clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Green Design

101 ways to fight climate change

Earth Day 2020 is going digital. Despite the novel coronavirus, it’s still possible to join the fight against climate change—even if you have to start at home.

How to fight climate change at home

From rethinking how to do laundry to ditching the plastic trash bag, here are 17 tips to reduce your carbon footprint while socially distancing.

In these super-sustainable new apartments, you may never pay a heating bill

Passive house high-rises provide cleaner air, lower utility costs, and an affordable option for tenants.

The world’s most beautiful homes are also down to earth

The new book The Art of Earth Architecture explores one of the oldest—and most ecologically sensitive—building techniques.

Fayetteville shows how a city can go green in a red state

The Arkansas city’s sustainability push is as much about lifestyle and livability as it is about long-term planning.

These luxury prefabs are going fully off-grid

Dvele homes will now come with a new thermal envelope, solar power, and a backup battery system.

Modern prefab row houses embrace solar power

The custom-designed roofs are angled to capture the maximum amount of sunlight.

The 8 best compost bins

Trying to embrace sustainable living this year? Consider these composting ideas straight from environmental experts.

New rooftop ‘hydropanels’ will make drinkable water from thin air

A residential version of the water-generating panels was unveiled at a consumer tech show last week.

The world’s oldest design techniques might be the most radical

A new book explores what we can learn from people who have mastered living with the land for millennia.

Solar-powered farmhouse makes use of hemp throughout

Built on a 53-acre farm, the Flat House takes advantage of the property’s biggest resource—hemp.

Shared from:

Inside Rivian’s sleek redesign of an Albert Kahn factory in Plymouth

The electric vehicle maker emphasized design for its fast growing workforce.

Shared from:

Over 75K D.C. streetlights could be changed to incorporate LED technology

Two public meetings on the project are scheduled for this week.

Tesla unveils a new version of its solar roof

Now in its third iteration, Tesla’s Solar Roof might finally be ready for mass market.

3D-printed house design looks like a gorgeous human-sized ant mound

A new kind of 3D-printed house is currently taking shape in Italy, and it’s equal parts elegant and bare bones.

Modern ‘cocoon house’ makes vibrant use of skylights

The tinted skylights run above the main hallway and cast a warm rainbow of colors along the way.

Shared from:

D.C. joins international pledge to reduce air pollution

The city is committing to set "ambitious" targets in the next two years.

Bjarke Ingels Group’s ski slope power plant is finally open

CopenHill converts waste into clean energy and serves as a recreation center.

Modern seaside cabins go completely off the grid

The cabins run on various sources of alternative energy, including solar panels and heat from a sauna.

Designer turns fish skin and scales into plastic alternative

MarinaTex is flexible like virgin plastic, but its bio-based makeup means it can be tossed in the trash and will degrade in four to six weeks.

Amazon deliveries to go green with electric vans 

The company recently put in an order for 100,000 electric vans that will handle all shipping operations by 2030.

Want to build a net-zero home? You can download these blueprints for free

HomeNZ is a competition-winning three-bedroom home design that’s all about optimal insulation.

Will this billion-dollar startup unlock the future of sustainable buildings?

Katerra’s new high-tech Washington factory utilizes AI in bid to build smarter and faster.

Shared from:

18 simple ways to live green in Philly

From planting a free tree to purifying with plants, here are more than a dozen tips, big and small, to help make your home, neighborhood, and city more sustainable.

Shared from:

Pop-up parks will appear across D.C. this Friday

The city is holding its annual PARK(ing) Day, a public space event.

The Green New Deal is really about designing an entirely new world

It involves unbuilding our mistakes—and building an equitable, just, and sustainable future.

Behold, an ‘Instagram museum’ for our environmental crises

Arcadia Earth is an immersive installation that tells the plight of the planet in the form of 15 photo-ready rooms.

Snøhetta’s new office building in Norway will produce more energy than it uses

Snøhetta’s Powerhouse Brattørkai captures solar energy during long summer days and stores it for winter.

Green-roof house becomes one with the landscape

Instead of leveling the plot, architects nestled this house into a sharp hill, even going as far as transforming part of the roof into a grass-topped peak.

Solar-powered ‘floating hotel suite’ starts at $535K

The domed capsule is the brainchild of naval architect Jean-Michel Ducancelle, who was inspired by the floating saucer in the 1977 Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me.

London Underground will harness waste heat to warm homes

The city just announced that it would begin harnessing waste heat from its Northern line to warm up offices, community centers, and homes in the borough of Islington.

Sustainable, solar-powered lofts will create massive community battery

Energy storage built into Utah’s Soleil Lofts will function as a renewable backup for the power grid.

Tesla will now rent solar panels to homeowners

With solar panel sales lagging, Tesla tries its hand at renting again.

Shared from:

State awards $2M for solar equipment at future LNG plant

World’s largest rooftop urban farm to open in Paris next year

The farm will be home to more than 30 different species of plants that will grow vertically with aeroponic farming, a method that uses nutrient-filled mist to nourish the produce.

Shared from:

SEPTA turns to solar powered train signals as part of sustainability efforts

The signals will help make the lines safer during severe weather events

Dutch city transforms bus stops with bee-friendly green roofs 

City officials sought to bolster local bee health by topping over 300 bus stops with greenery.

France’s solar roadway experiment has failed

After nearly three years of use, Normandy’s photovoltaic highway is delivering disappointing results.

This modern house was built from over 600,000 recycled plastic bottles

The single-level house, which cost approximately $375,000 to build, can withstand winds of up to 326 mph.