Rosa Urbano GutiA(c)rrez – författare

Presenting the state-of-the-art in sustainable retrofits in post war residential towers, this book captures and re-informs the current intense refurbishing process that is taking place in Britain, which is part of a global phenomenon happening all over the world, as cities upgrade their building stock in an attempt to comply with governmental emission reduction targets. The authors present inspections of 20 sustainably retrofitted social housing towers, analysing their aesthetic and technical modifications, as well as the shifts occurring in their social structure. The authors use over 200 full colour plans, elevations, photographs, maps and illustrations to beautifully support the statistical and analytical information collected. Finally they include interviews with some of the architects who designed the retrofits, residents and key stakeholders to inform the conclusions.

Presenting the state-of-the-art in sustainable retrofits in post war residential towers, this book captures and re-informs the current intense refurbishing process that is taking place in Britain, which is part of a global phenomenon happening all over the world, as cities upgrade their building stock in an attempt to comply with governmental emission reduction targets. The authors present inspections of 20 sustainably retrofitted social housing towers, analysing their aesthetic and technical modifications, as well as the shifts occurring in their social structure. The authors use over 200 full colour plans, elevations, photographs, maps and illustrations to beautifully support the statistical and analytical information collected. Finally they include interviews with some of the architects who designed the retrofits, residents and key stakeholders to inform the conclusions.

For sustainable architecture to become a reality, the way we design buildings needs to change. Many architects are concerned that sustainable technologies may interfere with a building’s aesthetic appearance, and so these are often ‘added on’ once the design process is complete.

Elements of Sustainable Architecture solves this dilemma by helping students to develop the design skills they need to create sustainable buildings – ensuring that ecological considerations are applied throughout the design process. Restoring the primacy of aesthetics and creativity to sustainable design, the book focuses on strategies that have the greatest impact on building design. It also shows the influence of sustainability considerations on choices about aspects such as composition, form, space, tectonics, materials, colour, textures, proportion and position.

Specifically designed to offer a new way of understanding architecture, the book:

A clear, visual introduction to creating aesthetically beautiful and sustainable buildings, this is essential reading for students in sustainable architecture courses.