Environment

Dr. Pyke, Consulting Engineer, commentary and evaluation of Governor's Twin Tunnel Plan.

OLLI presents Dr. Marvin Goldman and Joyce Goldman and their lecture 'Polar Bound.'

By the mid-1970s, Melbourne was a dying city. People commuted in to work during the day, but downtown became a ghost town after 5pm. This episode explores how leadership and vision transformed the cityscape. Rob Adams, Melbourne's director of design and urban environment, gives a guided tour to show how the city first sought livability, then sustainability, and how the two are inextricably intertwined.

Architect Brian MacKay-Lyons grew up on the shipyards of Nova Scotia and borrows from that lean, economical building tradition in his architecture. From the Barn Yard in his village to the Canadian Embassy in Bangladesh, this episode presents a lesson in local vernacular - why it works and how it might be the most sustainable form of architecture there is.

The series moves to China, whose soaring population and rapid industrialization have created a boom in urbanization that is unprecedented in human history. To try to tackle this global issue, "China: From Red to Green?" explores green design solutions in both theory and practice, including Steven Holl's Linked Hybrid project, which will have the largest residential geothermal heating/cooling and greywater recycling system in the world upon completion.

New York is a city that is leading the charge to green its industrial skyline with several groundbreaking projects. New York combats the urban myth of the bustling city as a "concrete jungle." "The Green Apple" explores some of Manhattan's most prominent and technologically advanced structures like One Bryant Park and The Solaire, as well as the innovative minds behind them. The episode illustrates how the ubiquitous skyscraper can surprisingly be a model of environmental responsibility.