Greenroofs.comConnecting the Planet + Living Architecture

Our daughter, Anjuli, 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.   Here’s the transcript for March 25, 2011 –  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 25th, 2011 on GreenroofsTV.

– Project of the Week

–   Our project of the week is the Chicago Botanic Garden, Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center built in 2010 2009 in Chicago, Illinois.   When the Botanic Garden opened its new Center, its goal was to “Save the Plants, Save the Planet.”  This 38,000 square-foot building serves as a state-of-the-art research facility and laboratory dedicated to plant conservation and public education.   Designed by Booth Hansen Architects, it was awarded LEED Gold rating.   In addition to serving as a research area, the roof also functions as a living example of sustainable technologies.   One of the low-slung building’s main “classrooms” is its North and SouthGarden Roof, which features an overlook with interactive panels explaining the benefits of rooftop gardens and greenroofs.   The Chicago Botanic Garden placed a white, energy efficient roof system over the atrium part of the building, anda scrim-reinforced waterproofing membrane under the garden roof, both from Sika Sarnafil.  And the waterproofing system includes Electric Field Vector Mapping ® from International Leak Detection, or ILD.   The roof has both built in place greenroofs as well as an area planted with the modular GreenGrid system.

–   To learn more about Chicago Botanic Garden Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center greenroof, click on our project of the week photo on our homepage.

–   “What’s New“

–   Advertiser Press Release:  LiveRoof Introduces RoofStone: the Integrated Pave Solution for the LiveRoof Hybrid Green Roof.   Engineered to Integrate with the Dimensions of LiveRoof Modules, RoofStone Offers a Complementary Accessory for Rooftop Walkways and Patio.

–   Read our newest Guest Feature: “What’s Greener – White Roof or Green Roofs?  Find Out in Washington, D.C. at the Living Architecture Symposium“ by Steven Peck and Jeffrey Bruce.   They will be focusing on the continuation to build the government green roof and wall market with presentations focused on bottom line benefits, new research, and a trade show featuring new products and services.   Don’t miss the Living Architecture Symposium on April 11th & 12th hosted by Green Roofs for Healthy Cities and see the beautiful National Cherry Blossom Festival there in Washington, D.C., too.   Visit wdc.greenroofs.org for more information and to register today.

–   Joblinks Update:    LiveRoof is seeking an Architectural Product Rep based in Chicago and a Sales Specialist based in Indiana.  Go to greenroofs.com/joblinks.htm to apply to these jobs and check out our other Green Roof Jobs postings.

–   Check out Linda’s latest Sky Gardens Blog posts:   “Earth Hour is Upon Us!“   At 8:30 PM tomorrow, lights will switch off around the globe for Earth Hour and people will commit to actions that go beyond the hour; GPW: Chicago Botanic Garden Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center; and “Call for Papers: WGIN’s International Green Technology Symposium 2011.” Organizing Secretary Professor Suresh Billore has issued an open invitation to attend and participate in the World Green Infrastructure Network International Green Technology Symposium 2011, which will be held in Indore, India on October 31st through November 2nd later this year. If you’re interested in presenting a paper, you can submit your extended abstract by May 28th to info@greenindia2011.org.

–   And did you know that now you can read my This Week in Review transcript?   You can, on the Sky Gardens Blog every Saturday.

–   “Upcoming Events“

–   Tomorrow, March 26th: the entire world will be coming together to celebrate Earth Hour.   At 8:30 pm, local time wherever you are, Earth Hour will celebrate a worldwide commitment to ongoing change for the betterment of the one thing that unites us all – the planet.   Your journey can start here by signing up and adding your voice to the hundreds of millions across the globe who have already spoken with their actions.   Check out the inspiring Earth Hour 2011 video to see what the planet’s voice looks like.   What will you celebrate for Earth Hour 2011?

–   March 28th: is the Centre for Urban Greenery and Ecology Research Seminar in Singapore.

