Anyone who enjoys growing food or cultivating plants knows that a greenhouse can be invaluable in many scenarios. Whether to protect plants from the cold, shelter wind-sensitive species, or nurture sprouts and seedlings before they are transplanted elsewhere.
Having your own greenhouse requires space. While there are plenty of ready-made options and professional builders available, you can also use your creativity, time, and dedication to construct your own greenhouse.
Anyone who has played with wooden blocks or the famous LEGO toy knows the satisfaction of imagining something and building it with their own hands. In Belgium, this concept has taken on a whole new scale. Construction specialist Gabriel Lakatos has always loved playing with blocks and turned this passion into a building system for wooden houses. His company, Gablok, sells home construction kits designed to make building simple and efficient.
Eight organizations working toward Brazil's sustainable development are joining forces to promote Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) as a strategy to mitigate the effects of climate change in cities, address urban challenges, and make cities more resilient.
The term is relatively recent and still little known to the general public in the country. However, the concept, established by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), is simple: to promote interventions inspired by healthy ecosystems to address urgent societal challenges, especially in large metropolises. Water scarcity, flooding, biodiversity loss, health issues, and rising sea levels are some of the challenges that can be tackled by viewing nature as part of the solution, generating environmental, social, and economic benefits.
France is investing in initiatives to combat climate change, including shifting to more sustainable modes of transport. Owners of older cars can now receive a government subsidy of up to 2,500 euros to trade in their vehicles for electric bicycles.
“For the first time, it is recognized that the solution is not to make cars greener, but simply to reduce their number,” noted Olivier Schneider of the French Federation of Bicycle Users.
Water is an essential resource for human life. Ensuring basic sanitation and clean drinking water is one of humanity's greatest challenges. In both urban and rural areas, access to water is critical for the health and well-being of communities and for the success of a wide range of human activities.
This is why the water crisis is such an alarming threat. Rising global temperatures and natural disasters associated with climate change contribute to this scenario. Studies suggest that by 2025, approximately 1.8 billion people will face water scarcity.
Among the social challenges facing Colombia is the lack of decent housing for a large portion of the population. A survey by the country's population statistics center revealed that 35% of Colombians live in poverty, lacking access to adequate living conditions.
For construction startup Woodpecker, the answer to this problem might lie in another national challenge: agricultural waste from coffee production, as Colombia is one of the world's largest coffee producers.
The days of gasoline-powered cars are numbered in Japan. Indeed, within 15 years, the country will phase out vehicles that run on gasoline. Announced by the Japanese government in late 2020, the measure is part of its goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The green growth strategy also aims to generate $2 trillion a year through the adoption of new energy sources, such as hydrogen, and the expansion of sustainable industries.
A study conducted by Fundação Espaço ECO and Instituto Akatu seeks to understand the impact of urban mobility based on Brazilian conditions. The research used the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology to analyze the different modes of transportation used in cities across their entire chain: equipment production, transport across the chain, use, maintenance, and disposal.
The city of São Paulo was chosen as the focus due to its diverse transit options and population consumption habits, along with access to existing and secondary databases to gather the information that enabled the analysis.
Photovoltaic panels are increasingly gaining ground as a clean, renewable energy source. However, many of these systems only work under certain conditions—solar panels rely on direct sunlight, and photovoltaic plants are horizontal developments that require large areas.
The solution to these limitations may have been found by a 27-year-old Filipino student. Carvey Ehren Maigue, from Mapua University, developed a system that converts UV radiation into visible light to generate electricity. AuREUS System Technology, as it has been named, is a material that can be applied to pre-existing surfaces or structures.
One in three streets in the city center of Barcelona will be transformed into a green axis to prioritize pedestrians and cyclists over cars. Along these streets, 21 intersections will be converted into public spaces so that everyone in the area has access to a park less than 200 meters away.
A recently published study by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) reveals the world's best cities for those looking to avoid driving to access basic services, such as schools and healthcare centers, alongside pedestrian access to other amenities.
Among the top-ranked cities for pedestrians are London, Paris, Hong Kong, and Bogotá. More than a thousand cities were evaluated based on the access they offer to those who need to find goods and services relying solely on their own feet. According to the report, US cities are among the least pedestrian-friendly, due to their urban sprawl.
October 16 marked World Food Day. On this date in 2020, the Stop Hunger Institute launched a project that includes a community garden and training and educational initiatives for the Paraisópolis community, a favela in São Paulo's South Zone.
Developed in partnership with the Instituto Escola do Povo, the project establishes a new space of approximately 900 square meters for growing vegetables. The goal is to educate, train, and distribute the harvest to registered community residents, ensuring access to healthier food.
Cities around the world are welcoming the colors and benefits of murals painted with photocatalytic paint, which is known for helping to clean the air. The murals are part of the Converse City Forests project, developed by the brand behind the famous All Star sneakers. The goal is to paint more than 14,000 square meters of murals worldwide by the end of this year. Together, they are equivalent to planting approximately 40,000 trees.
Organic urban agriculture, renewable energy, and a breathtaking landscape. All of these elements come together at Thammasat University in Bangkok, Thailand. TURF (Thammasat University Rooftop Farm) is the largest green roof in Asia, spanning over 70,000 square meters. Designed by the architecture and urbanism firm LANDPROCESS, the area was envisioned as a solution for green urban development.
Whenever we think of solar panels, the concept of sustainability immediately comes to mind. They are undoubtedly an effective solution for generating renewable energy; however, what few people realize is that solar panels are incredibly difficult to recycle. While this drawback should not discourage their adoption in buildings and solar power plants, it underscores that sustainability must remain a constant focus for these products, even after they stop working.
Warsaw, Poland, has become the second city to receive public art projects that, in addition to beautifying the landscape, clean the air. Painted by local artists, the massive mural uses special, sun-activated pigments capable of filtering the air.
The mural was produced with titanium dioxide, which attracts pollutants and transforms them into harmless nitrates thanks to a sun-activated chemical process. Through this process, the artwork can purify its surrounding air, an action equivalent to the work of 720 trees.
On June 18, the fifth anniversary of the publication of Laudato Si’ – Pope Francis’s encyclical calling for global unity in combating climate change – the Vatican published new guidelines containing more than 200 recommendations for environmental protection.
The document, titled “Journeying Towards Care for Our Common Home: Five Years After Laudato Si’,” suggests practical measures to curb global warming and issues stark warnings about the dangers of environmental degradation. It calls on the world to decarbonize the energy and economic sectors, making renewable energy accessible to all, and advocates for fossil fuel subsidy reform and CO2 emission taxation.
Victoria is a Canadian city famous for its flower gardens. Its climate favors the cultivation of different types of flowers, earning the city the reputation of Canada's flower capital, or the "Garden City." However, the coronavirus pandemic has slightly changed this landscape. The city's gardening team has prioritized planting vegetable seedlings to be distributed free of charge, as public interest in growing one's own food has grown considerably during this period.
