Living Close to Nature: Bamboo village, tree house settlement and "Geodome"

Living in harmony with the environment instead of against it - this need is increasingly becoming a driving force in many areas of our society. "Green" architecture and sustainable building materials ensure that the desire to live in harmony with nature can be realized, at least in part, for the average citizen as well. Extraordinary living concepts that we will present to you here show how close to nature people can live if they invest more - in terms of time, money, energy and idealism.

Bamboo has the tensile strength of steel, the compressive strength of concrete and thrives like weeds. It is the perfect building material in terms of sustainability. One stem takes five years maximum until it is grown and ready to harvest. What makes the elegant rods extraordinary as a construction material: They are hollow and weight extremely little despite maximum stability. Multi-story buildings, schools and entire villages are built from bamboo, such as the "Green Village" in Bali. A team of architects, designers and craftsmen realized a slightly different type of villa complex here: ecologically, sustainably and harmoniously incorporated into the Indonesian jungle landscape and yet luxurious. The houses are built in traditional craftsmanship and are architecturally perfectly adapted to tropical nature. The construction design is open. Large curved roofs catch every gentle breeze. High windows keep the cool inside the interior rooms. The flexible bamboo makes the construction more than just earthquake-proof. Thanks to a new type of treatment, it is also protect against pests and weather. The residents will therefore have their architecture for a long time.

See from the customer's point of view how ALLPLAN Architecture was used in different challenging customer projects and contributed tremendously to their success.

A self-sufficient eco-community in the tree tops: the Finca Bellavista integrates man-made buildings and structures in a tropical landscape. On a peninsula between two jungle rivers in the south of Costa Rica, suspension bridges and rope structures under the emerald-green canopy of the rainforest connect a 240-hectare complex to a tree house village, reminiscent in its idyllic setting of the Ewok settlement from "The Return of the Jedi." Structures are built exclusively on stilts and in trees. Solid foundations are taboo. Eco-cultivation, passive lighting and a biogas plant ensure that the community lives largely independently. The Finca Bellavista is a non-profit eco hotel. While guests come to paradise for a short break, the Finca team works on realizing its dream: the friendly coexistence of man, nature and rainforest inhabitants.

Minimalistically small, in the middle of nowhere and staged as a dome building: The "Kvivik igloos" are striking sights. Secluded in the rugged nature of the Faroe Islands and reduced to the essentials, they invite temporary residents to reflect on themselves and their immediate surroundings. 91 square meters of living space are located under one roof, on which plants blossom, grow and thrive. The shape of the special geodesic architecture is reminiscent of a soccer ball. Window honeycombs combine to form glass surfaces that allow in the maximum daylight at all times of day. Black exterior walls also ensure that the interior warms up. The aerodynamic truss structure is ideal for exposed locations and severe weather conditions. It disperses snow loads in the winter and defies storms all year round. Thanks to the dome design, the greatest possible volume can be spanned with the smallest amount of materials. Compared to a square plan, the "geodome" has 20 percent less surface with the same interior space. Its minimalistic form that discreetly fits into the landscape.

Minimal use of building materials, optimized space utilization, sustainable materials: Green architecture offers many ways to make the dream of living close to remote nature a reality. You do not have to go into exile in the forests and wilderness to achieve this. Urban accommodation, for example on the water, offers places retreat that allow residents to rest and relax, closer to their elementary environment.