Growing concerns over the effects of urbanization has caused individuals to consider new methods for 'greening' their landscape. Some have recently transformed skyscrapers with trees, proposed building underground to prevent disruption to the landscape, and suggested building structures in already barren lands.  In this article we take a look at some of the proposed sustainable designs of the future. 

Oas1s

The above proposed sustainable city called Oas1s was designed by Dutch architect Raimond de Hullu. He imagines that instead of skyscrapers and exorbitant amounts of concrete and steel, cities will have trees and recycled wood as the prominent building material. 

Unlike the buildings of today relying on the power grid to be connected, the houses will be completely self sufficient for water and energy

Vegitecture

While cities around the world are starting to incorporate more green initiatives, we can expect to see an increase in "vegitecture" which is a vertical green facade with garden terraces that is maintained by drip irrigation system. 

Public Green Spaces

In addition to seeing greenery added to the sides of more buildings, we can expect to also see more public spaces being converted into green spaces. According to Project EverGreen "Green spaces are a great benefit to our environment. They filter pollutants and dust from the air, they provide shade and lower temperatures in urban areas, and they even reduce erosion of soil into our waterways. These are just a few of the environmental benefits that green spaces provide." You can read more about the benefits of green spaces here. 

Underground Residences

As green spaces continue to become more prominent, we may even see more underground residences built in the future like the Villa Vals home in Switzerland that was designed by architecture firms Christian Muller Architects and SeARCH. As you can see in the photo above, the home was designed within the hill in order to prevent disruption to the natural landscape surrounding the home.

Desert Retreat

Designed by Baharash Architecture, this solar-powered desert retreat shown above is located in Liwa, UAE, and is proposed to be 100% solar powered with energy being stored in multiple batteries.  

Rotating Homes

While the resort above has solar strips along the roof to take advantage of solar power, other designs will involve homes that can gently rotate to orient itself towards the sun. If you're interested in learning more about this style of home, we’ve recently written an article exploring rotating homes that will gives you an inside look into the home design.

Want to join the future of sustainability? Be kept updated with the newest innovations and designs by subscribing to our mailing list to receive ourAECnewsletter and email alerts with our latest blog posts. 

Sources: Feedblix - Noah's Ark, Architizer, Feedblix-Eco Resort, Feedblix - Five Star Hotel, Inhabitat

cover photo © unsplash