city permission, let alone cut one down? Of course it may have to do with local politics…they take their trees and urban greenery very seriously here.
And there certainly appears to be no economic slowdown here, either. There was construction at every turn, and it seemed like each building was designed to be a stand-out, iconic structure, too. Not surprisingly, Singapore claimed the title of fastest-growing economy in the world last year, with GDP growth of 17.9% in the first half of 2010!
In any case, skyscrapers and sky gardens reign here ~ about 90-95% of people live in high rise buildings (mostly public housing blocks) on this small island city-state nation, so it’s no wonder that a government so dedicated to greening practices wants to provide its citizens with as much nature within a tight city as possible.
Currently, about a third of the nation’s approximately 650 housing units have greenroofs, with plans to have them all greened soon. You can see the rooftops of seven huge housing blocks below in this photo:
Singaporeans are lucky to have the support of the government, who introduced the Green Roof Incentive Scheme in 2009 to encourage owners of existing buildings to green their rooftops, among other measures. The three-year program offers a cash grant equal to 50% of actual installation costs, subject to a maximum of $75 (Singapore) per square-meter of planted area.
Additional incentives include the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA) LUSH (Landscaping for Urban Spaces and High Rises) which consists of four parts – Landscape Replacement Policy for Strategic Areas; Outdoor Refreshment Area on Landscaped Roof tops; GFA Exemption for Communal Sky Terraces; and Landscaped Deck. This program was designed to consolidate and synergize a number of new and existing green initiatives.
And the BCA Green Mark Certification and Incentive Scheme, launched in January 2005, is an initiative to drive Singapore’s construction industry towards more environment-friendly buildings. Several points in the scoring system can be achieved by installing greenroofs and greenwalls.
Getting back to the International Skyrise Greenery Conference, to be honest, everything about it was top-notch and highly impressive. Our hotel was the beautiful Carlton Hotel Singapore, above, which was about a 4-minute walk away from the venue. Held at the National Library of Singapore, below, the beautiful structure was designed by renown green architect-planner, ecologist and author Dr. Ken Yeang, of Llewlyn Davies Yeang, UK. In 2005, this project received the BCA Green Platinum Award for its green-accredited tower design.
It’s an innovative green building designed using bioclimatic design techniques perfectly suited to the tropics, with extensive landscaping and sky gardens. It was pretty cool how they set everything up to fully enjoy the site – the Exhibition Hall was open air, set on the ground floor Level 1, The Plaza, which was warm but comfortable since it captured the balmy pass-through breezes due to the design of the wide spaces and high ceilings. We also had the lunches and tea breaks here, too. I have to say that the food and refreshments were outstanding!
The sessions were held inside in the plush auditorium-style theaters, and everything was close at hand with many conference staff available for assistance. The Opening Ceremony of the International Skyrise Greenery Conference 2010 was officiated by Guest-of-Honor Ms. Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State for National Development and Education, and she said:
“In today’s context of rapid urbanisation, 70% of the world’s population is expected to live in cities by the year 2050. Cities will increasingly face competing uses of land, and it will be challenging to set aside sufficient land for parks and greenery.
It is therefore not surprising that skyrise greenery, in the form of green roofs, vertical greenery and sky gardens, is growing among cities around the world. It is especially an attractive proposition for cities that are limited by space, but seek to provide a quality living environment for their people.” ~ Ms. Grace Fu
SIA-NParks (Singapore Institute of Architects and National Parks Board) then presented the winners of their third annual Skyrise Greenery Awards 2010, which aims to promote and recognize the greening of high-rise developments - to encourage creative and original ideas and to highlight the importance of team effort in their design, implementation, and maintenance. There were some pretty cool projects featured here – three projects received first, second, and third prizes for Completed Projects, and one received the first prize for Unbuilt Projects/Ideas.
The organizers opted for two Plenary Sessions and we were treated to four keynote speakers, two on each day. On Monday, November 1, we were intrigued (and entertained) by French botanist Dr. Patrick Blanc from the French National Centre for Scientific Research (and creator of the Vertical Garden or Mur Végétal) who presented “The Vertical Garden – From Nature to Cities.” The always popular German Professor Dr. Manfred Köhler from University Neubrandenburg then shared his thoughts “On Green Design & Planning.”
I was honored to follow them with our Top 10 List, and then we heard from Roland Appl, President of the International Green Roof Association (and ZinCo Technical Director) who shared “The Development of Green Roofs – A Look Behind the Scenes.” Afterwards the program broke out into three parallel workshops - so Aramis and I divided.
