The VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre. Photo courtesy of: Perkins+Will
The VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre by Perkins+Will has received Living Building Challenge (LBC) Petal Certification by the International Living Future Institute.
A first for the global architecture and design firm, the certification is the most advanced measurement of sustainability in the built environment and recognizes projects in performance categories called Petals. The VanDusen Visitor Centre achieved certification in the categories of Site, Materials, Health and Beauty.

?Today marks an important milestone for this project and our firm. Perkins+Will has long pushed the boundaries of sustainable design, and VanDusen exemplifies our next generation of projects?projects that explore the connection between humans and nature, and demonstrate our commitment to regenerative design,? says Peter Busby, managing director of Perkins+Will?s San Francisco office. Located in Vancouver, British Columbia, the VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre was inspired by the form and natural systems of a native orchid. Metaphorically representing undulating petals, the building?s roof form appears to float above the building?s curved walls and flows seamlessly from a central oculus and into the surrounding landscape. A multi-disciplinary design team that included architects, engineers, landscape architects, and ecologists collaborated to integrate natural and human systems in order to restore and enha...