–   March 30th – 31st: is GLOBALCON – Energy, Power & Facility Management Strategies & Technologies in Philadelphia, PA.

–   Also on March 30th – 31st: is the BuildingsNY/GreenBuildingsNY 2011 in New York, NY.

–   March 30th – April 1st: is Design-Build for Water/Wastewater Conference in Kansas City, MO.

–   And on April 1st: is the Green Infrastructure Ontario Coalition: One Day Training Workshop in Grand River, ON Canada.

–   “In the News“

–   Doug Mayer & David Horn of the North Carolina News Network Blog talk about “Bill would provide incentive to install green roofs.”  A bill introduced in the House of Representatives would give a 75% tax credit for the cost of installing a green roof.   Rep. Susan Fisher said the State Capitol is already leading by example with its own green roof and also says, “We have a garden up there.   We have a system of rain collecting instruments that help us to conserve water.”

–   Jessica Cheam of the Straits Time announces “Boost to green the Singapore skyline.”  She says, “Singapore’s tall buildings are going green.”  The National Parks Board will subsidize up to half the cost of sprucing up these structures with plants for rooftop gardens or for green walls.   Ms. Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State for National Development said there was a “strong support from developers to integrate greenery with their skyrise developments.”  In 2009, the Government set a target for Singapore to have an extra 50 hectares of skyrise greenery by 2030.  It launched the Green Roof Incentive Scheme to encourage developing green roofs on existing buildings and has helped 14 organizations since.

–   Susan DeFreitas of Earth Techling, reports on “Post Katrina Lower 9th Ward Homes Go Green.”   After the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the historic Lower 9th Ward saw more than 4,000 homes destroyed.   Two years later, you’d expect re-construction in the area, but that was not the case when world famous actor andhumanitarian Brad Pitt visited the area.   Frustrated by what he saw, he met with local community groups and families to see what he could do-and shortly after, established the Make It Right Foundation, a non-profit charged with a mission  to build 150 green, affordable, high-quality homes in the neighborhood closest to the levee breach: the Lower 9th Ward.   In March of 2008, Make It Right accomplished its first project and since then has completed over 70 new homes designed by 21 local, national and international architects, who donated their designs for single family homes and duplexes.   And because all of the homes built by Make It Right have been certified as LEED Platinum for their energy efficiency and sustainability, this section of New Orleans is now “the largest, greenest neighborhood of single family homes in America,” according to the U.S. Green Building Council.   Green features of  Make It Right  homes include solar photovoltaic systems; low-VOC paints, carpets, adhesives and finishes; and recycled materials wherever possible.   You’ll also find native plants, rain gardens and even green roofs.   Information on Make It Right’s homes-in-progress is available online, visit this article for the link.

–   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.

–   This has been This Week in Review for March 25th, 2011 on GreenroofsTV.  I’m Anjuli Velazquez and I’ll see you next week!

*This week’s episode is sponsored by The Greenroof Directory, brought to you by Greenroofs.com.*

Did we miss something?   We’d love to hear from you!

~ Linda V.

Singapore is Part 2 of reflections of our travels this past late Autumn 2010 – as you probably know by now, during the past three months I’ve presented the Greenroofs.com “2010 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design” in Mexico City, Singapore, and most recently Vancouver, B.C.

Singapore

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, above, from the French National Centre for Scientific Research (and creator of the Vertical Garden or Mur Vegetal) who presented “The Vertical Garden – From Nature to Cities.”  The always popular German Professor Dr. Manfred Koehler 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, below, and his 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,” Emilio says.

Our fourth keynote, Malaysian born architect Dr. Ken Yeang, below, 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 white 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 Malmo, 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 (two photos below) 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, left, (forgot her name!) and Sidonie Carpenter, right, 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 Nurtingen, 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 photo above, and in the graphic 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 Greenroofs.com, 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.