On the second day, Tuesday, November 2, we were enlightened by keynote speaker Argentine born U.S architect (and my personal favorite) Emilio Ambasz’s reflections of ”Architecture and Nature – Towards a Pact of Reconciliation.” He spoke about his design philosophy over 35 years of experience designing “to integrate architecture into design,” making it accessible to all and to be used by the community at large. He also showed his firm’s film “Green Over the Grey” which is the story of designing a building in the middle of a garden where 100% of the disturbed ground plane is recovered with green – where “the House AND the Garden” are organically integrated. “People should be their own gardeners,” he says.
Our fourth keynote, Malaysian born architect Dr. Ken Yeang, followed with ”Vertical Greenery and Urban Water Management.” He explained the need to create an ecological nexus between species and architecture, and spoke about the current Solaris project in Singapore, which among other features will contain the longest linear park at 1.3 km in the world when completed.
Each wowed us with their very unique personalities and distinct presentation styles! For example, Mr. Ambasz said, “Architecture is a state of spirit, not diplomas,” and Dr. Yeang said, “A green building should look green, which means hairy!” Since Day 2 offered an entire plenary session, no choosing of sessions was necessary.
After the first day, the attendees were treated to a lovely personal guided tour of the National Orchid Garden and Welcome Dinner with an orchestra to entertain us at the Villa Halia in the stunning Ginger Gardens in the Singapore Botanic Gardens. The Orchid Garden offers over 20,000 orchid plants on display, with every size, shape and color imaginable. They have it divided into four sections to represent the four seasons, with a representative color scheme for each. I think I took 100 photos here alone – what a magical place! Here are a few to enjoy:
Within the Orchid Garden is the Tan Hoon Siang Misthouse, which was a cool refreshment after walking through the steamy tropical forest – check these out:
I didn’t take this one of the greenroof on site – I didn’t know it was there! I found it on Wikipedia:
We made lots of new friends here, including Italian agronomist and green designer Laura Gatti from Studio Laura Gatti, seated below,with us.
The French red and wine selection was fabulous, and since it was rather hot in the tropical rain forest climate, Aramis and I were very happy to sip on the white wine all evening. We appreciated it even more afterwords!
Side Note: We had arrived the afternoon before on Sunday and met many of the other speakers and attendees at Brotzeit Raffles City (with its own fabulous “garnish farm” greenroof over it), a popular German Bier Bar & Restaurant, where we obviously drank beer (kind of expensive at about $14 each). So this wonderful experience at the Botanic Garden was our first full evening in Singapore with dinner.
Well, you can imagine our surprise (ignorance, I suppose) on the following evening when we found out that the cheapest bottle of wine in any restaurant was about $60! We found out that all alcohol is highly taxed here, and the extra expensive prices were also due to the fact that we were hanging out in the exclusive Orchard Road area (the road which led to former nutmeg plantations). So did we ever have a famous Singapore Sling? This traditional cocktail is a mixture of gin, cherry liqueur, grenadine, pineapple and lemon juice, very tropical-like, and of course we had to try one – but at about $16 a pop, we only had one each!
Overall, we each had numerous favorite presentations, but I think my second favorite one (after Emilio) was from Kai-Uwe Bergmann, Associate Partner, BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group of Denmark – it had the definite wow factor of the conference! His presentation started with the eye-catching, frenetic “Yes is More” video highlighting the young firm itself plus some of its equally eye-catching projects. We had one as a project in Haven Kiers‘ and my 2010 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design this year – the cool World Village of Women Sports (WVWS) in Malmö, Sweden - in the #9 category, “Green Sporting Venues.” Also, it turns out that Kai-Uwe actually grew up here in the Atlanta area, of all places. (By the way, the YES IS MORE EBOOK app is now available for download on iTunes.)
Jaron Lubin, Associate, Safdie Architects described the incredible experience of “The SkyPark at the Marina Bay Sands” – a true marvel of engineering with its unique infinity edge pool, jogging paths, public observatory, restaurants and lounges – offering spectacular views of Singapore, towering 200 meters in the sky:
The 150-meter infinity swimming pool is the world’s largest outdoor pool at this height.
Professor Wang Xian Min, Secretary General of the International Promotion Center for Vertical Planting from China presented ”Vertical Planting in Shanghai World Expo-Good Measure of Build Energy-Saving” and gave his experiences on the recent (May 2010) Expo there. As also the Secretary-General of the Hainan China World Green Roof Conference 2011, he invited all of us to attend this conference on March 18-21, 2011. “This World Green Roof Conference (WGRC) will be held in the three most special cities of Hainan (Haikou, Boao and Sanya). WGRC wants to further the cause of roof greening, vertical planting and ecological restoration and improve the various technologies for ecological, environmental protection and sustainable development through international communication.”
