Around 56% of the global population lives in cities. In North America, the number jumps to 84%. With increased urbanization comes a focus on environmentally friendly building design. Performance-based design, such as the US Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system, provides a means of measuring a building’s performance standards and energy usage. 

91²Ö¿â has 14 LEED-certified buildings on its campuses. The John Elliot Center for Architecture and Environmental Design on the Kent Campus received the university’s first LEED Platinum recognition in 2018. It features a green roof, an element of living architecture—using ecosystems and biology to inform building design—that offers benefits for both the structure and the environment. Although the installation costs are higher than a traditional roof, green roofs prove to be an excellent investment over time.   

“A green roof will double or triple the life of the building’s waterproofing membrane,” says Reid Coffman, PhD, professor in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design, who is a leading figure in the area of living architecture. His research and publications have helped establish the global understanding of green roofs as constructed urban ecosystems.

“Right now, the US roofing industry generates around $14 billion annually just to tear off roofs and replace them with the same traditional roofing materials that come from the carbon petroleum industry,” he says. “When the roofing membrane is extended from 20 years to 60 years, that changes the carbon footprint and the economy of the industry quite a bit.” 

“We can design buildings that cooperate with their environment and give life to other organisms besides people.”

Green roofs absorb peak precipitation and help dissipate runoff, provide insulation for the building and help keep energy costs down. Both large urban structures and small residential properties can benefit from green roofs. The theory of biophilic design posits that building occupants are healthier and happier when they connect with the natural environment. 

“The cities we build are destroying habitats and other living organisms,” Coffman says. “We can design buildings that cooperate with their environment and give life to other organisms besides people.” 

While people have been slow to adopt green roofs on a massive scale, it may be due to the limitations of our imaginations. For most, a green roof means an array of plants. Instead, Coffman advocates for the concept of roof greening. A project could encompass different applications depending on the needs of the occupants and the environment. 

“Habitat roofs can be used to reintroduce endangered or threatened plants,” Coffman says. “But we can also have recreation roofs or agricultural roofs, such as community gardens. There are roofs being developed that incorporate vegetation and photovoltaics, called biosolar roofs. Hospitals could be building roofs that are oriented toward health and wellness. There are so many roof greening opportunities, things we haven’t conceptualized yet.”

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