It's still early
Week three of my final semester of undergraduate architecture studios has begun, and until now its been a relatively slow start. Fortunately, I only have Studio IV and one Sustainability course this semester, along with a three-credit Sustainability internship. So, I should have sufficient time to put into this blog, explaining my processes, joys, frustrations, triumphs and failures in this feat of applying systems thinking to my studio project.
Studio IV: The Way We Live Now, What Luxury Teaches Us about Poverty (and Vice Versa)
Professor Cynthia Jara
Last semester I had a professor who started the semester telling us that he had a particular interest in sustainable design and therefore our projects were going to incorporate the ideas of passive heating and cooling, natural ventilation and green building technologies no matter what. Though Cynthia didn't start the semester with a similar disclaimer, the studio will be focused on apartment housing, which is considered more sustainable in itself because of its density. There definitely are challenges to sustainable apartment design, but I think that by taking cues from the Netherlands and Denmark, I'll be able to successfully apply systems thinking and sustainable design principles to my project.