green garden tours

the garden tour season is upon us here in sunny socal. this weekend there are two tours that i will be attending and both are focused on sustainable design in the garden.

the third annual santa monica green garden tours will be held saturday, april 28 from 10am - 4pm. advanced tix are $30, $40 at the door.

then learn how to save water in your garden at the theodore payne foundation native plant garden tour will be held saturday and sunday, april 28-9 from 10am-4pm each day. this tour is a 2-day self-guided journey through 30 local gardens. the criteria is that each garden contains at least 50% california native plants. admission is $20.

ugp wants you! well, your garden actually...

phew...i am still recovering from the boom that was ca boom design show. thanks to everyone i met and your efforts in the green design realm. i am in the process of writing a very detailed blog about it for worldchanging, so stay tuned.

now the big news...urban greening project is moving into our next phase of greening. we're taking the ugp outside of the blog-o-sphere and into the garden and we need your help. if you or someone you know has a house in the la area and are interested in a gorgeous green garden makeover, please contact me for details at urbangreeningproject (at) gmail (dot) com.

green design events this weekend

ca boom 4: the west coast independent design show runs today, march 30th through sunday, april 1st. the event has a big focus around prefab architecture and green design. i'll be there on sunday so stay tuned for my review.


micro-organisms for dummies is a a free workshop in glendale this weekend that you not-dummies may find interesting. effective microorganism inventor and developer, dr. teruo higa will be presenting "micro-organisms for dummies" on sunday, april 1, 2007, from 2 - 5 pm at the glendale civic auditorium at 1401 n verdugo road (at mountain ave).

garden paradise in pasadena

my favorite mustached magic maker, shrine, is at it again. you may remember him from an earlier post about his making love out of trash art show in which he and his daughter jesse transformed 19 truck-loads of trash into beautiful art.

shrine was recently featured on the front page of the house and garden section of the los angeles times for the inspiring garden world that he has created around his pasadena home.




shrine's gardens tell stories of found treasures, intricate mosaics, and fascinating succulants and cactus plants that are artwork in themselves. because of his focus on drought-tolerant species, shrine's garden is a xeriscape which does not require supplemental irrigation. shrine gets a big green thumbs up for his urban greening project. he's not only conserving resources of water but also reusing other people's trash to create beautiful green space.

read more about shrine and his funky gardens from the la times.

and i just couldn't resist adding a photo of zee artist and myself from burning man this past year :)

global emergency

In the year 2035, three quarters of the built environment in the U.S. will be either new or renovated. This transformation over the next 30 years represents a historic opportunity for the architecture and building community to reverse the most significant crisis of modern time, climate change.

in response to my last post about al gore speaking at the 2007 aia convention, i wanted to highlight a really great resource that talks about the effects of the building industry on global warming, showcases a wealth of green case studies, and invites you to join them in a campaign for global action.


architecture 2030 really breaks it down for us, stating that "unknowingly, the architecture and building community is responsible for almost half of all u.s. greenhouse gas emissions annually. globally the percentage is even greater.” also, in the u.s., seventy-six percent of all electricity generated by power plants goes to supply the 'building sector.' with so much of our resources going into this one sector, it is essential for architects, landscape architects, planners, designers, engineers, contractors, and builders to take immediate action in their current practice.

action...yes. but how?

architecture 2030 is producing a live webcast for global education and activation. the global emergency teach-in titled "global warming, climate change and the built environment" will air around the world on february 20, 2007. all design schools (architecture, planning, landscape architecture, interior design, environmental studies, industrial design, etc.) are being asked to substitute the teach-in for classes on this day, and professional design firms and governmental entities (planning departments, city officials, etc.) are highly encouraged to join in as well. it is recommended to host the event in a common space with a computer since it is an interactive discussion with opportunities for q&a. i have attached more information below about the teach-in. in the meantime, take time to browse the architecture 2030 website and their recommended resources for more information.

February 20, 2007
Noon-3:30p.m. EST

To register for the teach-in, click here.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE:
Noon - 12:15pm
WELCOMING REMARKS
Susan Szenasy, Editor, Metropolis Magazine

12:15 - 12:45pm
A THREAT TO THE PLANET
Dr. James Hansen, Director, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies

12:45pm - 1:15pm
RESUSCITATING A DYING WORLD (2030 Challenge / 2010 Imperative)
Edward Mazria, AIA, Founder, Architecture 2030

1:15pm - 1:45pm
DOING IS BELIEVING
Chris Luebkeman, Director, Global Foresight and Innovation Initiative, ARUP

1:45pm - 3:30pm
DISCUSSION AND Q&A
Q&A for the Speakers will be moderated by Susan Szenasy: Questions will be taken via the internet and sent in through a web-based interactive system. The most common and provocative questions will be posted on a screen, read by the Moderator and then answered by the Moderator and Panel.

Live broadcast ends at 3:30pm. Web archive will be posted at 3:30pm.

growing beyond green

the american institute of architects (aia) has announced that vice president al gore will be the closing keynote speaker to their 2007 convention and design expo. the event, titled "growing beyond green," will be held in antonio, texas may 3-5, 2007. the aia is excited to have gore speak at their 150 anniversary event:

We are honored to have Vice President Gore, a champion of solutions to combat global warming, speak at our 2007 national convention. We are fortunate to have someone of Mr. Gore’s stature help shine a spotlight to an often overlooked element – the impact that buildings have on the health of the overall environment.

~ christine mcentee, aia ceo and executive vice president

the interesting line up of keynote speakers also includes raymond j cole, chrisna du plessis, william g reed, and david suzuki.

(via inhabitat)

only in el lay

the los angeles design czar has a few words to say about beautiful el lay...

ecorazzi spills the beans on which celebreties did not make the green grade this week...

and join pierce brosnan this sunday for his sandcastle building contest! oh, and also to fight the installation of a gigantuan liquified natural gas facility off the coast of malibu.