Building with an eye on the sky
Designers of affordable housing are thinking green these days, looking to take better advantage of the sun, creating green spaces and rooftop gardens, and deploying an array of energy-saving features. The sector is part of the vibrant activity in U.S. cities, in contrast to stagnation in Washington, D.C., said Jonathan Rose, whose development firm, Jonathan Rose Companies, emphasizes sustainable designs. The issue is especially important amid population growth in the developing world, where the slums that often surround cities present enormous challenges to ensure populations are safe and healthy, particularly in the face of climate change. “Climate change is going to bring a lot more uncertainty into the human world,” Rose said. Rose made his comments Tuesday in a talk at the Science Center titled “The Well-Tempered City.” The lecture was part of the Harvard University Center for the Environment’s “Future of Energy” lecture series. The center’s director, Daniel Schrag, Sturgis Hooper Professor of...