Buildings Resilience
We have chosen the word “resilience” as a term that includes the design, planning and construction development strategies needed in order to meet the challenges of the future construction projects. Resilient design is, in a lot of ways, an expansion of the definition of sustainable design.
However, for civil engineers, architects and designers, it is another layer in the design process. For property owners, it’s an additional cost, but at the same time, it is a necessary investment for their properties to adapt and respond to changing conditions while maintaining functionality.
It seems true that many of the strategies needed to accomplish resilience–such as really well-insulated homes that will keep their occupants safe if there is no power or if interruptions in heating occur–are exactly the same strategies we have been assessing and promoting for years in the green building design.
The solutions are mainly the same, but the motivation is one of life-safety, rather than simply doing the right thing.