We were pleased to finally meet David Aponte, Founder of PR Green Design, who we’ve been corresponding with about his many projects in Puerto Rico who asked “Are All Green Roofs Created Equal – Green Roof Installation in the Caribbean Region” and then compared similarities between his area of the sub-tropical world to tropical Singapore. David’s seen above between an attendee from The Netherlands (forgot her name!) and Sidonie Carpenter of Australia.
Dr. Tan Puay Yok, Deputy Director of the Centre for Urban Greenery and Ecology, National Parks Board presented “The Greening of the Highrise Environment in Singapore – An Overview of Policy and Projects” which was extremely interesting in its scope (read Wolfgang Ansel’s and his October 2010 Guest Feature about the Skyrise Conference here). And the always affable Ho Wan Weng, IGRA Singapore Representative (whom we had met previously in Nürtingen, Germany – read my October 2004 Sky Gardens ~ Travels in Landscape Architecture column about it), talked about the “Sustainable Green Roof in Tropical Asia – Beyond the Horizon.”
And “A Hospital Within a Healing Garden – Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Singapore” (above) was extremely enjoyable, too, in particular due to the delightful speaker, Mr. Liak Teng Lit, CEO of Alexandra Health, who manages the hospital. He’s not your typical CEO – he’s very hands on and proud of all his employees – and had us laughing, too.
Designed by CPG Consultants, Peridian Asia, and Tropical Environment, the lovely Khoo Teck Puat Hospital project won the First Prize for the SIA-NParks Skyrise Greenery Awards 2010. Rooftop garden spaces were designed to promote patient healing in weaving, terraced levels, and all of the staff was involved in the entire process.
Andrew Grant, President of Grant Associates, presented the stunning “Gardens by the Bay, Singapore,” another wow project. Designed by Grant Associates and Wilkinson Eyre Architects, three distinct, orchid-shape (the country’s national flower) waterfront botanical gardens are being set here on 10 hectares. Noted for its “Supertrees,” 18 vertical gardens rising from 25, 40 and 55 meters above ground will power the conservatories and act as energy centers for solar hot water heaters and solar panels, plus provide rainwater harvesting. This project was listed in our Top 10 List as an example of the #3 position,“Biomimicry as Eco-literacy and Holistic Design.” Phase 1 of the Gardens is scheduled to be completed in November, 2011.
We visited the site – under construction above – on our tour (I took the photo from the SkyPark at the Marina Sands), and you can see how far they’ve come with the conservatories. See all those columns? Those will be the Supertrees, shown to the right in the graphic above, and below at night when the canopies will come alive in Marina South Gardens with lighting and projected media (also on the cover of our PowerPoint, above). They will be planted with tropical climbers, epiphytes, and ferns and are sure to create quite a visually stunning display!
We also enjoyed hearing – and seeing once again - from perennial favorites Wolfgang Ansel, Director of IGRA (“Green Roof Policies – An International Review of Current Practices and Future Trends”); Susan Weiler, Landscape Architect with Olin Partnership (“A Land Ethic: Replenishing Our Diminishing Resources”); Sidonie Carpenter, President of Green Roofs Australia Inc. and Principal of Green Canopy Design, Australia (“Green Roof and Wall – Trends and Projects in Australia”); Professor Hitesh Doshi of Ryerson University, in Toronto (“The Toronto Green Roof Bylaw and the Green Roof Construction Standard”) and Dr. Nigel Dunnett, Director of the Green Roof Centre at the University of Sheffield (“Integrating People and Nature: Sustainable Green Roofs and Roof Gardens”), seen at right.
It’s impossible to mention everyone, but you can see the Programme Details here to see all the wonderful presenters and their topics. By the way, the sturdy Conference Programme was highly informative and is a great keepsake of the event, with biographies, many photos and resources.
On a related note, I was asked to write an article about our company, philosophy and future plans for CITYGREEN, a bi-annual publication of CUGE. The 1st issue was launched in April of 2010 and it’s described as “The latest interdisciplinary periodical on greening cities, CITYGREEN contains a selection of articles, written by professionals and specialists, on urban green projects, programs, research and technologies.”
The beautiful, full-color glossy 104-page Issue #2/2011 with The Solaris by Dr. Ken Yeang on the cover (and with my “The International Greenroof Industry’s Online Information Portal: Greenroofs.com” article inside) was included in all the registrants’ bags.