The day after the tour, Aramis and I hopped aboard the highly efficient public rail transit system, MRT, to explore the island a bit, and in particular my quest involved having to see the beautiful School of Art, Design and Media at Nanyang Technological University – whose stunning photos have been circulating the Web now for a few years (and we had in the 2008 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof Design under “Cool Green Schools of Higher Education”).

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 facade 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 from the street:

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!

~ Happy Greening, Linda V.

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!

During the past three months I’ve presented the Greenroofs.com  “2010 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design” in Mexico City, Singapore, and most recently Vancouver, B.C.   To get the ball rolling, I’ll  start with our October outing with detailed coverage of the awesome tours coming in February:

Mexico City

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.

That’s it for now, the next post is about  The International Skyrise Greenery Conference  in gorgeous Singapore!  

I hope everyone has a fun time ringing in  in the New Year tonight  safely!   Here’s to a Happy & Green 2011!

~ Linda V.

Lovely Chicago is simply the greenest of the green cities, and there’s no doubt that Greenbuild is the greenest of the green conferences!   See this short and fun video, “Generation Green: Redefining  our Future”  with tons of cool photos around town.   It asks us to “Re: think Chicago” and is all about the merits of the Windy City –  its 25 miles of public waterfront, for example, and how it’s “Re-evolutionizing the Building Industry” by greening everything from to parks and buildings to schools and jobs:

Thousands of building enthusiasts and  professionals from across the globe participate at Greenbuild for three days of  informative educational sessions, renowned speakers, green building tours, seminars, and various networking events.   Chicago’s LEED-certified McCormick Place West on  Lake Shore Drive – with its 96,000 sf Green Roof Blocks™ modular system greenroof that retains about 77,812 gallons of stormwater that would otherwise flow into Lake Michigan – is the host for this  exciting annual event.

Held from November 17 through November 19, 2010, retired U.S. General Colin L. Powell kicked off Greenbuild 2010 this morning at the Greenbuild Opening Plenary:  

General Powell inspired the packed room – filled with roughly 12,000 Greenbuild attendees – with messages of leadership and optimism – and a great sense of humor! ~ Greenbuild 2010

Showcasing the latest in innovative products and services, the Greenbuild International Expo is the world’s largest expo hall devoted completely to all forms of green building, including greenroofs and greenwalls!   We try and attend at least the Expo every year, but weren’t able this  time because of our heavy travelling schedule (Mexico City in October and Singapore at the beginning of November), but if you’re there you can:

Support Greenroofs.com’s Advertisers by visiting them on the Trade Show floor:

Advanced Building Products, Inc. – Booth# 595
American Hydrotech, Inc. – Booth# 1345
Bison Innovative Products – Booth# 280
CETCO – Booth# 2254
Colbond Inc. – Booth# L1919
Conservation Technology – Booth# 2182
Green Innovations LTD – Booth# 1631
Green Roof Blocks – Booth# 413 – See President Kelly Luckett, also one of our Contributing Editors, The Green Roof Guy
GreenGrid / Weston Solutions, Inc. – Booth# 939
International Leak Detection (ILD) – Booth# 2222
LiveRoof, LLC – Booth# 2279
rooflite / Skyland USA, LLC – Booth# 1588
Sika Sarnafil – Booth# 930
Tecta America Corp. – Booth# 378
Tremco – Booth# 423
VAST Enterprises – Booth# 2094
Xero Flor America – Booth# 781

And Green Roofs for Healthy Cities has had a booth there for several years now, promoting the North American Green Roof Industry Association.   Make sure to visit them at Booth # T24 and pick up a Green Roof Tour Map showing all their members’ booths, and get ready to attend the 8th  Annual Green Roof and Green Wall Conference – CitiesAlive! in beautiful Vancouver, B.C. on November 30 – December 3, 2010.

Of course, the International Expo is just one great component of this great green show of shows, so for more information about this wonderful city, the line up of speakers, educational programs and activities for 2010 Greenbuild, please visit: http://www.greenbuildexpo.org/

Happy Greening in Chicago! ~ Linda V.

