Greening the built environment

of the following weighted components:
Completeness and quality of assignments (35% of final grade); for Group projects each member of the group will be evaluated separately based on their contribution and/or demonstrated understanding of the tasks/results/concepts/etc.
Grade on midterm examination (25% of final grade) (format: multiple choice, true/false, short answer, short essay, problem solving)
Grade on final examination (25% of final grade) (format: multiple choice, long essay, problem solving)
Class participation (15% of final grade) (includes attendance, meaningful contribution, being well-prepared (5%) and quizzes (10%))

and their weights as specified above.
The final grades will not be curved.
They will be based on the following breakdown:

the scheduled class sessions without prior notice. Students will not be allowed to make up quizzes or exams they miss unless they inform the instructor of their absence 24 hours. Emergencies will be considered on a case-by-case basis. 
Standards for Academic Integrity:
Students are required to conduct themselves in an academically responsible and ethical manner in line with the AUA Code of Student Ethics. Acts of academic dishonesty (e.g., plagiarism, cheating during tests, copying homework) impair the academic integrity of AUA and create an unfair academic advantage for the student involved and other members of the academic community. These acts are subject to disciplinary measures as prescribed in the AUA Code of Student Ethics.

has skin and that skin has many diseases; one of these diseases is man.
Fredrich Nietzche

HUMAN BEINGS AS MEMBERS OF A LIVING ORGANISM called EARTH:
Every decision we make we always keep in mind the Seventh Generation … It is our job to see that … the generations unborn, have a world no worse than ours—and hopefully better.
Iroquois Chief Oren Lyons
quoted in Cities and Sustainable Ecosystems (2008)

բնակչության թիվը և աճը ըստ աշխարամասերի

բնակչության կÛանքի ëåաëíáÕ ï¨ողությունը
ըստ աշխարամասերի

in households with income per person below the poverty line has decreased in each region of the world since 1990

Source: World Bank, 2007

Աշխարհի չքավոր բնակչության մասը ըստ
աշխարամասերի

Earth's ecosystems.
It represents the amount of biologically productive land and sea area needed to regenerate the resources a human population consumes and to absorb and render harmless the corresponding waste.
The Earth has about 12 billion hectares of bio-productive land – that’s 2.1 hectares for every man, woman and child on Earth.

Source: www.panda.org

Էկոլոգիական ոտնահետքը

human ecological footprint in 2008 stood at 2.7. That is 0.6 greater than the planet’s capacity.

Source: Global Footprint Network, 2008

role

Սոցիալ-տնտեսական զարգացումը և էկոլոգիական ոտնահետքը

the remainder considers fisheries, forests, cropland, water
The carbon footprint measures the amount of greenhouse gases (GHG’s) released into the atmosphere per human activity or some other unit of production.

Source: www.nature.org
When released into the atmosphere, these gases create a shield that prevents the solar heat from escaping, thus creating a “greenhouse” effect.
The most significant of these gases is CO2 which is derived from fossil fuels. GHG’s also include methane, nitrous oxide.

Ածխածնային ոտնահետքը

Զերմոցային գազեր

Այլ ԶԳ-ներն են մեթանը և ազոտի օքսիդը

Ածխածին երկօքսիդի արտանետումը գոյանում է ֆոսիլային վառելանյութի շահագործումից

2007 estimates

Total CO2 Emissions from Fossil Fuels (million metric tons)

2007

ֆոսիլաին վառելիքներից գոյացած
ածխածին երկօքսիդի արտանետումնեիի քանակը (միլ. տոննա)

faster than population growth.

Աշխարհի բնակչության և CO2-ի արտանետման տարեկան աճը

CO2-ի արտանետում

Բնակչություն

2009) by Johan Rockström, Will Steffen, Kevin Noone, Åsa Persson, F. Stuart Chapin, III, Eric F. Lambin, Timothy M. Lenton, Marten Scheffer, Carl Folke, Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, Björn Nykvist, Cynthia A. de Wit, Terry Hughes, Sander van der Leeuw, Henning Rodhe, Sverker Sörlin, Peter K. Snyder, Robert Costanza, Uno Svedin, Malin Falkenmark, Louise Karlberg, Robert W. Corell, Victoria J. Fabry, James Hansen, Brian Walker, Diana Liverman, Katherine Richardson, Paul Crutzen & Jonathan A. Foley