As I already mentioned, the Exhibitor Hall was arranged on the expansive ground floor of the National Library around the break area, and there were many people to visit, with lots of new products and companies. Some were familiar, such as Elmich, below, where we reconnected with Victor Tan, but most were unfamiliar to us. But by the end of the conference, we had visited all of them. Here are just a few shots:
In the Conference Closing, Friends of the High Line received the International Green Roof Association (IGRA) “Green Roof Leadership Award 2010,” presented to Dr. John H. Alschuler, Jr. of HR & A Advisors, Inc. (who also had an amazing, inspirational presentation on the subject), by IGRA President Roland Appl for the wonderful High Line project (see the 11.9.10 press release).
We all went on our way, and then the entire third day was devoted to the excellent bus tour, which I’ll talk about in detail at another time.
It was a bit far out but easy to get to, involving only one transfer and a bit of walking. Our first impression is seen below, its glass façade and embracing greenroof arms peeking out as we approached the campus (more later):
Next on our self-guided tour was the Suburu Showroom, which we had included in our very first Top 10 List in 2007, under the #9 category of “Sports & Recreation in Unexpected Places.” Unexpected indeed, the rugged yet lushly planted intensive greenroof sits atop the dealership and is the area for test driving SUV’s and off-road vehicles!
We were extremely disappointed when we were not allowed access, but in fairness, we should have made prior arrangements. So we took a few photos anyway:
We concluded our long day of searching for greenroofs at the highly recommended Night Safari – a unique experience as the world’s first wildlife park built for night visits. We rode through the park on a tram that took us through dark but scenic landscapes teeming with nocturnal animals – many of whom I’m sorry to say that you couldn’t see very well! We saw more when we tracked back along the walking trails, though. The Night Safari’s cultural performance was pretty spectacular, with lots of fire-breathing antics. It was definitely worth the far-out visit.
I’ll briefly mention the fantastic Walking Tour that The International Skyrise Greenery Conference organizers put together (more later): Thirteen really outstanding projects were mapped and routed for us, along with a brief description or each. We only made it to about six or seven (two were included on the all day tour), and actually found a few more “random greenery” sites of our own along the way!
All in all, Singapore was a trip of a lifetime – of course, we are fortunate to travel extensively. This world-class conference was one of those unique opportunities to combine a working vacation with a world-class city. Aramis and I have wonderful memories of the cosmopolitan city that is Singapore, and will surely return here, most probably when the incredibly stunning Gardens by the Bay at Marina South is finished. And I want to fully explore the Singapore Botanic Gardens at my leisure, too!
Singapore is evolving from “The Garden City” into a “City Within a Garden,” much more a philosophy of a way of living as opposed to simply a coveted title. I think it’s safe for me to say that urban greenery innovations are growing almost daily here, literally! And their continued promotion of green initiatives will help strengthen Singapore’s distinct identity as a tropical City-in-a-Garden.
That’s it for now, I’ll be blogging about all our stops on the tour soon.
But for now, reflections on the cooler climate of the gorgeous city of Vancouver, B.C. are next!
Late Fall 2010 was quite a whirlwind of international conferences for us, and I’m just a little late blogging about our wonderful experiences! With the Winter Solstice and Christmas just behind us, and the New Year looming ever near, it’s still better late than never!
We had the pleasure of attending the WGIN Mexico City World Green Roof Congress - El Congreso Mundial de Azoteas Verdes México 2010 – in Mexico’s hustling and busting capital on October 7-9. Mexico City is the longest continuously-inhabited city in the Western Hemisphere and sits atop the lake basin where the Mexica Indians founded their empire in 1325 and were defeated by the Spanish under Hernan Cortes two centuries later. The city lies in an immense, volcano-dotted valley, encompassing a population approaching 23 million.
According to our taxi diver, the road we travelled in and out from the Mexico City International Airport is the 700-year old “La Calzada de Guadalupe” which was a means to cross the river underneath. It was then called Typac which meant sanctuary in Aztec.
The first time this event (and any other major living architecture event for that matter) was held in a Latin American city, the WGIN Mexico City Congress was hosted by the Mexican Association for Green Roofing - AMENA by its acronym in Spanish – together with the Government of Mexico City. And as you may know, Tanya Müller Garcia is the president of AMENA (and Vice President of the World Green Infrastructure Network – WGIN), and the main person responsible for this highly successful conference! Aramis and I were extremely impressed at many facets.
