“The Prayer Wheel Energy Generator, designed by Taikkun Yang Li does just this by transforming all of those good vibes into electricity that could be used to provide reliable energy for daily needs such as evening lighting.”

These natives include the Kowhai, Northern Rata, Clematis, Bush Lilly, Tree daisy, Mistletoe, Tui, Kingfisher, Wood pegion, Whitehead, Bellbird and Skink.

The NZILA 2009’s,   The Big Picture Workshop April 2-4, 2009, was held in this very town. Shay and I teamed up for the adventure; both being students amongst all the professionals we felt thoroughly educated not just in learning, but networking as well by the end of the conference. I think we were the only two students… The field tours were fun and of great learning experiences. We drank biodynamically produced red wine on a Viticulture tour at 9AM, visited an architect/landscape architect’s home that had the most breathtaking views from his self-designed home in the Central Otago valley. Mingling, learning, discussing, and brainstorming with all the professional landscape architects, and finally to top it off, lovely farewell dinner in the awe-inspiring Jack’s Point was wonderful.

The tours were: (via NZILA):

Landscapes of recreation: This tour is to touch on issues such as the economic forces that make this sort of development viable, how these forces are changing/might change, energy consumption, the design of these landscapes – deliberately beautiful, the fact that these developments enable a great many people to appreciate these landscapes that would otherwise be the case, how do these developments display New Zealand/Otago particularity.

Landscapes of rural living: This tour touches on issues such as the economic sustainability of farming, the changing of economic conditions that sometimes mean it is no longer desirable, what people want when they choose to live in a rural landscape, tenure review of pastoral leases, how large stations can be sustainably managed into the future with existing/future economic conditions, etc

Landscapes of production: Issues touched on for this tour include the changing market forces through recent history that have led to changing productive use of the land and the resultant changing aesthetics, the part of nostalgia in landscape appreciation – should a landscape pattern be preserved because we grew up with it? The tour will illustrate how market forces determine productive land use and ultimately landscape appearance.

Landscapes of energy: Issues brought into this tour is the seemingly endless increase in energy demand and how this affects the appearance of landscapes, the consequences of flooding for hydro production – has produced amenities that were previously not there in some cases, do people perceive these lakes as natural? – often they seem to, does it matter whether they are natural or not?

Below are some “pictorial essay” where I was pictured more than once. Thank you NZILA!

Masdar is a planned city located 17 kilometres from Abu Dhabi. a government initiative, and the city is being constructed over seven phases due to be completed by 2016, not that far ahead aye… I would love to visit!

So, yes, this city center will ofcourse include a Plaza, a Five-Star hotel, a long stay hotel, a Convention Centre and an Entertainment Complex as well as retail facilities! Ok, now I am really convinced to visit maybe by 2017…

all image courtesy of LAVA

Here are some evidences manifested in a town plannings of “walled cities” ::

Cassonne, France.

Below: Noerdlingen, Germany

Below – Heusden and Naarden, Netherlands::

Below – Utrecht, in the Netherlands::

(all images via – dark roasted blend)

Below – Villandry Gardens::

Below – Mona Lisa::

“A new species of giant carnivorous plant has been discovered in the highlands of the central Philippines!

The pitcher plant is among the largest of all pitchers and is so big that it can catch rats as well as insects in its leafy trap.During the same expedition, botanists also came across strange pink ferns and blue mushrooms they could not identify. The botanists have named the pitcher plant after British natural history broadcaster David Attenborough…”

“….Pitcher plants are carnivorous. Carnivorous plants come in many forms, and are known to have independently evolved at least six separate times. While some have sticky surfaces that act like flypaper, others like the Venus fly trap are snap traps, closing their leaves around their prey. Pitchers create tube-like leaf structures into which insects and other small animals tumble and become trapped…”

Via BBC, Earth News. read more…

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This following plant has developed a mechanism to appear ill to its onlookers! This clever thing has been found growing in the rainforests of Ecuador. Oh, the wonderful world of plants!

“….The plants feigns sickness to stop it being attacked by insect pests known as mining moths, which would otherwise eat its healthy leaves. It is the first known example of a plant that mimics being ill, and could also explain a common pattern seen on plant leaves known as variegation…”

“…Variegation is familiar to gardeners and affects many species of plant. Variegated plants have different coloured patterns on the leaf surface, produced by a variety of causes. One of the most common is when cells in the leaf lose chlorophyll and their ability to photosynthesise, appearing white. In theory, plants with variegated leaves should be at a disadvantage, because of this restricted ability to photosynthesise…”

via BBC EarthNews

It is interesting that the “structure of the “Brain Cell” was the chosen dominant conceptual image for the building, evoking the artistic richness of Belgium and Europe, as well as all its scientific achievements. The brain cell also refers to the role of Belgium as one of Europe’s main gathering centers and cross points. In contrast to the playful, organic and intriguing form of the brain cell, the exterior of the building refers to the pragmatism and the discretion typical of Belgium.”

via Conix Architects