Vonage Gives Free Call to Haiti from US

In the wake of the disaster in Haiti, Vonage is doing its part. From their site:

Vonage is committed to helping during difficult times. In the wake of the recent devastating earthquake in Haiti, Vonage is currently offering free international dialing to Haiti for all U.S. callers. Dial 800-809-2503 and follow the instructions to place a free 10-min call. We encourage you to pass this Vonage toll-free number along to non-Vonage customers who want to call Haiti.

Remember, calls to Haiti are free only if you use this toll-free number to place the call. If you dial from your home phone without using the 800 number, you’ll incur standard long-distance charges. Please note that due to infrastructure limitations in Haiti, you may experience difficulty reaching your party successfully. This free calling service to Haiti may be discontinued at any time.

Please remember the people of Haiti in your prayers and consider a donation through groups such as the Red Cross and Catholic Relief Services (CRS).

Even Iceland has Green Roofs!

Even in one of the coldest, inhabited climates on Earth, Iceland, green roofs are part of the landscape.

Inhabitat.com reports as one of its top 10 green stories of 2009, the Hof House. It was built from salvaged materials from an existing structure.

Other neat and green features, beside the gorgeous green roof include its passive solar design, geothermal heating, and very thick concrete walls.

Here are some other pictures to enjoy!

Düsseldorf’s Kö-Bogen Green Roofs

Germany continues its green roof leadership with the Kö-Bogen development in Düsseldorf.

According to Inhabitat.com, the structure, designed for multi-use the structure is:

"...adjacent to the Hofgarten, Düsseldorf’s central park, the Kö-Bogen will help create a larger and more continuous open green space that runs from the city center out to the park and the Rhine. The green roof will help connect the building with the beautiful historical parks surrounding the downtown area, while reducing rainwater runoff and helping to significantly reduce heating and cooling costs."

According to its architect, Daniel Libeskind, funding has been secured, and construction is set to begin in early 2010. The building is due to open in 2013.

While a green roof is a significant element of sustainable design, Kö-Bogen also includes other green building elements. It will have solar panels, as well as a biogas cogenerator.

Green Roofs for Virginia Tech

Recognized as a top engineering university, Virginia Tech also has green roofs!

The most recent issue of Virginia Tech Magazine, has an article about VT alumni who are leaders in sustainability. However, the first graphic is of students planting a green roof between Seitz and Fralin Halls. The picture, seen left, shows the planting of sedum, known to be drought resistant and sequesters CO2, while other potential plant life releases CO2 during its life cycle.

The other green roof on the Blacksburg campus is the Fralin Life Sciences building.

As a reminder, several colleges and universities have buildings with green roofs. Those include George Washington University, and the University of Texas, to name two.

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Another Green Roof for London

London is getting another green roof on top of a sustainable building! The 21,370 square meter new office building was designed by UK-based Fletcher Priest for Monteverde Group.

The building is designed to use a staggered step design, creating two separate green roofs on the structure. Additionally, the upper green roof will be private, while the lower green roof will be public.

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Designers chose green roofs to double the public use space as well as to provide additional views of the surrounding buildings.

World Interior Design Network and World Architectural News ran similar stories commenting upon the structure and its design. WIDN also reports:

"The design reuses and adapts the existing below ground structure. This means about 50% of the existing building will be reused. The spare structural capacity and the embodied energy of the existing structure are not wasted, resulting in savings with reduced risks and less disturbance during ground works."

Additionally, recycled green glass will be used in the windows, reducing energy consumption by 40%.

Grow indoors

London is becoming a home of environmentally friendly, sustainable buildings with green roofs. Although projects such as the Battersea Power Station development have floundered due to the poor economic conditions of 2008-09, London has pioneered green roofed bus shelters (which San Francisco followed), and other green projects.

Greening Guangzhou

Guangzhou, the third largest city in China, suffers from the worst air pollution in the country. Owing to coal-fired electricity plants, as well as the use of coal and heavy oil in manufacturing, the air pollution is estimated to be the equivalent of smoking 8-10 packs of cigarettes a day.

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Acknowledging this situation as unsustainable, the local government, in conjunction with the national government and local business, have set out to improve not only the environmental conditions, but also the aesthetic conditions for the ten million who live in Guangzhou.

World Architecture News (WAN) reports:

"Heller Manus Architects has been awarded the contract to design Guangzhou’s Southern Axis... Heller Manus will now develop their plans for 14.78 sq km of the city incorporating waterfront and transit oriented development with a ferry terminal, central government districts, and a variety of urban land uses."

Heller Manus is based in San Francisco, and promotes designs that suitably blend function with the local culture. WAN notes, "The Heller Manus concept was chosen for its balance of growth with sustainability and preservation, while promoting amenities for better livability."

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Green roofs appear to be a significant element of the design, in addition to larger green spaces. In the context of improving Guangzhou, green roofs will help reduce the choking, fine particulate matter air pollution, as well improving storm water runoff. Both clean air and clean water are challenging not just for Guangzhou, but for China as a whole.

Grow indoors

Green roofs will also improve quality of life issues for the residents. Green roofs will provide green space for residents to escape the crowded city life and enjoy the view. Other possibilities include urban agriculture to improve food security.

As China continues to grow, its population is becoming more aware of the environmental consequences of rapid industrialization. Projects such as the modernization of Guangzhou, and dream cities such as Dongtan, will help prevent catastrophic and irreversible environmental damage and improve the overall health of its citizens.

Grow Cities with Green Roofs

Growing cities bring more air pollution. Cities such as Houston, Texas are using green roofs to combat air pollution and manage storm water runoff.

A recent NPR piece about growing and sprawling cities, states greater Houston's population at about 6 million people (podcast here). With its hot and humid climate, as well as oil refineries, air pollution is a very serious issue. Additionally, as Houston grows, storm water runoff and its management also becomes a more significant issue, as much of the runoff ends up in the Gulf of Mexico.

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The Houston Business Journal reported in 2007 people were thinking about and building green roofs. The green roof is 12% more efficient than a baseline building, and helps to reduce the urban heat island effect.

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From the article:

According to Wooten (Kirksey Associate Russell Wooten, project manager), green roofs address two green building issues that are of special concern in Houston:

• The heat island effect. Green roofs reduce what is known as the heat island effect: Due to large areas of hot paved surfaces in urban areas, it's often up to 10 degrees hotter in the city than in the surrounding countryside.
• Stormwater. The plant materials on green roofs absorb a large amount of stormwater.

...green roofs increase the roof's life span, filter pollutants and carbon dioxide out of the air and filter pollutants and heavy metals out of rainwater.

Another successful green roof project in Houston is the University of Houston Architecture School. Geoffrey Brune of the Architecture School states in a piece from ABC12.com:

"If all the buildings in Houston had green roofs then the temperature would be very different. … I think it would be significantly noticeable … by several degrees."

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Additionally, the U/H green roof is on a building with a sloped roof, not typically seen with green roofs. The building is proving that green roofs are feasible on not just for larger structures with sloped roofs, but also for residential structures, which typically do have sloped roofs.

As Houston's population continues to grow, the application of green roofs to new buildings will help bring cleaner air to its new residents.