First of all, I believe many people have a wrong impression of Mexico City – in fact we had a few people early on commenting that they thought it would be unsafe (of course, you have be situationally aware of your surroundings everywhere, regardless). We found quite the opposite to be true, plus we were pleasantly surprised that although it’s the largest city in the Americas and the world’s third largest metropolitan area by population, after Seoul and Tokyo, the areas of Mexico City we visited were very clean with lots of greenery, including many public parks, large and small.
In fact, we had the beautiful public municipal Alameda Park, a green garden with paved paths and decorative fountains and statues, just across the street from our hotel. And everywhere we went, people were extremely friendly and accommodating, too.
As far as the Congress went, Tanya Müller and company is to be commended on the high quality of planning and execution – the location and layout was spectacular – all it took was one elevator ride in our five-star Hilton Hotel Mexico City Reforma (with its own rooftop gardens) to get to the Session Halls and the Exhibitor Trade Show area.
And they had a huge turnout, young and old alike with many students - there were over 750 people in attendance – not bad for the first of its kind in a “new” market! Of course, greenroofs and greenwalls aren’t new to Latin America, they’ve been developing along with the rest of North America. In fact, our Top 10 List of Hot Trends for 2010 has “The Greening of Latin America” in the #5 position!
The Conference had an incredibly lovely Opening Cocktail Reception on the intensive greenroof rooftop garden at the Antiguo Palacio de Ayuntamiento in the Plaza de la Constitución, a beautiful colonial-era Town Hall in the zocalo, or main plaza, located in the historic center where we were greeted by the ”Grupo Huehuel Tlahtolli Centro de tradición antigua Teotihuacán” – the native group Huehuel Tlahtolli of the Teotihuacán, dressed in full regalia.
Their eloquent spokesperson addressed the ubiquitous developmental practices so common in large urban centers and how we as community members of our planet must come together to further develop sustainable building practices. He commended the government of Mexico City and AMENA for promoting green infrastructure such as greenroofs and walls, and we then enjoyed a variety of traditional ceremonial dances and music under a cool, breezy, and starry night. Mexico City officials spoke about their commitment to greening the city and their “Plan Verde” or Green Plan for its citizens, and then everyone relaxed and mingled in the party atmosphere. It was also very nice seeing Tanya’s mom again (we met her last year in Toronto) and meeting her lovely sister, too, seen below with Manfred Köhler, President of WGIN, and friend.
The next morning’s Opening Plenary was packed beyond measure as the Mexico City Mayor, Lic. Marcelo Ebrard, welcomed us all to his city. He is quite a visionary leader speaking to his commitment of improving our communities, and how we need a healthy relationship with the environment to guarantee sustainability for the next decades. How do we do this? By reducing our CO2 emissions and oil dependency, increasing recycling and related activities and by greening our cities. Other dignitaries along with WGIN delegates from around the world spoke as well and there were tons of television and newspaper reporters and cameras flashing – very high profile coverage!
We had a very large selection of wonderful speakers with a decidedly Latin focus – although our non-Spanish speaking colleagues had no problem with the language since the sessions were held in both English and Spanish, with simultaneous translations (the glossy programs were in both languages as well).
The Congress had two tracks (Aramis went to one, I the other), which made it easier to choose, yet it was still hard as it was fascinating to hear about all these buildings being integrated with greenery throughout the Caribbean and Central and South America. And there were so many awesome presentations! There were tons of people to assist your every need, and it was very easy to be a speaker and moderator:
The main Latin America themes focused on the need for continued research and monitoring, information sharing, and overall collaborative efforts to further informing the public and increasing awareness of greenroofs and greenwalls. It was great that there were speakers from the majority of all the Latin American countries - and each shared their successes and struggles with stories of design, trial and error, and in some cases, community involvement.
Just a few of our favorite presentations included: ”A Green Habitat for the City of Mexicali” by Javier Sonsosian Aguilar (architect) which showed a variety of stunning colorful and sinuous greenroofed structures, many resembling the earth sheltered organic designs of Swiss architect Peter Vetch and undulating forms of Catalonia architect Antoní Gaudí, with a variety of cool features like periscopes, earth tubes and wind turbines; “Roof Gardens Over Steel” by Claudia Harari (founder and director of Harari Landscape Architecture) which was a fascinating case study of collaboration and the trials and tribulations of greening over the irregular geometric shape of the sharp steel roof of the Museo de Acero Horno 3 (Steel Museum Oven 3) in Monterrey, Mexico; “New Green Strategies – From Outdoor to Indoor” by Andreas Schmidt (founder of indoorlandscaping) – see photo above – which talked about the need, and continued popularity, of interior greenwalls (also being done a lot in Chile by Ignacio Espoz of Latin Green) and other interior plantscapes; and “Sustainable Buildings, LEED Certification and Green Roofs: A Natural Venture” by Cesar Ulises Treviño, President of the Green Building Council Mexico which informed us of the current situation here.
