Sustainable Urban Mushroom Skyscrapers Mimic Tropical Rainforests

Imagine living in a city filled with gigantic, mushroom-shaped skyscrapers modeled after the ecology of equatorial rainforests. Architect Sarah Mohd. Salleh has envisioned a way for humanity to survive in a future of overpopulation and land scarcity. Designed specifically for Sentul, Kuala Lumpur, the “Tropicool @KL” project aims to “retain the meaning of existing urban green lung and integrate it within a conducive tropical living environment.”

From EcoFriend:

Taking inspiration from the equatorial rainforests, a hostile place where life still thrives, the architect has envisioned similar structures for the urban world as well. Dubbed as The Symbiotic Tropical Mushrooms, the architecture is an artificial rainforest where trees are replaced with self-sufficient Mushroom towers. Just like in a tree, the canopy of the mushroom is integrated with transparent solar cells and the branches provide sustainable housing. The trunk is an energy passage from where supplies to the branches are made.

Apart from solar electricity, the buildings will also generate bio-mass energy, which would be channeled to each colony on the mushroom. Rainwater would be harvested and used for both potable and non-potable uses. Transportation will be minimized by keeping 90% of the area only for pedestrians. Each colony would be producing food and energy for itself by vertical gardens and living roofs.

You can’t say the world of futuristic eco-architecture is boring. This particular example shows just how creative architects can get with sustainability, and taking cues from nature is a great way to move forward as we all adjust to the realities of changing climate. As Inhabitat notes, it’s probably too complex to be built any time soon, but it’s an intriguing concept.

Link [Eco Friend] via [Inhabitat]

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