Download the Victory Garden Handbook, circa 1943
Download the Victory Garden Handbook, circa 1943
green architecture
3 Arab architects worthy of being called sustainable builders
Green is sort of a buzzword nowadays. People will say they are going green (like Zaha Hadid), but are they as good as their word? Usually not. In the world of Middle Eastern architecture and engineering, rest assured that there are several who are fighting for green choices. Clients often see lots of green – […]
Dubai’s huge green mosque polishing off for eco-Muslim masses
Construction of the first eco-friendly mosque in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is nearly complete and Tayeb Al Rais, secretary-general of the Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation said the green mosque will soon open its doors to worshipers.
Mediterranean Net-Zero Home Based on 3,500-Year-Old Israeli Design
Team Israel is all pumped up to show off their design skills at the upcoming 2013 international Solar Decathlon competition in China with All [e] Land – a Mediterranean net-zero prefab dwelling based on a 3,500-year-old archetypal Israeli design.
Student Proposes Iraq Embassy Design for Oslo a la Zaha but Greener
Zaha Hadid’s flowing architecture instantly sprung to mind when we came across Zaid Bin Talib’s design proposal for an Iraqi embassy in Oslo. Daring, futuristic, and swooping, the design appears to be influenced by Iraq’s most famous architect’s style, except the Oslo School of Architecture and Design student’s work is so much greener.
Architectural Pornography: Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Tower
Saudi Arabia announced its Kingdom Tower, a skyscraper aiming for a new world height record of over 1 kilometer high in the sky. Boys, boys, boys, when will you learn that size doesn’t matter as much as performance? Next Azerbaijan broadcast plans to top that with their own mile-high cloud-puncher. Then Pakistan upstaged both with […]
Abu Dhabi’s New Market “The Souq” Harkens Us Back to Disco Days
Everything old is new again in Abu Dhabi’s Central Market “The Souk” where developers are inspired by the emirate’s not-so-distant past. Kinda crazy that the 1970’s can be viewed as olden times, but in the rapidly developing United Arab Emirates, thirty years represent radical transformation. Nestled in the base of the Emirate’s new World Trade Center […]
How Richard III Helps Green Burials
Remains of Richard III as found under Leicester parking lot. Multi-level burial may have prevented this from occurring Photo: Washington Post As human populations increase, finding greener ways to bury the dead are ranging from sea burials to more simple land burials such as those practiced by Jews and Muslims. Even more bizarre ways of disposing […]
The Greenest Libraries Have No Walls
Pity the paper book. Libraries everywhere are closing due to lack of funding and tepid public support, and e-readers are luring people away from bookstores. Big-box bookstores tried, but they couldn’t replicate town libraries: vital public spaces where inter-generational interaction can freely occur between all economic strata. There are occasional glimmers of change. Last October, […]
Hydropolis Aims to Restore the Nile Valley’s Natural Agricultural Rhythm
Just about everyone learned in their early geography classes that the Nile Valley was once a fertile haven. Crops proliferated on the green banks due to natural flooding that deposited rich nutrients, although occasionally these floods inundated and destroyed crops as well, and the land of the Pharaohs was a mecca for agriculture. But when […]
Arab Building Showcases Traditional Green Architecture
A building in the Lower Galilee which showcases traditional architectural Arab styles with ecological benefits demonstrates that modern concerns can be resolved with ancient techniques One of the most important things we need to do to tackle climate change is reduce the amount of energy we use. One way to do this is ensure buildings […]
A Forest of Umbrellas Keeps Medina Pilgrims Cool
Today’s pilgrims to Medina are way cooler than their predecessors thanks to sun shelters surrounding Islam’s second-holiest mosque. Al-Masjid al-Nabawī, the second mosque built by the Prophet Mohammed, is one of the world’s largest. But continual expansion over the centuries hasn’t kept pace with the increasing swell of Hajj pilgrims who congregate each year in its courtyards. […]
Markus Kayser’s 3D Solar Sinter Prints on Sand – Could Replace Concrete
Sweat and Sahara sand had forced my eyes closed so that, even as I stood in front of one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, I saw nothing. My eyelids were a back-lit sandy-orange in the sun’s glare. I pried them open and squinted up at the shapes the pharaohs and their slaves had […]
