Wednesday, April 14. 2010
Via ArchDaily
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by David Basulto
AMO is a design and research studio inside OMA, a think tank operating on the boundaries of architecture: media, politics, sociology, sustainability, technology, fashion, curating, publishing and graphic design. Some of their works include the barcode flag for the EU and a study for Wired magazine.
And while OMA covers sustainable strategies on a building or master plan scale, AMO is approaching it on en European scale as one of the five consultants conducting technical, economic and policy analyses for Roadmap 2050, an initiative by the European Climate Foundation which looks to chart a policy roadmap for the next 5-10 years based on the European leaders’ commitment to an 80-95% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2050. You can download a brief of Roadmap 2050 in PDF.
Roadmap 2050 © AMO
The goal is to achieve a 2% energy efficiency saving per year in order to meet this goal, with power and vehicle transportation being the most important areas.
Through the complete integration and synchronization of the EU’s energy infrastructure, Europe can take maximum advantage of its geographical diversity. The report’s findings show that by 2050, the simultaneous presence of various renewable energy sources within the EU can create a complementary system of energy provision ensuring energy security for future generations.
AMO’s work focuses on the production of a graphic narrative which conceptualizes and visualizes the geographic, political, and cultural implications of the integrated, decarbonized European power sector.
On their study you can find an interesting approach to a diverse european energy grid, including energy trade and the use of new non-traditional sources.
Eneropa © AMO
The image of “Eneropa” appears as a new continent based on its energy production: Biomassburg, Geothermalia, Solaria, the Tidal States… are part of this new territory. Other branding concepts are introduced on the study, creating a tangible image of this ambitious plan, which reminds the powerful (yet simple) idea behind the barcode flag.
You can download the full study in PDF format at the Roadmap 2050 website.
More after the break:
Energy source © AMO
Power grid 2050 © AMO
Solar / wind energy © AMO
Decarbonized grid power distribution © AMO
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Additionnal images and comments on the same topic by InfraNet Lab
[Eneropa - The New European Map? Image via OMA/AMO]
An interesting new report by AMO for Roadmap 2050 recently emerged online. Roadmap 2050 is a policy roadmap to address the 80-95% reduction in CO2 emissions targeted by Europe for 2050. The AMO study creates a new image of Europe as Eneropa, a continent now defined by energy territories – Biomassburg, Geothermalia, Solaria, Isles of Wind, Tidal States, etc…. These new territories are connected by a new green grid, represented by AMO in a language akin to subway transit maps – isolating nodes of production and movement corridors for energy. While doing so, this new networked grid creates a legible structure of energy infrastructure which is displayed in various branding schemes. The report also discusses the possibility of an energy exchange with North Africa, utilizing the solar potential of North Africa in exchange for wind energy from Eneropa"""''s Isles of Wind.
[The Target: 85-90% reduction in CO2 emissions. Image via AMO/OMA]
[Predicted Energy Supply in 2050]
What would happen to the old energy infrastructure of Europe? The report suggests that this could be preserved as as Unesco Sites of the pre-Eneropa world. Perhaps as a memory/ reminder of the world reliant on carbon, these would be the monuments of a world enthralled with energy. And how much would this cost? AMO"""''s study estimates that the increased energy cost per household to live in a decarbonized Europe would only be 140 euros. The report also touches on some new energy initiatives and technological breakthroughs. You can access the Report PDF here.
[Rendering of Solaria via OMA/AMO]
[Rendering of Hydropia. Image via OMA/AMO]
[Energy Grid of Eneropa. Image via OMA/AMO]
Personal comment:
Intersting to see that "sustainable solutions" are taking advantage of geographic diversities. Answers seems to come at the scale of at least large regions or continents, taking differencies into account. Can we speak here about global sustainability, global differencies, maybe "networked miscegenation" or "networked mobility".
These are themes that interest us for a while now and we see here a confirmation and a way to continue to go with those concepts in our work.
Thursday, April 08. 2010
Via TreeHugger
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by Petz Scholtus, Barcelona, Spain
Image by Droog
Designers everywhere are preparing for this year's Salone del Mobile in Milan, and so is Droog. The Dutch design company saved 5135 items from liquidation sales and other leftovers and invited 14 designers to create something new with these objects. The result: folding chairs manicured by nail artists, handkerchiefs that distribute selected daily news articles, spoons with non-edible yet mouth-watering coatings- all on sale at the Milan furniture fair next week!
According to Droog, every month about 500 companies in the Netherlands go bankrupt. The question is: Where do their products go? Droog managed to get hold of 5135 products by bidding at liquidation auctions: 1 water cooler, 1 dining table, 2 bar stools, 4 metal trays, 6 wooden trays, 8 mirrors, 10 small bowl sets, 11 cups, 14 dog baskets, 20 dish towels, 40 glass vases, 50 safety vests, 60 sets of cutlery, 80 folding chairs, 90 flower pots, 100 candy pots, 102 wooden spoons, 168 plates of glass, 200 saltshakers, 448 wallets, 500 matchboxes, 720 cola glasses, and 2500 handkerchiefs.
Reading through Droog's new blog, interesting questions have been raised regarding the re-use of these objects as well as consumption and production in general. Here is how designer Erna Einarsdóttir described her initial reaction to the design brief:
It is pretty clever to not let all these things go to waste and, coming from Iceland, I think we could have used a project like this over here. I am sure many things are getting thrown away from empty offices in Iceland.
Designer Ed Annink's reaction was "sad and happy". He says: "All together we design and produce too much, and see what happens! Stuff does not reach our houses anymore, but instead they stay at dark places. No function, no fun. But yes, a story!" Let's see what Ed comes up with, using 14 dog baskets, and 60 sets of cutlery.
Image by Droog
Saved by Droog is an interesting creative exercise to re-use "lost" objects as raw material. "A pragmatic starting point with surprising outcomes, the presentation celebrates the re-use potential of leftovers as a valid approach to product design and development", says Droog.
Visit Droog in Milan: April 14th - 18th, Via Alserio 22, Milan, 20159, Italy. ::Droog
More about Droog:
Pioneers of Change: Repairing Manifestos, Slow Food & Dutch Design Shows at Governors Island in New York
House of Furniture: Chairs that Pop Out of Walls
A "Touch of Green" in Milan 2008
12 Milkbottles Recycled into One Lamp by Droog
Thursday, April 01. 2010
Via GOOD
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by Andrew Price
The report ... concludes it is technically feasible to produce a pan-continental supersmart grid powered by solar farms in North Africa, hydro electric plants in Scandinavia and the European Alps, onshore and offshore wind farms in the Baltic and North Sea, marine energy, and biomass power facilities. Richard Gledhill, partner for sustainability and climate change at PwC, said the report "debunks some of the conventional criticisms of large-scale renewables" by demonstrating how "geographic and technological diversification can help address cost and security of supply concerns". Significantly, the report predicts that the rapid deployment of renewable energy capacity at scale will bring down the cost of low-carbon technologies, resulting in energy that is cost competitive and can provide affordable electricity across the region.
The report only says that this goal is "technically feasible," and there are some difficult political hurdles along the way. The road map provided in the report calls for new disincentives for building coal plants and for countries to adopt binding targets for renewables, for example. Those things are hard to do. But this is encouraging nonetheless, and gives us something to shoot for. And if this sort of future is possible in Europe, where lots of different countries have to coordinate, it should be equally possible in the States. In both cases, a key is investing in the kind of smart grid (or, as the report says, supersmart grid) that allows for wind and solar to be harvested where they're plentiful and moved to where they're needed.
Personal comment:
Wait and see...
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