A team of four Syracuse University students placed in the top 10 in an international design competition for sustainable housing projected for the year 2050.

The team — composed of Riley Gourde, a graduate student majoring in engineering; Kate DeWitte, a senior public health major; and Sarah Ritchey and Emily Greer, senior and junior architecture majors, respectively — worked on their hypothetical housing design with the theme of “desire.” The competition challenged the team to bring elements of environmental sustainability, good design practices and a community connection incorporated into one building.

“Our main goal was to create a space for residents and community members to establish a greater connection with the environment,” Greer said.

The group’s project, called Aquapartments, was hypothetically placed in south Syracuse and mainly featured the use of an aquaponics system. The aquaponics system consists of 200 “grow beds,” which supply the building with edible plants and fish, and the system is self-sustaining, according to the team’s phase two application.

The team’s design also includes an interior courtyard that produces a high amount of oxygen, so the hypothetical residents of the building would have health benefits.

Gourde said the building used a variety of green technologies to remain a net-zero building. Those technologies include the use of geothermal systems, solar panels, solar windows, a rain-harvesting system, on-site generation of water, an energy recovering wheel and radiant heating and cooling panels.

“As architects, what inspired us to do (this project) is that buildings actually contribute way more to global warming than pretty much any other energy consumer out there,” Ritchey said. “As designers we do have a responsibility to step up and not only make buildings sustainable but make them reach out to the community.”

Mélissa Bastonero, the communication officer for the 2016 Well Building 2050 competition, said the theme of “desire” for the competition was picked because housing should reflect occupants’ desires and comfort expectations.

“We are not interested in being limited to the existing know-how,” Bastonero said in an email. “We want to adapt our technologies to mankind’s desires so we can contribute to the lasting improvement of the quality of life, while guaranteeing more comfort, sustainability and energy efficiency for all.”

Phase one project submissions were from May 29 to July 29 this year, and 10 teams were selected to participate in phase two. Teams from China, Mexico, Germany, Vietnam, France, Ukraine, Moldavia and the United States are competing in phase two, with the team from SU being one of them.

“I have been delighted to read all the projects that have been sent to us,” Bastonero said. “I was pleased to notice that young people don’t lose hope for our planet’s future, that they still believe improvement can be achieved through hard work and dedication to the environment’s protection.”

The students will travel to Strasbourg, France on Nov. 23 to present their project to a panel of judges who will determine the first, second and third place teams.

Published on October 23, 2016 at 10:54 pm

Contact Ali: akharfor@syr.edu