© SOM | Miysis
“Urban Sequoia NOW,” a building model from SOM to expunge carbon from the air
Earlier this week, at the COP 27 UN Climate Change Conference in Sharm EL- Sheikh, Egypt, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) revealed an update to its Urban Sequoia project introduced at COP 26, introducing Urban Sequoia NOW. Developed by a collaborative incorporative team at SOM, the building’s design can be constructed quickly and sequester carbon throughout its lifespan. Presented by Partner Chris Cooper in the Buildings Pavilion Auditorium.

“Urban Sequoia thinks about cities as ecosystems, as living, breathing systems that can be reorganized to significantly reduce carbon emissions, reframing the built environment as a solution to the climate crisis,” Mina Hasman, the firm’s Sustainability Director, said in a press release. “We need to reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere through built environment design. SOM Partner Chris Cooper was on hand to present his firm’s refined design for a carbon-sequestering building that can be used as a weapon in the fight against carbon emissions globally, three-quarters of which are generated from urban areas alone. Cooper added that going beyond net zero is necessary to prevent climate change.
© SOM | Miysis
Despite some considerably less-marketable obstacles to its effective implementation, the technology for carbon sequestering has come a long way in its development to offer itself as ...