Home » Archives » February 2005 » Sustainable Design...(part duh) [Previous entry: "Sustainable Design"] [Next entry: "Business as Sports..."] 02/10/2005: "Sustainable Design...(part duh)" listening to: NPR
feeling: Full...of Burrito!

Okay, so I have a comment that I'd like to make about sustainable design.

What exists is LAME. I listenned to this whole thing about how people are putting 'green' roofs on big skyscrapers, and how the theory is that it will produce more O₂, reducing CO₂, and rebuilding the ozone layer, AND acting as a thermal barrier for the roof of the building and saving energy. Problem is, it don't f@ckin' WORK, and the expense FAR outweighs any benefits, and the gardens require gigantic amounts of maintenance.

What people don't seem to understand, is that this crap has to be useable. As it turns out, Architects are just as bad about this as Software Developers and Product Designers and Electronics Manufacturers...and I am noticing it more and more.

Maybe it's because of what I do, and my own frustration with my own work, but I have a hard time believing that people are getting paid large sums of money to build us incredibly scientifically advanced, useful, and powerful technologies, and then we disregard it because we can't figure out how to use it, and we won't read the damned manual.

Here's what I want. I want some scientifically proven way to save some energy, make a little less impact on my environment (or at least use some materials that the environment won't try to DESTROY: Hello, I shouldn't have to water the foundation of my house!), save a little money, and not need a degree in Earth Science or Horticulture to do the upkeep.

Is that so wrong?

Replies: 1 Comment

On Friday, February 11th, Nicole said

There's nothing wrong with that but that doesn't mean that I have to like my project at hand anymore than I already do(n't).