At COP26, the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) revealed its proposal for a prototype for high-rise buildings that can “sequester carbon and produce biomaterials to create a new carbon economy and a resilient urban environment”.
Courtesy of SOM
“What if the built environment could be a solution to the climate crisis, rather than part of the problem" What if buildings could act like trees?capturing carbon, purifying the air, and regenerating the environment"”
To respond to these questions and the ever-growing climate change crisis, SOM designed “Urban Sequoia”; an architectural concept inspired by the natural processes?Urban Sequoia is set to transform the built environment from the industry with the most negative impact with 40 percent of all global carbon emissions, not only to a neutral contributor but to an actual solution to climate challenges. Courtesy of SOM
SOM‘s Strategy Explained
Chris Cooper, SOM Partner, explains the strategy: ?We are quickly evolving beyond the idea of being carbon neutral. The time has passed to talk about neutrality. Our proposal for Urban Sequoia ? and ultimately entire ?forests? of Sequoias ? makes buildings, and therefore our cities, part of the solution by designing them to sequester carbon, effectively changing the course of climate change.?
Courtesy of SOM
SOM utilized sustainable design thinking, innovation, and modern technologies and t...