What does Sustainability Mean?
- An affordable but achievable design; funds are not unlimited
- Reducing energy waste and electricity use as much as possible
- Maximize daylight for natural light instead of using electricity
- Use the design to your advantage to reduce heating/cooling inside the building: curtain walls to be strategically placed so that they don’t heat the inside of the building too much
- Incorporating recycled materials in the building infrastructure
- Recycled plastic
- Having an efficient water system
- Rainwater collected and used
- The building blends in with the environment around it
- it does not disrupt wildlife/trees
- the building space is efficient (no space is wasted)
- incorporates as much greenery as possible
Examples:
People's Pavilion: made from recycled plastic; 100% borrowed construction materials
Austin Central Library: 467 solar panels on roof, water system that uses rainwater, 80% of spaces are daylit