From the cell to the organism: architecture and sustainable urban design

Perhaps the title of this article caught your attention, and you may not understand what sustainable architecture and urban design have to do with human physiology. Let’s imagine for a moment that we are tiny divers under a clear sky, and we are about to make our first dive in our bodies. After several hours of diving in the dark and crossing systems, organs, and tissues with great effort, we have managed to reach the depths of our body: a cell.

Just as our bodies are made up of systems, organs, and cells (with specific purposes and working together) to function, let us imagine that our cities are also huge organisms made up of smaller parts that work together to function as road networks, transportation, services, public spaces, green areas, neighborhoods, buildings, and houses. The challenge, as in our body, is to maintain healthy and efficient cells (houses and buildings), to achieve healthy, functional, and balanced cities (organs and systems) that benefit the body (the planet) in an integral way. The question is, are we achieving it?

Cities and climate change.

Throughout our history, we have designed and built cities that are incredible in size, but also in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from burning fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas) and deforestation. GHGs are the main cause of global warming, which in turn triggers climate change. The larger the city, the greater its need for energy.

Today, it is estimated that cities consume 65% of the world’s energy and generate more than 70% of global CO2 emissions. If we were to put one of our mega cities under a microscope, it would be clear that our urban cells have developed in an uncontrolled and inefficient way and are the main cause of the fragile state of our planet.

The effects of climate change are diverse (rising sea levels, increased rainfall, and flooding, extreme weather events, desertification, famine, loss of habitats, and limited access to drinking water), and although they can be estimated, they are unpredictable and are happening from time to time. so fast that it is not allowing us to adapt. Without a doubt, climate change is the greatest threat to humanity and life in general in this huge system called Earth.

It is currently estimated that 70% of our urban cells are already fighting the effects of climate change, and almost all of them are at risk. Over 90% of all urban areas are coastal, putting most of the world’s cities (and hundreds of millions of people) at risk of massive flooding due to rising sea levels and powerful storms. According to UN data, it is projected that by 2050 68% of the world’s population will live in urban areas. But how are we preparing our buildings and cities to be part of the solution to climate change?

Architecture and urban design: beyond sustainability.

Although the forecasts on climate change are not at all encouraging, according to the IPCC, urgent changes are needed to prevent the planet’s temperature from rising above 1.5°C by 2030, (the year in which it is estimated that the planet could exceed this threshold if GHG emissions continue at current rates) and be able to reduce the risk of millions of people suffering from extreme heat, drought, floods, and poverty. It is precisely at this point those cities and buildings are key to our future.

In a broad context, we could say that sustainable architecture seeks to minimize the negative impact of buildings on their environment through an environmentally responsible design that promotes social welfare and allows economic prosperity in a sustained manner over time. Under this approach, we must think of our buildings in an integral way, knowing that they are not isolated cells and are part of a larger system that works as one.

If we get closer to one of these urban cells and analyze what their main strategies are, we can understand how sustainable architecture is essential to reduce GHG emissions and combat climate change from cities:

• Building design that responds to climate and site. Design spaces that consider the latitude, altitude, and weather conditions and adapt to the topography of the site. Spaces that respond and function based on the solar path, available solar irradiation, wind, and rain allow adaptation to future risks linked to climate change.
• Flexible, modular, and energy-efficient design. Design spaces that consume fewer natural resources, energy, and drinking water and are designed with the intention of transforming them into spaces that allow other activities and reduce waste.
• Designing with comfort, health, and well-being in mind. Design well-ventilated, well-lit spaces that facilitate an active lifestyle and allow permanent contact with nature (biophilia).
• Use recycled, recyclable, and non-toxic materials. To avoid the consumption of new raw materials as much as possible, the design should prefer using natural and fast-growing materials (e.g., bamboo), as well as recycled or recyclable, and non-toxic building materials.
• Optimize the design by using renewable energies. Design spaces that can generate their own electricity and hot water using photovoltaic panels and solar collectors. Design thinking about how design and technology would allow the space to adapt to changing climatic conditions and extreme weather events in the future.
• Designs that improve the natural habitat of the site. Think about how my building can improve the conditions of the site and regenerate them (e.g., reduce non-permeable areas, reforest, prefer native and endemic species as part of the landscape proposal)
• Comprehensive management of residues and waste on the site. Provide adequate on-site treatment of wastewater, rainwater, and runoff, to reduce the charge on the public sewage network, as well as design a space that facilitates recycling and composting to reduce waste.
• Urban gardens. Designs must facilitate and allow people to grow their own food, free of chemicals and toxic substances.
• Inclusive and universal designs. Design spaces that are easily accessible and can be used and enjoyed by everyone, including people with special needs and of different ages.

Now, if we move away and see a set of buildings and neighborhoods designed with environmental awareness, we will find that urban cells are connected to each other by a complex, efficient and intelligent network system that forms organs and systems: cities.

The role of sustainable urban design.

If sustainable architecture seeks to reduce its environmental impact, create economic benefits, and increase the quality of life of people at the cellular level, the sustainable urban design comes to potentiate efforts to reduce GHG emissions on a larger scale, much more complex and involving other vital organs of the system. The goal is to develop more compact, dense, mixed-use, walkable cities with easy access to quality public transportation and open, natural spaces, seeking to create cities committed to the environment, the health and well-being of its inhabitants, and a vibrant economy. that improves the quality of life of people.

If we closely analyze a sustainable city, we will be able to understand what are the essential strategies that allow the urban design to complement and enhance the efforts of sustainable architecture to reduce GHG emissions and combat climate change:

• Mobility
• Energy
• Waste
• Water
• Extreme weather events
• Biodiversity
• Health
• Food
• Population growth, aging population, and refugees

In which direction are we moving? Where are we leading the development of our cities? These are valid questions, which rather than discourage us from bad decisions of the past, should encourage us to propose from each of our projects, regardless of their scale, or budget projects that ensure a positive impact in an integral way for the human being and the planet. And this is exactly what drives our purpose in ADAPTIVA.