Green Community: New Exhibition Rethinks "Green"
Oct 23, 2008
Washington, DC,
WASHINGTON,
DC—The public will have a chance to step back and see their environmental
impact and efforts as part of a greater community – be it geographic,
professional, or demographic – this fall when the National Building Museum opens
Green Community on October 23, 2008. The first-ever exhibition of its
kind will examine the history of environmentally sustainable planning and
design, and explore innovative contemporary and future projects from around the
world.
Following
the phenomenal successes of the Museum’s past “green”
exhibitions, Big and Green
and The
Green House, a
new exhibition entitled Green
Community will examine how and
why we plan, design, and construct the world between our buildings. Much more
than a collection of energy-efficient structures, green communities range from
elementary schools to universities, from small rural towns to large urban
centers, and are even found in the virtual world. Although these communities are
incredibly diverse in terms of identity, scale, and location, all rely upon the
cooperation between designers, builders, planners, policy makers, and citizens
to create healthy and sustainable built environments.
Green
Community will
encourage the Museum’s visitors to consider environmental sustainability
dependant upon collective, community-scale efforts.The exhibition will also
examine
ways of reducing the impact of our built environments on the Earth. The first
part of Green Community will explore sustainable planning strategies such
as brownfield and greyfield land redevelopment, transit-oriented communities,
natural resource management, and land conservation. Highlighted communities in
the United States and around the world include Galisteo Basin, New Mexico;
Mendoza, Argentina; Haili’imaile, Maui, Hawaii; Greensburg, Kansas; Masdar City,
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; and Mona Terrace, Muskegon Heights, Michigan.
The exhibition will also include local examples of green initiatives in the
Washington, DC metropolitan area. These diverse communities demonstrate
successful and innovative examples of sustainable planning, policies, design,
and technology.
The second part of the
exhibition will
demonstrate how the ancient elements of air, water, earth, and fire still
continue to factor into the sustainability of our environments and the health of
our cities and towns. Today, an array of technologies and systems, both simple
and sophisticated, harness wind for renewable energy, reclaim poisoned land,
control urban heat islands, and responsibly manage the world’s water resources.
These and other innovations will be exhibited through multimedia interactive
displays and unique objects designed to teach all ages of visitor.
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