Here’s a couple of other slides:
Not all the presentations were connected to Latin America, however. We also had informative international updates about research, greening policies, and technical experiences from: Joaquín Sicilia from Sicilia y Asociados Arquitectura and Julián Briz from the Universidád Politécnica de Madrid and Isabel de Felipe from the Ciudad Universitaria in Madrid of Spain; Andrew Clements from Green Roofs Greece of Greece; Matthew Dillon from Green Roofs Australia of Australia; Suresh Kumar Billore from Vikram University of India; Josh Wells (who was a last minute stand in for Clayton Rugh, who couldn’t make the trip) of Xero Flor America of the U.S.; Sachiko Kikuchi from Meiji University of Japan, François Lassalle from ADIVET “Association des Toitures Vegetales of France”; Steven Peck of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities of Canada; and a very large contingency from Germany including the aforementioned Andreas Schmidt, Manfred Köhler, President of WGIN and Vice Dean of the Department of Landscape Architecture at the University of Applied Sciences Neubrandedburg, Olga Gorbachevskaya, Hendrikje Schreiter, and Susanne Herfort, all from the Institute for Agricultural and Urban Ecological Projects associated with Humboldt University, Eckart Kramer from the School of Sustainable Development Eberswalde (FH), and Angelika Kurz, architect.
One extremely cool thing was that AMENA had set up live streaming of one of the presentation tracks with a company called COMUNICASION, for all the world to see! And COMUNICASION produced several videos of the event (in Spanish), which you can see below. Tanya is interviewed and you can see the Opening Plenary and dignitaries, including the Mayor of Mexico City, here:
Adjacent to the session rooms, the Exhibit Hall had numerous new and interesting companies showcasing their products – plants, complete greenroof systems, individual components, professional services, and there were quite a few modular offerings as well.
… along with North American favorites like Xero Flor America (Josh Wells in the center) and rooflite (Peter Philippi was in there somewhere!), too:
The Congress offered well appointed snacks, beverages and generous (and delicious) lunches, too – just one of the ways to network among our peers. We were very pleased to reconnect with several people from last year’s CitiesAlive Conference in Toronto, including the wonderful Spanish couple Julián Briz and Isabel de Felipe, seen below, and Ignacio Espoz of Santiago, Chile.
We made several new friends as well, including the fantastic Spanish architect Joaquín Sicilia, bubbly Chilean architect and Vice-President of the Botanic Society of Chile, Vicky Rojas, Colombian architect Andrés Ibáñez Gutiérrez (below with Aramis) and super-friendly Mexican greenroofers Roberto Huber Romo and Oswaldo Zurita (they do greenwalls, too!).
Remember I said people were friendly? The consierge recommend a fantastic new restaurant a couple of blocks away on the second day – Spuntino, Alameda, owned by a wonderful Argentine-born U.S. citizen named Moises Drijanski. The food, wine selection, and atmosphere was utterly fantastic! This is their third restaurant, and they’re known for an ecclectic mix of offerings, but in particular for their mixed grill and a variety of steaks from Argentina and the U.S., and pizzas! If you’re in the area, you must visit them at Desarollo Puerta Alameda, Independencia esq. (corner of) Luis Moya, Mexico City (5518-1107).
The closing cocktail had an Indian flair with a variety of local cuisine and music to inspire us to attend the 2011 WGIN World Green Roof Congress in Indore City, India on October 31 – November 2, where the focus will be on “Green Technology for Green Roof, Green Home and Rain Harvesting to Combat for a Sustainable Future.” Professor Suresh Billore from WGIN India, below right, invites all of us to join in the education, networking and fun next year!
From a social standpoint, we saw lots of old friends and colleagues and mingled at several opportunities, and the tours were very well planned with a huge comfortable bus - the large selection of greenroofs and walls were very varied and extremely fascinating! And each site tour guide had intimate, in-depth knowledge about each project, which made each experience even more exceptional. It’s great to see first hand examples of Mexico City’s greening efforts from municipal, corporate, and grass-roots leaders.
