Once a week, desirably more, realistically less, I peruse the digital catacombs of Architizer like a pirate on the high seas in search of hidden treasures of thought and inspiration. Alas I have found one (and by no means the only one), a bounty rich enough to share with others.

And so I share this thought project by the German based firm of architects and urban intellectuals, N2M. It begins with a quote whereby, “at each stage of history, we tend to be convinced that our present reality is the one that is ‘really’ real. Now we’ve got it figured out! Now we stand at the end of history!” The arrogance by which we …

As part of HOK’s annual Go Barefoot Day event to celebrate Earth Day and move our firm towards carbon neutral operations, all HOK offices were asked to complete a waste audit. Trash, recylables and compost were all weighed separately during a secret audit performed before Go Barefoot Day.  The same calculations were then completed on a day when all employees were informed to make conscious decisions about their personal trach and recycling. The results were very telling and HOK Chicago showed a significant reduction in the amount of overall waste that we produced in one day by making conscious decisions about our purchases throughout the day. The numbers were great and can be found below, but the real fun came when …

Yesterday - Go Barefoot Day –  HOK London launched an ideas competition for the re-use of waste material. This is focusing on waste material found in the office, to utilise it for a different purpose within the office.

Below is the poster we’re using to promote the competition within the office… if anyone would like to email me their ideas to help me win the competition feel free!! I may even give you a cut of the prize… I do say ’may’…  

All comments welcome! I will let you know the ideas my creative colleagues come up with (we might patent them first though )!

This Wednesday, HOK people planetwide will rally around a shrinking pile of stuff. Fewer plastic bottles. Less packaging. A reduction in printed materials. 

It’s part of our second-annual “Go Barefoot Day,” which transforms Earth Day hype into simple, meaningful changes in each of our lives.   

Waste is the focus of this year’s challenge, with the goal of reducing the firm’s collective environmental impact. Covert waste audits have been conducted at each of our 24 offices to assess the amount of waste produced on a typical business day. On Earth Day, the entire firm will undergo a public waste …