By Susan Apollonio

The American Society of Landscape Architects will host the 2010 ASLA Annual Meeting and EXPO in Washington D.C., September 10-13.   More than 6,000 landscape architecture professionals from around the globe will gather at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.   The theme will be Earth Air Water Fire DESIGN.

With more than 400 exhibitors, the ASLA EXPO is the largest trade show within the $140 billion dollar a year landscape design industry.   Attendees will have the opportunity to explore hundreds of new products, services, technology applications, and design solutions “” all under one roof.    Consistently rated by attendees as “the most valuable event” of the conference, the EXPO presents companies, looking to reach this industry, a number of marketing opportunities including advertising, exhibitor, and sponsorship packages.

A great value for busy professionals, the meeting will feature more than 134 education sessions, field sessions, and tours over four days.   Full registration offers attendees the opportunity to earn up to 21 professional development hours.   In addition to qualifying for credit under the Landscape Architecture Continuing Education System (LA CES™), a multitude of programs have been approved for AICP, AIA, and USGBC continuing education credit.

One of the many meeting highlights is the ASLA Awards Ceremony, held each year to honor the best in landscape architecture from around the world.   Newcomers to the field will be introduced to the top landscape architecture firms and designers and seasoned professionals will enjoy a glimpse into the future of the profession.

Join ASLA  this month  for this exciting event!

~ Susan Apollonio, Marketing Manager, American Society of Landscape Architects

To register aned learn more, please visit ASLA  Annual Meeting & EXPO.

I did it – I finally took my (GRP)  Green Roof Professional exam from Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, passed, and am now part of the Class of 2009-10, the first year since the launch!

Of course you passed, my friends said, you’ve been at this since the late 1990’s, been called the “Queen of Greenroofs,” the Audubon Society said I was the “Dean of Greenroofs” several years back,  and Paul Kephart from Rana Creek  once told an audience in San Francisco that I  had a PhD in greenroofs!   I quickly thanked him for the educational upgrade, but explained  really I just have an undergraduate degree in landscape architecture…

Hold on, while it wasn’t that hard, it also wasn’t that easy – I didn’t quite  ace it, and it took some studying of the four Green Roofs for Healthy Cities’ courses – well, really three (I didn’t study Green Roofs 101 – I did teach it, though,  for one stint during the introduction in Portland, OR,  in 2004 along with Patrick Carey, Haven Kiers, and Wendy Wark, pictured at right).   But that’s the point of the exam – to ensure a certain level of  comprehension of the philosophy and application of greenroof methodology and  technology, which also means to know your basic understanding of the combined black and green arts, and to know when to call in a seasoned professional in  one of those  particular  halves when necessary.

Even though I’ve been at this for over ten years with several greenroofs designed under my belt (plus writing about them, speaking, compiling the Projects Database with 1,028 profiles so far, etc.), I felt it was very important to receive my GRP designation for many reasons.   (I became a LEED AP in 2004 for similar reasonings.)   I had planned to take it here in Atlanta  last June, 2009 at the inaugural exam held during the 7th annual  Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities Conference (now Cities Alive) and said so when I interviewed Jeff Bruce, but didn’t because I missed the registration deadline!

In any case, I took a look at all the cities offering the GRP exam this year and jumped at taking it New York City on Friday, April 30 because it’s  such a great town and we have friends there.    Aramis and I  had great hosts in Wendy and Chris Wark – Chris is our new “Energy Editor” and they’re long time greenroof compadres.   To welcome us, we had dinner at their place the night before and since Wendy is now  a director at Metro North Railroad, and she promised us a special late afternoon “insider”  tour of Grand Central Station, after my morning GRP exam at Pace University.

