The new Kroon Hall at Yale University strikes a rustic note with its barn-like form and thick vaulting roof, as if made of thatch. It’s not about quaint, since it is among the few buildings in America that can claim to be almost carbon neutral — the Holy Grail in the battle against global warming. That “thatch” supports photovoltaic panels.
Yale’s Rustic Kroon Hall Fits Carbon Neutral Technology: Review James S. Russell Bloomberg 7/20/09
-Chris
Bryon Thompson
Very good, comprehensive article in Metropolis Magazine last month on the greening of American Universities.
Carbon Neutral U Andrew Blum Metropolis Magazine 2/20/08
Infrastructure is hot—hotter arguably than research or teaching about sustainability. It is as if the ivory tower has looked out to the world and seen a choking planet, and its first response is to look inward again at its own activities—building designs, power plants, and transportation systems.
“Ivy Plus” refers to an existing loose confederation of the nation’s top schools: the old Ivy sports league plus Johns Hopkins, MIT, Stanford, and the University of Chicago. As sustainability increasingly became a topic of conversation among the institutions’ leadership, Levin convened the group last year to shape a shared sustainability agenda.
A couple recent articles on the relative importance of LEED rankings here and here.
Plus, check out this great blog that covers all things sustainable and collegiate.
Posted by Chris
Waterstudio
The Dutch government is listening closely to architect’s plans to re-design Holland, a country particularly susceptible to a rise in sea level, to deal with potential crises caused by climate change.
Dutch Architects Plan for a Floating Future Joe Palca NPR 1/28/08
“The momentum is just right. Because of the climate change, because of the Al Gore story, because of New Orleans, because of the financials of this moment, everybody is waiting for new innovations.”
Also, read President Levin’s views on confronting climate change here and check out the Forestry School’s Project on Climate Change.
And read about what a UN report had to say about architecture as it relates to climate change here.
Posted by Chris
Posted in Architecture, Climate Change, Sustainability
~Yale Arts Library Blog~ 