// Check if the article Layout ?>
From Forest to City
The recyclability of temporary structures is becoming increasingly important. A particularly radical option is the Zero Emission Pavilion designed by the architects PARTNERUNDPARTNER for the 3rd Climate Week in Hamburg at the end of September 2011.
According to Michael Braungart, co–inventor of the cradle–to–cradle concept, the design of future products and buildings should make it relatively easy to separate their components according to material type, before returning these either to the 'technosphere' or the biosphere. In other words: It has to be possible to keep reusing (or recycling) them without losses in quality, or they should be completely absorbed in the cycles of nature, i.e. rot.
The Zero Emission Pavilion at the Climate Week in Hamburg is an exemplary interpretation of the cradle–to–cradle principle. The outer supporting skeleton, made of tree cuttings from green spaces in Hamburg , was shredded and returned as nutrient matter to the forest soil after Climate Week.
The inner casing of the pavilion was made of translucent polyester webbing, illuminated by 16 LED spotlights at night. During the day, the membrane acted as a screen for the constantly changing play of shadows of the twigs. The webbing is completely recyclable, free from harmful substances and certified according to Oeko-Tex Standard 100. The architects also used completely recyclable carpet tiles as floor covering.
Before meeting its recycling fate, the pavilion has been booked for a second appearance in two years: at the International Garden Show (IGS) held in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg, simultaneously with the International Building Exhibition (IBA) 2013.