There were about 30 of us taking the exam, and all went smoothly.   Since we had the afternoon free, we roamed a bit, first exploring New York’s historic South Street Seaport next to the Brooklyn Bridge at the tip of Manhattan.    Most important for us, though, was to visit the Ground Zero site, pay our respects, and see the construction progress.   We started at the beautiful St. Paul’s Chapel.   Opened in 1766,  it’s Manhattan’s oldest public building in continuous use – a place where George Washington worshiped and 9/11 recovery workers received round-the-clock care, and lingered at each of the memorials to the  victims of that horrific day – personal mementos, photos, and messages to lost ones.   We  also visited  the Ground Zero Museum Workshop  alongside a throng of international visitors, where we  reflected at rare, heart-pulling  images of the day  and  the models and plans of the new Freedom Tower and more.

Wendy then showed us the  bustling, beautiful and  massive Grand Central Terminal,  revealing seven little know secrets about its Beaux-Arts architecture and past…Did you know that the four-sided brass  clock in the center of the information booth in the main concourse holds the four largest opals in the world?   Drinks  at MAD46 were next – a trendy  rooftop lounge (of course!) followed by dinner at Guantanamera,  a wonderful  Cuban restaurant.

On Saturday Wendy, Chris, Aramis, and I  spent our last day in the Meatpacking District  touring the much publicized 1.45-mile (2.33  km)  High Line, which was packed with people sightseeing, pushing baby strollers and wheelchairs,  and even some taking in the  sun in  the extremely hot sunshine.   I found the High Line to be an extremely successful example of public space:  interesting  regenerative design in the form of  ecological reuse of a former urban blight.

Originally constructed in the 1930s to lift dangerous freight trains off Manhattan’s streets, it was abandoned in 1980.   But today the High Line is an elevated  public park owned by the City of New York and operated under the jurisdiction of the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.  Designed by the landscape architecture firm of James Corner Field Operations and architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro with planting design from Piet Oudolf and engineering design by Buro Happold, the first section opened to the public in June, 2009.

“The park welcomes visitors with naturalized plantings that are inspired by the self-seeded landscape that grew on the disused tracks and with new, often unexpected views of the city and the Hudson River. Pebble-dash concrete walkways unify the trail, which swells and constricts, swinging from side to side, and divides into concrete tines that meld the hardscape with the planting embedded in railroad gravel mulch. Stretches of track and ties recall the High Line’s former use. Most of the planting, which includes 210 species, is of rugged meadow plants, including clump-forming grasses, liatris and coneflowers, with scattered stands of sumac and smokebush, but not limited to American natives.” ~ Wikipedia

Although I found the site’s modernist  hotel to border on hideous, I loved the High Line’s  overall design – its honesty to its railroad past – and the planting  flow of this linear park spanning 22 city blocks, which in effect is a very large greenroof!

 
Which brings me back to the reason for this post – to let you know I am a proud GRP, and if you are involved with our industry or are considering entering, I highly recommend you pursue this course of study and sit for the exam – even if you, too, have been doing this for over 10 years (or more!).

Thanks to the Warks and to NYC!   Speaking of New York City, look for our second installment of  Sky Gardens ~ Greenroofs of the World ™ WebTV series in about a month or two.   Sponsored by Green Roof Blocks, we’re highlighting the fabulous Cook+Fox Architects Corporate Offices  and their 8th floor penthouse greenroof in Manhattan!

As usual, happy greening! ~ Linda V., GRP

Since the 1990s, Portland, Oregon,  has worked hard to  earn its reputation as a sustainable building pioneer.   Very socially conscious, it’s also a very young city  in terms of energy and spirit.   As the host of Ecoroof Portland 2010, the City of Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services  (BES) does  a great  service to its citizens with this free yearly event with information and technical assistance about ecoroofs – other sponsors included ReDirect Guide, EcoMetro, KXL radio, KINK radio, Portland Business Journal, Left Bank Annex, and ecoShuttle.

