Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates

Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 1 of 5
Photo by Jermaine Ee on Unsplash . ImageCentral Park

Earlier this month, a series of cities worldwide have revealed various initiatives that would help them better understand the effects of climate change and shape a more environmentally conscious environment. From several American cities creating digital twins to help curb carbon emissions to the city of Brighton mandating bee bricks to foster biodiversity and Central Park becoming a laboratory for studying climate change adaptation in urban parks, cities take on a multidisciplinary and multi-scalar approach to environmental issues.

Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 2 of 5Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 3 of 5Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 4 of 5Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 5 of 5Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - More Images

Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 2 of 5
bee bricks. Image Courtesy of Green&Blue

The council in Brighton, UK, passed a planning condition that mandates the inclusion of bee bricks or swift boxes for all new buildings taller than five metres as a means to support pollinators and increase biodiversity. First proposed in 2019, the decision sparked controversy, as some scientists consider the measure might harm the bee population, encouraging the spread of disease if the holes are not cleaned properly or attracting mites. However, more research into the effectiveness of bee bricks is needed, and their implementation at city scale will provide the framework for assessing their impact on biodiversity.

Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 4 of 5
Photo by Vincent Ledvina on Unsplash . Image Courtesy of Green&Blue

In the US, The Central Park Conservancy, the Yale School of the Environment, and the Natural Areas Conservancy have teamed up to turn New York’s iconic park into a laboratory for studying climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies. The newly created Central Park Climate Lab will provide insights into how to protect urban parks and use them to combat the effects of the climate crisis, developing tools that will eventually be implemented across the country.

Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates - Image 3 of 5
Cityzenith

While some cities are concerned with ecology, others are turning towards technology to improve the built environment. Las Vegas is working on creating a digital twin, joining Los Angeles and Phoenix in the effort to help the transition to net-zero carbon emissions. A collaboration between the city, Chicago-based digital twin platform Cityzenith and Las Vegas-based data firm Turbine, the project features 7 square kilometres of downtown Las Vegas, built using local city data. The digital twin will also help the city assess the impact of new developments in terms of emissions, as well as water management, or impact on mobility.

This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: The Road to Net Zero Architecture presented by Randers Tegl.

Randers Tegl aims to take responsibility and think sustainable as a part of reaching the goal of Net Zero. Both in terms of how building materials impact the climate and how the materials age, but also with a focus on architecture. That is why Randers Tegl created their sustainable series GREENER, which comes with full documentation in the form of EPD, so it is possible to use the product in technical calculation programs.

Every month we explore a topic in-depth through articles, interviews, news, and projects. Learn more about our ArchDaily topics. As always, at ArchDaily we welcome the contributions of our readers; if you want to submit an article or project, contact us.

Image gallery

See allShow less
About this author
Cite: Andreea Cutieru. "Cities Address Environmental Issues with Digital Twins, Climate Research and Bee Bricks Mandates" 27 Jan 2022. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/975895/cities-address-environmental-issues-with-digital-twins-climate-research-and-bee-bricks-mandates> ISSN 0719-8884

Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@eejermaine?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Jermaine Ee</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/central-park?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a>   . ImageCentral Park

各大城市为解决环境问题提出多种方案,数字孪生技术、气候研究和蜂砖等

You've started following your first account!

Did you know?

You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.