The WGIN Mexico City World Green Roof Congress was a resounding success and important for many reasons. Our industry continues to grow, even flourish, in this economy and we must continue to push for more government and private support. Mexico City is a leader with both, and it’s clear that many other Latin American nations are following suit. Brazil and Mexico have the highest greenroof and greenwall numbers, but Chile, Argentina, Puerto Rico, and Colombia are quickly following suit, with most other Latin American countries involved as well. AMENA and WGIN made great headway by offering continuing support to these national members and I think we can expect to see great continued work and success coming from many of these members!
One of the world’s great cosmopolitan capitals, Mexico City offers visitors so many wonderful opportunities for sightseeing, shopping, dining, business, and now, greening! Unfortunately, we didn’t stay long enough to travel much except for the fun, day long bus tour, which I’ll talk about later.
I have to say that the two WGIN (World Green Infrastructure Network) World Green Roof Congresses that we’ve attended, both last year’s CitiesAlive! in Toronto (read my CitiesAlive! ‘09 Day Tour & Evening Fiesta and The Inaugural CitiesAlive! – Seeds of Success posts for more info, as well as Christine’s Reflections on CitiesAlive! from Christine Thuring) and this one, are an extremely good deal in terms of conference pricing – only $250 which includes two days of excellent speakers, lunch, snacks, the inaugural cocktail, closing cocktail, and the guided greenroof and greenwall tour.
In conclusion, we enjoyed our visit to Mexico City immensely and wish to thank Tanya and AMENA for their wonderful the hospitality! Make sure to visit AMENA where you can learn all about what’s going on in Mexico, as well as see some beautiful photos of the WGIN Mexico City World Green Roof Congress – click on both Galería banners.
On a side note, on our way back home we were also impressed with the final departure lounge in Terminal 2 at the Mexico City International Airport, designed with many sustainable elements by SPACE. Look at these cool openings in the ceiling which welcome natural daylight inside the lounge, seen above.
2010 marks the fourth year of our ”Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design” – download the Press Release here.
Compiled by our Design Editor, Haven Kiers, and I, this year’s list of categories represents amazing examples of both vegetated roofs and walls since the concept of “Building Integrated Greenery” knows no boundaries, and in fact blurs the distinction between a structure’s various planes.
The focus of the Top 10 Trends of 2010 illustrates global shifts in thinking about how we can manipulate the built environment through design to lessen its burden on the Earth’s climate, energy, and natural resources, and increase the overall productivity of our built structures. Showcased are simply stunning and important built projects, those that are still on the boards, and several amazing, beyond forward-thinking conceptual designs that hopefully will materialize in the future!
Without further ado:
2010 HOT TRENDS in GREENROOF & GREENWALL DESIGN Top 10 List
10) Client Specific ‘Boutique’ Greenroofs We’ve had this category each year, and it’s kind of a catch all for projects that are too unique to fit into their own category
9) Green Sporting Venues From construction jobs, to parking, ticket sales, and concessions revenue, sporting venues bring in big bucks to a community and can be the lifeblood of a local economy. It should come as no surprise, then, that the trend in sporting venue construction is high end and green to attract an upscale clientele while simultaneously bringing in government subsidies. New baseball & soccer stadiums, basketball arenas, tennis centers and even Olympic stadiums are sporting greenroofs these days.
8) A Symbiosis of Ecology & Architecture It’s not enough to just design beautiful buildings any more. These days, structures need to be aesthetically stunning, sustainable. and more. Form still follows function, but we’re finding ways to design with nature, not just on top of it.
7) Greenwalls as Public Art We’ve seen greenwalls used to advertise products, feed the homeless, and remove particulate matter from the air, but what about greenwalls as objects of art, themselves? Vegetated murals are the newest form of public art.
6) Daylighting Greenroofs If there’s anything we’ve learned from the green building movement, it’s the importance of natural light to reduce energy consumption, connect people to the outdoors, and improve employee & student satisfaction and productivity. Pairing skylights and windows with greenroofs is the natural next step in sustainable design.
5) The Greening of Latin America European, Asian and North American greenroofs have hogged the spotlight for long enough. Slowly but steadily, greenroofs and greenwalls have been sprouting up throughout Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America – all with a unique, local Latin flair.
4) Building Integrated Greenery for a Cooler Planet We all know that vegetation helps cool buildings, and designers are taking it to a new level. Building Integrated Greenery – greenwalls and greenroofs – are increasingly integrated with sustainable building design to naturally manufacture cool air that reduces the need for energy hogs like air conditioners.
3) Biomimicry as Eco-literacy & Holistic Design Designers are increasingly taking the lead from Mother Nature by creating structures that operate like natural organisms. Biomimicry informs the public by incorporating principles from the natural world into the design and function of buildings.