2009) by Johan Rockström, Will Steffen, Kevin Noone, Åsa Persson, F. Stuart Chapin, III, Eric F. Lambin, Timothy M. Lenton, Marten Scheffer, Carl Folke, Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, Björn Nykvist, Cynthia A. de Wit, Terry Hughes, Sander van der Leeuw, Henning Rodhe, Sverker Sörlin, Peter K. Snyder, Robert Costanza, Uno Svedin, Malin Falkenmark, Louise Karlberg, Robert W. Corell, Victoria J. Fabry, James Hansen, Brian Walker, Diana Liverman, Katherine Richardson, Paul Crutzen & Jonathan A. Foley

rely on
Policy leadership
Technological innovation
Open minds to new approaches and ancient approaches
Cultural changes (especially in consumption habits)
Individual responsibility

terra, aqua, …

“Cities and Climate Change: A Solutions Oriented Conference” held at the University of Southern California

Why Cities and Buildings Matter

dubbed as “eco cities”
There are also semi sci-fi ideas; technologies under development and some being marketed
Adoption of sustainable design approaches in existing cities/buildings

Over the past 15-20 years there is a growing body of experience and experimentation in the fields of urban planning and architecture that we can learn from:

One Planet Living Programme; designed for 50k residents; construction underway
Zero-carbon, zero-waste, and fossil-fuel-car-free

Brand New Cities (aka “Eco-Cities”)

size of Manhattan near Shanghai, eventually home to 500k people; construction delayed
Carbon neutral, organic sustainable farming; solar, wind and biomass energy; no landfills: all waste to be used; green roofs; clean-fuel cars; hydrogen fuel cell public transport; network of foot and bike paths; …

startup Unimodal can carry up to 14.4k people an hour (as many as a 3 lane highway). Speeds reach up to 150 mph (240 km/h); uses permanent magnets which use a fraction of the energy hogging electric magnets. System costs $10m per mile, a tenth of light rail systems

Water-retaining building skins

POD CAR: Small electrical cars that fold up when parked, saving parking space. Solar panels recharge the pod and excess energy is pumped into grid

CROWD FARMS: Proposed by the architects James Graham and Thaddeus Juscyk, gather energy from footfalls that strike the sidewalk or any walking surface. If installed in a busy train station, a Crowd Farm can power 6,500 LEDs, enough to light the building.

ENERGY PAINT: Invented by chemist Somenath Mitra of the New Jersey Institute of Techno]ogy, the viscous solution contains two types of nanoparticles—one that traps the sunlight and another that converts it to electricity

Semi Sci Fi – Tech available or under development

GREEN TOWER: Based on a design by French architect Jacques Ferrier, has an exterior concrete lattice, bearing the structural load of the building and housing photovoltaic cells and rainwater channels. The latter funnel water to a central purification system that provides clean water for the building. Below geothermal wells tap into the constant temprature of the bedrock to cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

produce food and water for 50,000 people. Irrigation comes from filtered sewer, purified by a tower of zebra mussels.

Wind turbines (super efficient)

Wave and tidal energy harvesting

HIGHWAY WIND: Harvesting of wind created by human activity; wind turbines generated by architect Mark Oberholzer line all highway medians

HYDROGEN AND THE SUPER GRID: Super grid that also transports hydrogen reducing waste created from heat generated from transmission of electricity

Semi Sci Fi – Tech available or under development

strikes you as one or two very interesting observations by the filmmakers?
What was discussed that was unexpected for you?
Which of the suggested solutions resonated with you?
Which of the suggested solutions sounds most realistic?
Any other questions?

UTOPIA?
Solutions may be:
Simple / complex
New / old
Individual choice / systemic
Decentralized / centralized
About efficiency / about new resources / about eliminating waste
Approach will be:
Integrated, system-wide thinking
Focus on energy, water, and waste (but other topics may come up)
IT’S GOING TO BE ABOUT TRADEOFF
NO PREPACKAGED OPINIONS

to:
Critically absorb this
Think about what applies to your current situation
Not everything needs to apply; because you might end up doing work elsewhere or current conditions in Armenia may change

critical)
Practice
Colleagues and professional org’s
Professional Conferences
Reading: prof. publications, etc.