Green Thoughts

Ever heard of the phrase Greenwash?

I heard it the first time during a seminar on Green Buildings; spoken by a construction professional from New Zealand.

Without quoting verbatim, what he essentially said was this:

“The most effective methods to go green are usually the most cost effective and lay in good designs. Putting costly so-called green implementations to achieve the same is green wash.”

Going Green refers to moves by developers and building owners in getting accreditations for environmentally friendly design, implementations, management etc. with the recently launched Green Building Index Malaysia making it easier for local buildings to do so.

The essence of what the chap from NZ says is building designs that conform to the environment instead of the other way around do wonders in terms of environmental sustainability.

Things like building orientation, ventilations and openings, layouts; these are all built into any building’s design right from the start.

Adding green stuffs such as solar panels (easily one of the most expensive items any building could have) would make it iconic, shouting the building’s green intentions.

A not-so-great parable would be that of driving a hybrid around town when a bicycle is the best thing an environment could ever ask for.

Something like that.

The guy’s reasoning is spot on really: construction and environmental sustainability do not go so well hand in hand as the former would almost always have to pollute and plunder no matter what.

Going Green looks towards minimizing all the destructive impacts from construction by providing marks to environmentally friendly practices.

A detailed look into this subject would require a really, really lengthy discourse which I neither have time nor energy for.

You could certainly see some of these thinkings in the following art exhibition at the Artist’ Space in Concorde Hotel, Shah Alam.

The solo (at least I think it’s one) exhibition from Sabak Bernam-born Azhari Tasis is from this Saturday, July 4 to the end of the month.

It’s entitled: “Modernization, the Future and the Environment” and the show’s on from 11am to 11pm except on Sunday.

A sample is produced below.

Uneasy co-existence? You decide.