2) Megacities & Redevelopment Enveloped in Green What more can we say? Designers and city planners are thinking bigger and greener!
1) Tower Oases as Skyrise Urban Ag Last year our #1 category was “Towers of Power” – Mega Vertical Structures Linking Earth and Skywhich blurred the distinction between greenroofs and greenwalls.
For 2010 we continue on that theme – burgeoning populations and rapid urbanization are making vertical urban agriculture hot these days. Most of these visionary projects are still in the conceptual phase, but with the support of governments and the exploding imagination of designers, building integrated agriculture is well on its way to becoming a towering urban reality.
I presented the 2010 Top 10 a couple of weeks ago in Mexico City at the WGIN World Green Roof Congress (an awesome conference – more on that later!), and will be presenting it next week in Singapore for the 2010 International Skyrise Greenery Conference, and both Haven and I will be hand for the 8th Annual 2010 Green Roof and Green Wall Conference – CitiesAlive! in Vancouver, B.C. in December. Because of the time limitations for presenting at these conferences, ranging from 20 – 30 minutes, we can only show 4 or 5 representative projects in each category, although there are many more out there!
You can view the 2009, 2008 and 2007 PowerPoint presentations of the Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof Design, and we’ll be posting our 2010 PowerPoint in mid December, where we’ll post additional projects, too, for our newly titled “Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design.”
As you probably know (unless you’ve just entered the greenroof field), Ed Snodgrass is a horticultural consultant who co-owns and operates Emory Knoll Farms/Green Roof Plants, a perennial nursery specializing in green roof plants that stocks over 100 varieties of green roof plants. To date they have and provided over 2.5 million sf of planted roofs!
Ed is also a seasoned speaker (highly in demand) and writer (who says he will try and contribute more here on Greenroofs.com!). By now I’m sure you’ve all read Green Roof Plants: A Resource and Planting Guide, by Edmund C. Snodgrass and Lucie L. Snodgrass, published by Timber Press, 2006 – I thought it was great, and a perfect resource – see my review here.
And, his brand new book, The Green Roof Manual: A Professional Guide to Design, Installation, and Maintenance, by Edmund C. Snodgrass and Linda McIntyre, published by Timber Press, 2010, is now available! I feel privileged that I was sent an early copy to review, which I’m working on along with finishing up another Contributing Editor’s book by Kelly Luckett – The Green Roof Guy -Green Roof Construction and Maintenance, published by McGraw-Hill’s Greensource, 2009 (it’s fantastic and I can’t believe I haven’t finished the review yet). Are they similar? Yes and no. Both are certainly unique with dinstinct perspectives.
But my early feeling for Ed and Linda’s new book is that it is simply great – much more overall in scope than the first (of course, it had a plant focus) and another must have for our greenroof and greenwall library! Order today from Amazon.com for quick delivery.
Wow, Greenroofs.com received 30 entries from around the world in our first greenroof contest ever – the ”Love the Earth, Plant a Roof!” Earth Day Photo Contest – and the enthusiasm has been enormous! We wanted a way to honor Earth Day and hear what you, in our greenroof world, have done to lessen our footprint, so I came up with this idea to highlight your efforts.
Voting and submissions are now closed. Thanks to everyone who submitted a project – each beautiful, unique and special in their own way. And let’s admit it – any roof that has been greened is a huge step up from the traditional conventional roof – hot, barren, and certainly unproductive (OK, unless you have solar or a reflective roof)!
We’ll announce the winner on Friday, April 30, the last day of Earth Month. And we’ll soon get to learn all about the winning roof from the person who submitted it – we already know the What (a greenroof!), but how about the Who, Where, When and Why of the project? Stay tuned!
Check out the entries here and look for our announcement on Friday.
On Saturday March 27, 2010 Earth Hour had its largest support ever. A record 128 countries and territories joined the global display of climate action, and iconic structures and landmarks from Asia to Europe and Africa to the Americas switched their lights off. People across the world from all walks of life came together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet.
Steve and his better half, Nancy Petroline, (both pilots) are friends of ours and felt the mixture of my passion for greenroofs and the very important fact that the President of 
In reflection, we should be happy the conference agenda is so big – I’m sure 
I’m sorry I couldn’t attend Maureen’s panel session of Expert Discussion: Taking Green Roofs and Walls to the Next Level in British Columbia – A Pathway to the Future! because it conflicted with our Top 10 presentation session. It
Not content to leave things alone, upon leaving the Vancouver International Airport (YVR), I had to take a bunch of photos of the 17-meter high 
On a related note, I was asked to write an article about our company, philosophy and future plans for 
