Green Architecture’s Grand Experiment

Course# Met118
This course is AIA/CES registered for 1LU/HSW/SD

The new California Academy of Sciences by Architect Renzo Piano is a paragon of sustainable design. It arrived at a LEED Platinum rating almost by accident, and is the largest public building to ever achieve that benchmark. Every piece of it—from the research mission to the green roof to the lamps in the coral reef tank—adds to this special biosphere of inspiration and beauty. The article Green Architecture’s Grand Experiment from the September 2008 issue of Metropolis discusses in depth the features that make the California Academy of Sciences a landmark at the intersection of the natural and built environments.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
– Explain a holistic approach to sustainable design as relating to a research institution that put itself to the test
– Name specific examples of the benefit of a green roof planted with native species in California
– Relate exhibition design and the role of a natural history museum to the broader conversation about sustainability.

To download the full article in PDF format click here for Part I and here for Part II.
To take the participant exercise online click here.

Green Architecture’s Grand Experiment © 2008 by Bellerophon Publications, Inc. All rights reserved.