In a nation as diverse as India, the healthcare landscape presents wicked problems and plentiful opportunities. The country's hospital infrastructure has been increasingly strained in the areas of accessibility, quality, and equity, especially with a snowballing population growth. While urban development expands amidst these constraints, architects have been able to position innovative design solutions as mediators, also sealing the gap between urban and rural healthcare quality and accessibility in India.
Beyond aesthetics, the design of our workplaces directly impacts our health. Studies reveal a clear link between poor light quality and limited access to natural views with increased sick leave. Smoke-free policies have been demonstrably effective, reducing smoking prevalence by 3.8% and lowering tobacco consumption by a significant 3.1 cigarettes per day for continuing smokers. Workplaces can either support wellbeing or be a detriment to it. Conscious office design can blend aspects of health in spaces to cultivate physical, mental, and social well-being.
Construction has reached the roof level in Zaha Hadid Architect’s development above Hong Kong High-Speed Rail West Kowloon Terminus. Adjacent to the West Kowloon Cultural District, this development connects established and emerging neighborhoods with a network of public gardens and landscaped plazas. Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA), it seeks to integrate seamlessly with the surrounding station and rooftop park, offering civic, office, and retail spaces.
Courtesy of Foster + Partners | 18 Blackfriars Road
Foster + Partners’ development in Bankside, London, has just been granted planning approval. Designed in collaboration with Lipton Rogers and real estate developer Hines, the Southwark Council has just agreed to proceed with the development. Titled “18 Blackfriars Road”, the project aims to revitalize a neglected two-acre brownfield site that has sat vacant for two decades.
When Wallace S. Broecker first introduced the concept of global warming in the 1970s, society probably didn't anticipate the implications of this phenomenon. Today, more than 50 years later, we have stopped predicting an adverse climate scenario and have begun witnessing it directly. It is now evident that the earth is breaking temperature records year after year, as a result of a disparity in the global response to the issue and a slow-moving reduction in carbon emissions.
To reduce CO₂ emissions in architecture, it is crucial to implement effective strategies that address both the manufacturing of materials and the life cycle of buildings, as well as energy consumption during use. In countries like the US, approximately 45% of energy consumption in the residential sector is allocated to heating and cooling spaces, making it essential to address efficient building design, especially on the façade. To achieve this objective, policies are being implemented that promote a conversion towards a more sustainable model. In this new model, sustainability certifications for buildings provide a framework for measuring and evaluating resource consumption.
https://www.archdaily.com/1016044/the-curtain-a-key-element-in-the-certification-of-sustainable-buildingsEnrique Tovar
Foster + Partners has been selected as the winner of an international competition to design a new center for Hangzhou, the capital of China's Zhejiang province. The master plan envisions a green and interconnected mixed-use quarter situated in the heart of the Yuhang District. In its essence, the project aims to foster a strong connection between nature and people’s daily lives, creating a sustainable urban quarter.
Chicago-based Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) have won an international competition for the design of an enhanced urban district in Charenton-Bercy, on the eastern edge of Paris. Working with a team of urbanists, landscape designers and community think tanks, SOM have proposed a highly connected urban landscape incorporating a 180-meter energy efficient tower, and contemporary rotunda serving as a virtual reality hub.
https://www.archdaily.com/890669/som-selected-to-design-green-masterplan-for-eastern-parisNiall Patrick Walsh
Symantec HQ - The building features a blend of natural materials, bold colouring, and branding. Image Courtesy of Little
Architecture continually evolves to meet societal demands. Recently, a global effort to tackle climate change, and to achieve optimum energy efficiency in buildings, has brought standards such as BREEAM and LEED to the fore. However, as scientific analysis and awareness of human mental health has increased, architects are once again required to place humans at the centre of the design process. This growing trend has led to the development of WELL Building Certification – considered the world’s first certification focused exclusively on human health and wellbeing.
Norman Foster attended the recent groundbreaking ceremony for 425 Park Avenue, which will be the first full-block high-rise office building to be built on New York City's Park Avenue in the past 50 years. Foster+Partners, in collaboration with Adamson Associates, designed 425 Park to be a new icon in the Manhattan skyline, featuring a tri-blade, sheer wall top. In addition to its LEED Gold certification, the 560,000m² tower will be the first in New York to be WELL certified.