Israel’s Green Shopping Mall Sounds Like A Jet Liner
A green shopping mall is not green if its AC sounds like a jet liner taking off When previous articles of making shopping malls more sustainable and green, such as Amman Jordan’s new Mega Mall, were posted, it appeared that these large enclosed shopping centers are on the right track to becoming more environmentally friendly. […]
Masdar Aims to Become the Guru of Sustainable Building Materials
Masdar will break ground on a new Facade Test Center in a few months. It will research the most energy efficient building materials on the market. Masdar is constantly reinventing itself in order to ensure that the Gulf’s first genuine low-energy and low-carbon building project succeeds, and its latest reincarnation may well become one of […]
Shopping Malls Go Green in Israel
This Israeli mall, Ir Yamim includes a round tank in foreground for rain or AC runoff water Mid East Green building projects like those in Abu Dhabi’s much publicized Masdar City, green building construction plans for Saudi Arabia, and a newly completed green building in Amman Jordan are indications that a number of countries in […]
Guilhem Eustache’s Magical Home is Made With Traditional Moroccan Materials
While many architects look to concrete as a cheap building material, Guilhem Eustache chose natural materials used by local Berbers for hundreds of years. Looks good, don’t you think? Morocco is a magical country full of exotic scents, argan oil, eco-Kasbahs, and challenging mountain trails, but capturing this essence in a building is no easy […]
Jenin Playground to Get Green Makeover
German-Palestinian society NIJMAH is working on renovating a kid’s playground using natural materials and setting up a permaculture garden Permaculture may be new to the Middle East but with Jordan hosting the recent permaculture world conference and various organic farms sprouting up, the region is slowly catching up. In Palestine, there is already a permaculture […]
Syria’s Beehive-Shaped Green Architecture
How do the Syrian beehive-shaped houses made out of mud manage to stay so cool in extreme desert conditions? As war and conflict tear through Syria, we take a look at the ancient earthen beehive-shaped houses on the edge of the country which have been wowing visitors for centuries. We have covered these amazing traditional […]
Greening The Refugee Camps of Lebanon
Nina Rahal-Lott, is a trained architect who wants to transform the Badawi refugee camp in Lebanon from an ‘environmental catastrophe’ into a green haven Born and raised in Beirut and trained as an architect, Nina Rahal-Lott is a women with a vision. After witnessing the dire conditions that Palestinian refugees live in across Lebanon, she […]
Egypt Starts Over With Two New Cairos
Two city extensions East and West of Cairo are each expected to accommodate 2.5 million people within the next 10 years. Cairo feels and looks like an apocalypse zone. When I last traveled through the city, small children huddled in dirty doorways, a bloody-faced man groveled on the ground looking for money, and trash piled […]
Beirut Is Getting Its First Green-Roofed Tower
Foster & Partners broke ground on their first project in Lebanon. This new tower will also be the first in Beirut to have green roofs. The 3Beirut tower in Lebanon will be the first Foster & Partners development in that country. As fans of something a little more earthy, like the mud brick building entrusted […]
Saudi Adds A Splash Of Green To Royal Weddings
Green is the new gold: Saudi solicits sustainable designs for its Royal Wedding Hall. Known worldwide for their obscene oil wealth, Saudi Arabia has invited international architects to submit sustainable designs for Riyadh’s new royal wedding celebration hall. The brief calls for a regal building that props up the country’s historic legacy without creating a […]
Egypt May Survive Climate Change Thanks to AUC Students
This beautiful solar-powered home could usher in Egypt’s period of healing, sustainably. Last year when I visited Egypt, it felt heavy. For three decades, Mubarak’s forces succeeded to subdue the once innovative Egyptian people. But in his absence, a palpable sense of hopefulness has returned. While many challenges remain, including rising temperatures, pollution, and insufficient energy […]
Green Houses Open to the Public During Tel Aviv’s Annual Architecture Weekend
Tel Aviv’s architecture weekend takes note of green spaces and green issues. For the past decade or so, Tel Aviv has been undergoing a type of ‘renaissance’ and as a result it is considered one of the hippest tourism destinations in the Middle East. Alongside its architectural facelift and infusion of stylishness, though, the city […]