A large number of BES staff was on hand to assist, but Matt ran the show.   Matt Burlin  is the  Outreach Coordinator, Sustainable Stormwater Management, City of Portland Environmental Services, and  did an excellent job of organizing and coordinating everything!   Held at the Left Bank Annex  close to the Rose Quarter,  Ecoroof Portland  was easily accessible by public transportation, and in fact, the city encouraged folks to do just that.   The industrial urban space venue was chock full of environmentally friendly features including great daylighting, recycling bins everywhere, and water conservation features in the restrooms.

The program provided options for all levels of sophistication – beginner, professional, researcher, and those who were ready to put  an ecoroof  on their own house or commercial structure.   Friday started out at a very civil 10:30, with  “An Introduction to Ecoroofs in Portland” given by Matt and Amy Chomowicz (also offered on Saturday morning).   Attendees heard about general ecoroof information – how they work, why they’re important, and what resources are available in Portland  to help you get started on your own project  to  gain skills and experience in the industry.

 
The Vendor Fair was open at 10:00, and I was surprised to see how full both the intro session and exhibitor area was for a Friday morning.   We skipped the intro and perused the trade show on the main floor, mingling with  old friends and meeting new ones.

These regional expos are so important for a variety of reasons, and it also gives us an opportunity to meet with local reps of some of our advertisers, too, and learn about business in their neck of the woods – we connected with “new” folks from Tremco, Tournesol Siteworks, American Hydrotech, Xero Flor America, GreenGrid, ILD, and Etera Green Roof Plants (Northwest Horticulture), below.

I was pleased that there was  such a high number of professional firms  exhibiting  among the manufacturers and suppliers, for example landscape architects Lando & Associates Landscape Architecture(who have worked on many ecoroofs here including The Metro Headquarters Greenroof) and  Walker Macy (who worked on the Platinum LEED OHSU CHH building, among others).   Architects, consultants, contractors, structural engineers, and researchers also had booths.

In addition to product and service vendors, non-profit organizations and community organizations were also here including the Green Roofs for Healthy Cities booth, which was manned by Patrick Carey, a trainer for all of the courses needed to get your GRP designation – the 101, 201, 301 and 401.

And it was great to see Ecoroofs Everywhere  and meet Greg Haines,  above left, after all these years (who used to work at BES, seen with Matt, right).   Greg has been installing ecoroofs in Portland since 2002 when he co-founded Ecoroofs Everywhere as a non-profit organization (since 2007 it has been a for-profit partnership).   Of course, the City of Portland had  booths to answer questions about their Ecoroof Grant Program (they gave out beautiful posters) and WorkingGreenPortland.com, a  website  and tool to educate and motivate people about site specific stormwater management options, and city grants and incentives for each.

At noon,  Environmental Services Director Dean Marriott welcomed everyone, gave us a quick  update on the Ecoroof Grant program and introduced the keynote speaker, Ed Snodgrass.   Ed, in his usual laid back and affable way,  presented “Ecosystem Services: How Ecoroofs Contribute to Sustainable Cities” sharing his thoughts on how greenroofs  add benefits to our highly sealed urban areas by mimicking natural processes within the bigger picture.   He showed multiple examples of how the natural technologies of plants and soil protect the environment, economy, and equity in cities through connecting living roofs, rain gardens,  porous paving/vegetated parking lots and other systems, while  providing  stormwater management, energy reduction, cooling properties, treatment of graywater and sewage, wildlife habitat and more – for example  the corporate campus of Mercedes-Benz, below, a model of sustainability.

Next  came current research and monitoring efforts specific to the area.  Portland State University (PSU) graduate student Debbie Beck gave a presentation on “Greenroof Soil and Water Quality – Changes in Runoff Water Quality When Biochar is Mixed into a Greenroof Soil.”   Growing media needs to be designed to ensure low concentrations of nutrients in stormwater runoff;  biochar is a soil amendment made from the pyrolysis of waste products, ranging from biomass to tires in a carbon-net-negative process.   It was evaluated for its ability to retain nutrients in greenroof soils, and Debbie also  presented findings on its cleansing properties.

