Winter 2024: The Innovation Issue

This article explores how cities like Portland can achieve Project Drawdown’s 9% green roof coverage target by 2050 through innovative economic strategies, public-private partnerships, and workforce development. Scaling green roofs transforms urban infrastructure, delivers climate benefits, and generates local jobs while addressing market limitations and the climate crisis.

Pathfinder 3.0, the latest update to Climate Positive Design's LCA tool, helps designers measure project impacts with expanded carbon datasets, biodiversity and water use analysis, and equity assessments. With enhanced features like GIS integration and project scorecards, it empowers sustainable, climate-forward design for spaces beyond buildings.

Explore Taiwan's pioneering Life Cycle Carbon Database for landscaping (L-LCC), integrating embodied carbon and construction emissions analysis. Discover how this innovative system aligns with global net-zero goals by enabling sustainable design and reducing carbon footprints in urban landscapes.

Discover how extensive green roofs at The Parks at Walter Reed in Washington, D.C., mitigate stormwater runoff, enhance urban sustainability, and provide aesthetic and environmental benefits. Featuring LEED® Gold-certified designs and advanced roofing technologies, this project sets a benchmark for green infrastructure in urban redevelopment.

In this episode, Mitchell Cohen, President of Daniels Corporation, discusses leading the $1.5 billion revitalization of Toronto’s Regent Park. Learn how affordability, community preservation, and resilience transformed a neglected neighborhood into a thriving, inclusive space rooted in history and vision.

Urban heat is a growing threat, exacerbating health risks and inequality. Arup’s UHeat tool provides data-driven solutions to mitigate the Urban Heat Island effect, with case studies like Toronto showcasing strategies for resilience through green infrastructure, retrofitting, and equitable urban design for cooler, healthier cities.

Revitalizing Houston's Barbara Jordan Post Office, the award-winning Skylawn by Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects transforms a historic site into a vibrant, sustainable rooftop park. This five-acre green roof integrates native ecosystems, stormwater management, urban farming, and community spaces, creating a dynamic hub for recreation, education, and biodiversity.

This feature explores rooftop agrivoltaics, combining food-producing green roofs and solar panels, highlighting research advancements at Colorado State University and their potential to address urban food, energy, and water challenges efficiently.

Discover how 12 acres of native and sedum green roofs at Washington D.C.'s Munro Coast Guard Building exemplify sustainability. Learn about stormwater management, biodiversity, and economic benefits of green roofs thriving over a decade. Insightful for urban designers and policymakers.

The article highlights GINKGO’s breakthrough air purification systems, Stomata and Aether. Combining engineered plants, advanced filtration, and efficient irrigation, these systems remove 99.99% of indoor pollutants. With reduced maintenance and proven results, they offer a sustainable solution to improve air quality and enhance well-being in indoor spaces.

Green roofs cover less than 2% of Vancouver’s roofscape, highlighting untapped potential for urban cooling and stormwater benefits. GRIN’s mapping technology can drive green infrastructure adoption across North America, fostering resilience and liveability. Support this transformative initiative through donations or by exploring its application in your city.

Celebrating the 10th anniversary of 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design, this article explores the growing impact of biophilic design, innovative research developments, and the emergence of new patterns like "Awe," underscoring the critical role biophilia plays in enhancing health, well-being, and urban living.

The City of Toronto welcomed more than 300 green infrastructure professionals on November 6 to 9 for the 20th anniversary of the CitiesAlive conference. The conference highlights green infrastructure design, research, policy and innovation from across the world. 

The article discusses the European Union's focus on advancing urban green infrastructure during the 2024-2029 term. It highlights key policies, such as the European Water Resilience Strategy and European Climate Adaptation Plan, emphasizing the importance of nature-based solutions like green roofs for addressing urban water stress, climate resilience, and public health.

In 2024, green roof training, policy achievements, and events thrived. Notable milestones include new GRIMP certifications, expanded professional development, record event attendance, and key partnerships, culminating in the CitiesAlive 20th anniversary in Toronto. Programs and training continue to strengthen urban resilience and sustainable design across North America.

This episode of Sustainable Futures, features Dr. Kathleen Wolf, a social scientist insert who has spent 3 decades exploring how urban nature impacts human health. She shares insights on integrating nature’s benefits into design, enhancing well-being through green spaces.