The thoughtfully designed Cradle is a sustainable rocking chair created by a collaborative effort to aid people with autism and Rhythmic Movement Disorder (RMD). Developed by Richard Clarkson, Grace Emmanual, Kalivia Russel, Eamon Moore, Brodie Cambell, Jeremy Brooker and Joya Boerrigter within the Victoria University of Wellington, this cocoon-like seat is made from cold-bent plywood. Because rocking is one of the calming activities that is recommended for autistic folks, this special seat is a soothing and aesthetically pleasing addition to their homes.

 

 

San Francisco's brand new Southern Pacific Brewing is set to open tonight, and we got a chance to sneak a peak at this stunningly renovated industrial space before its official debut! I caught up with owner Christopher Lawrence yesterday to take a look inside the adaptive reuse project by Boor Bridges Architecture, who transformed the Mission District's aging C.A. Kilger Machine Works into a sunlight-suffused brewery and pub that makes beautiful use of recycled materials and even incorporates living trees into the interior. Read on for a first look at the green building strategies behind this incredible project - including furnishings made of reclaimed wood from the renovation, massive skylights, and a glittering glass facade that looks out onto Portrero Hill.

 

Read More >

Anyone familiar with JRR Tolkien’s ‘The Lord of The Rings’ knows that the homes of hobbits are something special. But these tiny abodes aren’t just for little people anymore — a Maine family has brought the concept of the hobbit hole to life with their line of Wooden Wonders. Built for work and play, these functional little holes can be used as everything from chicken coops, saunas, playhouses, garden sheds, cottages, and even a bus stop!

+ Wooden Wonders

The article above was submitted to us by an Inhabitat reader. Want to see your story on Inhabitat? Send us a tip by following this link. Remember to follow our instructions carefully to boost your chances of being chosen for publishing!

 

 

Quebec City’s beautiful 2012 Hotel de Glace opened its doors for the first time last weekend, and Inhabitat was on hand to spend the night inside this frosty winter citadel! This year the ice hotel was designed around the theme of The Northern Quebec and was inspired by the art and culture of the First Nations. Read on for a first-hand look inside this incredible building made from ice and snow!

 

Read More >

On Thursday, January 27, the Manhattan Borough President, Scott Stringer spoke in front of a 3 KW set of solar panels on Hunter College of the City University to promote his “Rooftop Revolution” campaign and the New York Solar Jobs Act. “On this rooftop and on rooftops across this city we can create the economy we need,” said Stringer. The panels on Hunter are a result of a three-year student-led initiative, and for Stringer, the panels symbolize what could be a city-wide program of solar installations on public schools.

Read More >

Dutch designer Floris Hovers created his surprisingly simple ‘Wrapped’ stools out of a few pieces of wood with biodegradable rope wrapped around them. The word ‘Wrapped’ is a translation of the Dutch word ‘Ingewikkeld‘, which means both ‘wrapped’ and ‘complicated’ in one single word – a nod to Hovers’ fixing technique.

Tokyo-based Nendo has a lovely new collection of sculptural objects made from farming-net, an agricultural mesh ordinarily placed around fruit and vegetables to protect them from harm by wind and animals. Unveiled a few days ago, their ¨Farming-net Collection¨ consists of a series of modern bowls, plates and lights that seems to float in the air.

Despite the rush to get reactors back online and convince the public that Japan’s nuclear power generation facilities are safe, an advisor says the current checks of nuclear reactors in the country are “insufficient” and possibly unsafe. Hiromitsu Ino, Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo told the press yesterday that the Japanese government is using the same system to check the status of nuclear reactors now that it did before the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster last spring. The testing system was blamed in part for the crisis – critics say it didn’t go into enough detail on what would happen in case of a multiple-front natural disaster. This isn’t the first time the Japanese authorities have been called into question while handling the post-disaster situation; in December they announced a very controversial “cold shutdown” of the Fukushima nuclear reactor even though experts worldwide spoke out against the decision.

Read More >

 

 

Syracuse University graduate Jeff Kamuda's "Excavating Wilderness" design concept explores the tension that exists between the built environment and wilderness through a wild subterranean space beneath Central Park. The mile long tunnel extends from the Grand Army Plaza at 59th Street to the American Museum of Natural History at 77th Street and features three main parts that rely on the sun and underground exposed rock to illuminate key moments in New York City's history.

 

Read More >

Some of the largest countries on Earth made it clear this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland that, in many cases, renewable energy is just a few years away from reaching grid parity with fossil fuels without subsidies. Worldwide investment in renewable energy totaled $187 billion in 2010, while investment in coal and natural gas was $157 billion. With government subsidies worldwide in jeopardy because of financial woes, the International Energy Agency says countries should hold on for just a few more years until renewables catch up to emissions-laden power companies — which could happen as early as 2015 — after which, it is anyone’s game.

Read More >

What makes a home worth a million dollars? How about a billion dollars? Irish artist Frank Buckley has taken this question to its logical extreme by building his very own home made from 1.4 billion Euro notes! Graced with very strict permission from the Central Bank of Ireland, Buckley has constructed and now lives in a home made entirely of shredded decommissioned Euros. He formed the bills into 6 inch by 2 inch bricks, each of which contains around 40 to 50 thousand Euros. The three room house is an amazing exercise in recycled materials as well as a social statement on Ireland’s housing and financial crisis.

Read More >

Unleashing a world-wide project to clean up the planet, Let’s Do It World is bringing groups on every continent together for World Clean Up 2012. Driven to do something about the 100 million tons of illegal garbage strewn across the globe, World Clean Up 2012 hopes to connect millions of people to clean up cities, beaches and forests everywhere. It may sound like an ambitious goal, but by motivating even a few groups internationally, the team at Let’s Do It World will be attempting to reach communities everywhere, raising awareness about waste and garbage disposal.

Star Trek fans can now boldly go where no interior decorator has gone before with this geek chic coffee table that looks just like the USS Enterprise! Designed and constructed by Barry Shields, the Trekkie table was handmade from ash, poplar and cherry wood and took over a month to build with Barry cutting the glass surface to make the ship “look as though it’s in motion.”

Read More >