Green Roofs

-- Quote of the Day -- 

“The creative individual has the capacity to free himself from the web of social pressures in which the rest of us are caught. He is capable of questioning the assumptions that the rest of us accept.” 

~ John Gardner

-- Green Roof -- 

Have you heard of green roof systems yet? We’ve written about and spoken on the topic many times over the years and have found there are some amazing projects going on in the world to create healthier buildings and communities. 

You see, having a “green” building means that plants are grown on the flat surfaces on the building surface (which can really include balconies as well as walls) and also in the areas surrounding the exterior of the building, and sometimes indoor gardens as well. 

Having a garden on the roof for instance might make for a healthy walking area for employees on breaks where they can socialize and get fresh air. It might mean growing food for the building’s cafeteria, or as a volunteer project the staff run on their own time or with company support to donate produce to the needy. There are buildings that create small parks. There are other buildings that have grasses, where they graze animals on – or multi-indigenous plants that grow at that elevation and produce flowers and habitat for a variety of flying creatures. It can also mean, simply – using moss. There is a really interesting non-profit company called Mossgreen Eco that utilizes renewable reeds and moss to create green roof panels that can be installed like tiles on the rooftop. 

Benefits of incorporating these go beyond those listed above – by covering shining and heat absorbent surfaces in the city we can reduce both Urban Glare and Urban Greenhouse effects. We can increase moisture in the surrounding air, and produce important oxygen – which is typically at a low in most communities. The building itself will find that employees are happier working in a building that is green, they enjoy taking the produce home with them, they are proud of the contributions to the community, and the owners will find energy savings as well.

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