Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund, and the city of Helsinki are launching an
international competition for building a sustainable and innovative block in the
Western Harbor of Helsinki. This competition is a search for teams that can
provide an architecture of solutions.
“The project to build up a harbor area almost in the middle of Helsinki is
very innovative in the sense that we are genuinely combining different aspects
of urban, environmental, social, and business innovation. We aim to prove that
national and international sustainability targets can be reached
cost-effectively through high quality architectural solutions that are robust
and reproduceable”, says Marco Steinberg, Director of Strategic Design in Sitra.
Western Harbor of Helsinki / Photo: sitra
“What is clear is that no single organization, profession or ministry can
achieve the goals of sustainable urban development by itself. It will require an
architecture of solutions including low or no carbon buildings; sustainable
economic models; enhanced mobility; sustainable planning and energy policies;
resilient social systems among countless others. And for each problem, care must
be taken to ensure that the solution will not undermine progress at different
scales. Our goal is not to create an island solution or a demonstration project.
Success will be a sensible solution that can produce systemic change” Marco
Steinberg continues.
Energy efficiency is one of the key tools when the world is combating the
battle against climate change. However, in the international scale sustainable
and systemic urban development and constructing are still an exception rather
than convention.
“High savings in energy consumption are possible for new buildings and
existing old building substance – with a consequent significant reduction in
CO2-emissions. This opens up a highly interesting range of tasks for architects
and engineers worldwide” says Jukka Noponen, director of the Energy Programme in
Sitra.
“We hope that a model of sustainable urbanism emerges from the competition
proposals that will not only serve the City of Helsinki and its inhabitants, but
also be a learning model for development globally”, Noponen wishes.
The competition was launched in an international seminar Energy Efficiency in
Built Environment which was held in Helsinki on 31st March.
Further Information:
Jukka Noponen
Executive Director Energy Programme
Tel.: + 358 9 6189 9430
eMail: jukka.noponen@sitra.fi
web: www.sitra.fi/energy
web:
www.low2no.org/competition
german version 