Daylight gives us an understanding of where we are in the world and of the spaces, we find ourselves in every day. The ‘Poetic Daylight’ pavilion, unfolds the spatial qualities of daylight, where the perceptual, aesthetic and poetic potential of daylight can be experienced in a series of spaces.
Living Places Copenhagen – the first seven prototypes of the concept, show how we can develop sustainable buildings with a three times lower CO2 footprint and a first-class indoor climate. The concept holds the lowest CO2 emissions in Denmark, demonstrating that we do not have to wait for future technology to build more sustainably.
With the building industry accounting for 34% of the global energy consumption and 37% of the global CO2 emissions, in the latest report from the UN’s climate panel, it is clear that low carbon solutions must be scaled and implemented. One of those solutions can be experienced in Copenhagen from today.
With the groundbreaking project Living Places Copenhagen, the VELUX Group and its partners, demonstrate how to build homes with a CO2 footprint of 3.8 kg/CO2/m2/year – three times lower than the current Danish legislation of 12 kg CO2/m2/year – and to a price that matches the market price for a one-family house or rowhouses at scale. Furthermore, Living Places Copenhagen is designed with a strong focus on creating a healthy indoor climate using daylight and fresh air and delivers a best in class indoor climate.
Living Places Copenhagen is the first prototype showcasing the overall concept – Living Places – initiated by the VELUX Group, EFFEKT architects and Artelia engineers. The vision is to lead the way within the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate- and health challenges. The concept is based on five key principles: homes should be healthy, affordable, simple, shared over time and scalable. These principles can be applied to new or existing buildings and communities.
As an official partner to the UIA World Congress of Architects in Copenhagen, Living Places Copenhagen hosts a programme of debates and activities designed to drive and accelerate change in the built industry.
“Living Places is created in an experimental spirit; at VELUX, we believe that one experiment is better than 1000 expert assumptions. Living Places Copenhagen is a proof of our concept to show how to build in a sustainable way.
We wish to drive the transition towards sustainable construction, scalable for the entire sector, both in terms of processes and solutions that can be used in construction on a large scale.”
Lone Feifer
Director of Sustainable Buildings, The VELUX Group
AFTERLIFE
Reused either onsite or on other location.
OTHER PAVILIONS
Reflections in Common
Architecture is only given meaning once we interact with it. The concept of the Pavilion ‘Reflections in Common’ is materialised in the design, which allows people to look at themselves against the backdrop of the city.
The Greenhouse
A space inviting entrepreneurs, visitors and the local community to reconnect with nature and learn the importance of nurturing ecosystems for current and future generations.
OBEL AWARD: unPAVILION
The unPAVILION is a statement piece – that prompts curiosity, debate, and reflection on our contemporary and future uses of resources. It also points to the counterproductive nature of greenwashing.
Tower of Wind
A monument celebrating sustainable architecture, in which the public can experience a journey through the history of meteorology.
The Raft
A sensory structure landing on one of Copenhagen canal’s floating platforms, aiming at offering visitors a direct and playful sensorial experience with the water.
(P)RECAST
Investigating the role of precast concrete in sustainable equitable urban development. Is it possible to reuse the building components of these buildings in new construction, minimizing resource consumption?
From 4 to 1 Planet
How do we reduce climate impact from residential buildings to a fourth of the current level without compromising on attractivity and liveability?
Find three different answers to this question in our three pavilions, developed by next generations architects.
Bricks in Common
The brick pavilion ‘Bricks in Common’ brings our attention to this double bind: brick has a potentially long lifespan – it is, however, also a very energy-consuming material to produce. If we want brick to play a larger part of the sustainable development, we need further innovation, development, and more design for disassembly.
Plastic Pavilion: Building Sustainable Societies
Future building materials need to be sustainable, meaning that they are reusable or recyclable, and preferably made from recycled content. Many of the synthetic materials, plastic, and other polymers have these properties while at the same time being durable, lightweight, cheap, and easy to shape.
Feed Back
Different lenses on food systems. The pavilion uses virtual spatial design to guide the audience through an exhibition that explores the content of the publication in a gallery-like experience. Users take part of the exhibit space by using their own mobile devices through virtual reality features.
Bio-centre
Architects Without Border’s pavilion is an interpretation of one of their actual development projects, the “Bio-Centre”. Through basic sanitary functions, a bio-center provides crucial services in a densely packed slum – while creating a social focal point.