Tim Kurtz, PE, from the City of Portland BES  talked about  “Stormwater Monitoring of Three Ecoroofs in Portland, Oregon”  explaining that although ecoroofs have become a primary option for reducing roof runoff into sewers and streams, at present they’re all treated the same, regardless of growing media depth or composition.   Data was presented from the Hamilton Apartments, the Multnomah County Multnomah Building, and the Portland Building, above,  to determine which greenroof design and maintenance variables are most important to maximize stormwater retention.

 And featured speaker  Dr. David Sailor from PSU presented “Energy Performance of Ecoroofs – the Role of the Roof in Affecting Building Energy and the Urban Atmospheric Environment” – enlightening us how energy analysis of ecoroof performance requires sophisticated techniques and that complex energy balances on vegetative roofs vary from time of day and season to season.   Dr. Sailor concluded with his initial results of studies involving both greenroofs and photovoltaics, with a focus on potential system interactions and synergies.   His findings clearly demonstrate the effectiveness of the two technologies working together – the plants fare better with some shading from the harsh sun and the panels perform better from a cooler rooftop.

“Portland’s Shift to a Sustainable Future: The Role of Ecoroofs” took over the late Friday afternoon session with an interactive panel featuring Dan Vizzini of City of Portland Environmental Services, Tom Puttman of  David Evans and Associates, and Tom Liptan, ASLA, Ecoroof Technical Program Manager with BES.   Fourteen years after ecoroof guru Liptan installed his own atop his garage, the City continues to boost implementation of green infrastructure practices, including a target of 43 acres of ecoroofs by 2013. The panelists discussed their evolution from “grey to green” and how these changes will influence the fabric of  their city.

At 6:00 pm the Vendor Fair was closed to the public, and the City provided a lovely reception for the exhibitors and speakers.   This casual gathering and networking opportunity was a great time just to relax a bit.   Matt and Linda Dobson  (she manages  BES’s Stormwater Team) welcomed Portland Mayor  Sam Adams and it was easy to understand the city’s success with their ecoroof initiatives – you could feel the Mayor’s pride, commitment and  passion for their projects and staff.   He extended an open invitation to all to embrace sustainable business practices and sustainable design, and let us know that the City was looking into funding low interest loans.   He also informed us that he was talking up the challenge to green his own garage roof,  Ã  la Tom Liptan!

Tom Liptan then introduced me in such a nice way, reminiscing about my student days at UGA and how I called him back in 1998 wanting to know all about his garage greenroof and what could we do to promote these earth-friendly roof covers.   I presented a short demo of The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database – how it began with my 1999 research study when I initially had about 30 case studies, to how it’s grown to 1,023 at the moment; why I felt the industry needed an open, free resource for compiling and maintaining a clearing house of sorts.

Ed was up next and Tom also shared his funny recollections of meeting him several years ago.   Ed showed some very unique and interesting” Greenroofs from Around the World” with a fast-paced show of his highlight reel.

Afterwards we were off to the  richly decorated  Alu Wine Bar for a glass of a spectacular local pinot noir (2007 Arterberry Maresh from Dundee Hills, OR) with a bevy of BES people.   From there  Aramis, Ed and I  met Patrick and Brian Heather, GRP,  from SolTerra  for dinner at the very funky and famous Cajun Montage – quite a noisy and fun local favorite!   Patrick and Brian have been collaborating on various projects in Portland and Seattle, and we topped the evening off with a visit to the mixed-use SolTerra offices to see some of their innovative handiwork.   SolTerra provides a variety of services and products for the solar, ecoroof, and living wall markets, and what we saw looked very impressive!

Tomorrow I’ll wrap up our visit  and experiences at Ecoroof Portland 2010 ~ Linda V.