Categorie: architecture

‘transgressive ‘ projects: the architect 3/3

Last time I wrote about about project development, and how everything was optimized within project borders, but the effects outside the project boundaries were neglected. But between architect and client, it’s just the same, and even worse, as became evident once again when I attended a presentation about a new…

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A ‘ New Bauhaus’ ? Or Solar Decathlon ?

During my time as a professor I was regularly at odds with the Academy of Architecture’. I feel affiliated with ’the art of building’, but not with architecture or construction as art. That was more or less the reason for the quarrels. Not surprising, because in my guidance I start…

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The Bionological House

With vegetables, we’ve been doing it for years: most current vegetables never existed, in an autonomous evolutionary process. We as humans have slowly transformed them so that they grow the way we appreciate them, and want them on our plates. (Or the industry has adapted them the way we want…

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Double dilemma? discussions as Fellow

In recent years I was a Fellow of the Technical University of Eindhoven, more precisely working with the Building Physics department, in particular with Prof. Wim Zeiler, Installation Technology. And we had interesting discussions, because we strive for the same thing, while we come from different backgrounds. Those discussions can…

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On books: Tip 1: don’t buy Bill Gates’ book.

We are bombarded with books that know how to deal with climate and the environment, and especially how we can improve the situation. And yes, I am also participating in that, since last week I published a new book that offers tools for improvement, or rather: suggestions for adaptations to…

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Solar panels: ≤ 1m2 PV per m2 floor …

As we want to get rid of fossil fuels, we will at least have to develop everything now without fossil fuels. And in any case the operational energy. In the case of new buildings this leads to “0-energy buildings”, which generate as much renewable energy as required, locally, and thus…

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Urban heat islands, a growing problem

Urban heating, or at least the increase thereof, has been in the spotlight for some time. And the basic effects were known to me. But after hearing a lecture by Math Santamouris during a recent Conference, a whole new world opened up for me. He gave a good overview of…

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How (and why) to avoid high-rise buildings…

Architects love to be able to design and build an iconic tower. And a city counselor can leave his signature with it. Well, it happens that the world is urbanizing, and that we see a lot of high-rises in planning, framed as ’there is no other way’: we have to…

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Circular cities..? Real time material flows for London

Since it looks as if we are going to introduce the climate measures for buildings mainly via municipalities or cities, I have recovered some of my older research material about urban sustainability, developed when I worked at Wageningen University. The urban approach makes sense, buildings are not isolated functions, they…

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From ZEB to ZEEB : 0-embodied energy buildings 2/2

In principle, its impossible to create a 0-embodied energy house, energy will always be needed. However, in the present time 0-embodied energy it is understandable as 0-fossil embodied energy, exa house exclusively based on renewable energy. 0-embodied energy, if that is fossil-related, is actually 0-embodied CO2. But then , CO2…

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