Moule & Polyzoides' NRDC Robert Redford Building

The Congress for the New Urbanism, which promotes walkable urban planning with sensitive blends of housing and job-creating buildings, has declared the Natural Resource Defense Council's Robert Redford Building to be "one of the greenest buildings in the United States" and given it a Charter Award. Taking a holistic approach to ecology, the building conserves energy and......water while encouraging travel by bicycle and reusing an existing 1920s development.

Moule & Polyzoides Architects and Urbanists put photovoltaic cells in the roof (check out our solar category ) and designed the building to make maximum use of natural ventilation and light. Showers available for cyclists also irrigate the landscaping with grey water. Only 2% of the site's previous building was not able to be reused or recycled, and the entire current structure is made from recycled or recyclable materials.

It's also good to see urban development occurring along attractive lines: the Santa Monica building's upper level makes nods to lighthouses and other seaside structures as it gazes out towards the ocean (without descending into kitsch). And a look at the bright, open interior is enough to make any cubicle-dweller jealous. ::Congress for the New Urbanism [by KK]