Architect and engineer, Werner Sobek, is urging cities to become emissions-free by the year 2020 – for all cars and buildings to be entirely powered by renewable energy. Sobek shared this goal during his acceptance speech of the Fritz Leonhardt Prize in July 2015, saying that this goal is achievable, but only with the full support of automotive and construction industries. Although seven leading, industrialized nations have agreed to de-carbonization by the end of the century, Sobek believes that that would be too late. Read more about Werner Sobek’s vision of the future after the break.
In 2014, Sobek proved the possibilities of our current technology. Working with alphaEOS, he built Aktivhaus B10 – a building with an intelligent automation system that could produce twice as much power as it needed using renewable sources. The excess energy was then used to power two electric cars and a nearby historic building, via a networked system.
However, Sobek’s goal of emissions-free cities does not stop at a single house. As he explains, architects and politicians must begin looking at the city as a whole system, integrating what he refers to as the “Sisterhood Principle.” Under this principle, the specific standards of each house is less important than the communication and coordination between houses, districts and cities about their energy. Though a difficult goal to be sure, Sobek believes that with the full support of the automotive and construction industries, it is possible to end reliance on fossil-fuels by 2020.
“Both of these industries are coming up with pioneering developments that can contribute to freedom from emissions,” said Sobek. “The automotive industry is driving forward the creation of ever more powerful, longer-lasting batteries. At the same time, the construction industry is working on such solutions as a retro-fittable building automation system that can noticeably reduce the energy consumption of existing buildings in a very short amount of time.”
News via lifePR.
