Philips beyond electronics: Off the grid – Sustainable Habitat 2020
beingzoe 8 months ago // Hardworking Folk Sustainable building

When I think of Philips I think of electronics and appliances. But I don’t think about a building sustainable city design. Yet that is exactly what they are thinking and working towards.

Philips has launched a series of what they call “Design Probes.” These design probes are intended to, “track trends and developments that may ultimately evolve into mainstream issues that have a significant impact on business,” as part of a “far-future” research initiative.

One of the design probes dubbed “Sustainable Habitat 2020” is looking at radical ways to not just use green materials in construction, but to make modern structures that are in complete balance with their environments.

From the Philips Design Probe project page:

“This future habitat shifts from the current state where the building surfaces are benign inert ‘dumb’ materials only used for construction and shielding purposes to sensitive functional skins that are ‘alive’ and act as membranes to harness energy. A membrane creates a strong link between the exterior and interior of the habitat and used as a transporter collecting and channeling the elements of air water and light – from the outside feeding into the inside space. This will supply the habitat with all necessary sources to be able to live off the grid.”

On their site you can watch a video on how the “living” building would function and the benefits it would provide both to the inhabitants and to the surrounding environment.

I was fairly impressed with the whole concept. And even more impressed that it was Philips proposing such radical shift in building and the perceptions of the human impact on the balance of nature. I highly recommend visiting the design probe site and checking out the Sustainable Habitat 2020 project pages .