Finalist 2011

REHABILITATION, LONDON

The proposal is described in two parts – firstly, what could be done today in the current, rather austere climate? It sets out a series of “bottom-up” approaches to integrating biodiversity and improving one’s home, using a budget of £10,000 as offered in the Green Deal.

Small measures such as reducing impermeable surfaces and increasing the diversity and number of potential habitats go towards rehabilitating our sometimes rather sterile environment.

The second set of proposals builds on the “austerity measures”, introducing “green sky thinking”. Birds, bats, invertebrates and amphibians thrive in the gardens, streets and fabric of buildings brought up to Passivhaus standards, driven by a more engaged and educated public sector.

Judges’ Comments:

This project tackles the important issue of how we retrofit our existing housing stock to provide ecosystem services and benefit biodiversity. It envisages how terraced homes would be given a green makeover, with features including external cladding, green roofs, climbers, street trees and bird and bat boxes.