Founded by future-focused architect Dustin Feider, O2 Treehouse designs and builds geodesic domes for leafy habitats. The company is guided by principles of sustainability; domes are hung in the canopy using a cable suspension system, so not a single hole is drilled in the host tree during installation; also, because the polygon design distributes stress evenly across the entire structure, the......read more
In Holland, forward-thinking design is basically a cultural imperative. So no one's going to be surprised that this hyperadvanced infrastructure concept—a floating, multi-purpose structure designed to the highest standards of sustainability—is a Dutch initiative. Envisioned by DHV Architects for a major Dutch causeway that separates the saltwater North Sea from a freshwater......read more
Hailing from a long line of architects and carpenters, Gesa Hansen raids the family archives to create her wonderful line of furniture inspired by mid-century modern Scandanavian design. Now based in Paris, Hansen sources sustainable oak from local forests to produce unique and beautiful pieces under The Hansen Family mark. The limited line includes a curvacious coffee table, a desk with colorful......read more
When former Tivoli Audio engineers Aaron Fournier and Mike Tunney decided to start Thinksound, the goal was to create affordable, high quality headphones while keeping the company's footprint light. With these Thinksound ts02 ear buds, it sounds like everything is going according to plan. The ts02's handcrafted wooden housing flaunts an 8mm speaker that delivers a warm......read more
This doll house of the future (or we guess present) has a to-scale collection of Bozart furnishings, all designer- and artist-approved miniatures. Clear panels slide aside opening the rooms from floor to ceiling to the environment, and skylights open for a hand to reach in and move the furniture around. Balanced on one caster wheel, the house can be rolled onto its drought-tolerant yard of......read more
When we were asked to come up to the sustainably produced Wanderlust -- the unique combination music/yoga festival -- who were we to say no? It's in the Sierra mountains in a gorgeous setting with a four day roster that included Moby and The Brazilian Girls. We spoke about the SHFT mission and environmental messaging through new media at what they call their Speakeasy. Everything about......read more
In the summer, surfers and sun-seekers descend on Rockaway, Queens to enjoy the best waves and beaches NYC has to offer. Opened two years ago, Rockaway Taco gives New Yorkers another reason to ride the A train to the end of the line. In this episode of BK Informed, we talk sustainability with Andrew Field, who explains Rockaway's Beach 96 movement — the name given to the growing green......read more
Food doesn't get any more local than when you can plant, pick, cook, and eat it all within a space of about five feet. That's the exactly the situation that building manager Peter Malerba finds himself in. The longtime Brooklyn resident takes advantage of having open access to a vast rooftop by growing a variety of organic delights every summer. But like a good Brooklynite, Malerba......read more
In the second installment in our series on Eat LACMA — Fallen Fruit and LACMA's a year-long investigation into food, art, culture and politics — Fallen Fruit throws a hootenanny centered around activities ranging from folk-music and square dancing to a salsa cook-off. During the event, participants experience and celebrate collective sustainability....read more
In this Eat LACMA episode, we hang out with art collective Didier Hess, the founders of LA-based design group Materials & Applications. The architects and designers by training — and uncategorizable visionaries in practice — designed and built a totally eco-friendly hydroponic tilapia farm (complete with a water pump powered by solar panels) on the LACMA grounds. Dubbed by the......read more