Date of Award

5-2007

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Departmental Honors

Department

Art and Design

Abstract

Our most contemporary architecture is the biggest culprit contributing to global warming. We see the results globally, from one corner to the other affecting everything in between: Phillipine forests are clear-cut for plywood used to construct Japanese offices; homes in Southern California are framed with old-growth lumber from Washington and powered by burning coal strip-mined from Navajo sacred lands in Arizona. Point being, the destructive power of poor design isn't limited to the end-user, if affects everyone. Additionally, not only are these buildings forever altering the landscape they are placed upon and everywhere their resources were pulled from, but everything that is used to furnish them contains harsh chemicals that continuously off-gas for decades. Although the potential of reversing these impacts is daunting, measures are being taken to not only lessen the environmentally-dangerous outcomes of building without consideration of consequences but to give back to the environment such that the building goes farther than breaking even with its foundation.

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Faculty Mentor

Steven Mansfield

Departmental Honors Advisor

Mary Leavitt