In the design for this new apartment building, each kitchen connects to a massive greenhouse. If you need a salad for dinner, you can harvest it yourself, or go to a farmers’ market in the lobby to buy greens from a neighbor. [Image: courtesy Studio Precht] The design is one variation on a modular system called Farmhouse—ranging from simple A-frame houses to multifamily buildings—intended to reconnect residents with the food system. The architects, from the Austria-based firm Studio Precht , were inspired by their own experience moving from Beijing to an off-grid life in the Austrian mountains that includes growing their own food. “It’s a very direct connection to nature,” says architect Chris Precht. In the concept for the apartment building, waste heat from the building is used to help crops grow. Food waste is collected onsite, rather than trucked off to a landfill or industrial composting plant, and turned into compost for the gardens. A water treatment system can filter rainwater and wastewater from sinks and showers to send to the greenhouses. The building itself is made with cross-laminated timber, a material that uses less energy to make than standard construction materials like steel or concrete and that […]
Latest Articles
A Small Neighbourhood in Toronto Has Built a Program to Help Residents Reduce Their...
Takeaways: The Changemakers program in Toronto is part of the Pocket Change Project, a local initiative looking at ways to reduce emissions on a...
How the Historic Billion Dollar Initiative by the Biden-Harris Administration will Modernize America’s Electric...
How the Historic Billion Dollar Initiative by the Biden-Harris Administration will Modernize America’s Electric Grid. Historic Billion...
Beans in Toast: UK Should Switch to Broad Bean Bread, Say Researchers
Takeaways: Researchers say Britain should switch to eating bread made from broad beans as it would be more sustainable and efficiently deliver key nutrients.
...
Ethical Fashion 2023: A Promising Trend or Just Propaganda?
Ethical Fashion 2023: A Promising Trend or Just Propaganda?
With the recent push for more ethical fashion alternatives, many wonder what this fashion really means....
Cabbage-Growing Experiment Shows Human Waste Can be Good to Use as Fertiliser
Takeaways: New research has shown that using fertilizers from human waste can be as productive as conventional organic ones.
Scientists studied a crop of...
Mercedes-Benz Becomes First Stadium in the World to Earn Platinum Certification for Zero Waste
Takeaways: The Mercedes-Benz Stadium has become the first professional sports stadium in the world to be awarded the Total Resource Use and Efficiency Platinum...