Matsuo Bashō
SPACE10
2023
🌍 Context and Purpose The report titled "The Regenerative Home" is published by SPACE10, a research and design lab that explores innovative ideas for a sustainable future. The report aims to address the urgent need for homes that not only provide shelter but also contribute positively to the environment. With residential homes accounting for 17-21% of global energy-related carbon emissions and 11% of food waste, it is imperative to rethink how our living spaces impact the planet. 🏡 Designing for Sustainability The report emphasizes the importance of designing homes that can regenerate rather than deplete natural resources. It discusses how future homes can be built to "give back" to the planet by closing ecological loops and producing more than they consume. By combining traditional knowledge with new technologies, the report outlines a vision for homes that enhance daily living while benefiting the environment. 🔑 Key Insights The report provides ten insights into how homes can be transformed to align with regenerative principles: 1. Retrofit for Vitality: Upgrading existing buildings improves energy efficiency and benefits local communities. 2. Re-construct: Utilizing old materials reduces waste and conserves resources. 3. Build Naturally: Sourcing local materials like straw and clay supports sustainability and returns materials to nature safely. 4. In-built Energy: Incorporating renewable energy systems like solar and green hydrogen fosters off-grid capabilities. 5. Harness Heat: Using thermal energy from local sources can decrease fossil fuel reliance. 6. Compost Kitchens: Implementing compost systems in kitchens promotes regenerative practices using kitchen waste. 7. Waste with Benefits: Redesigning waste systems can transform human waste into valuable fertilizers, aiding biodiversity. 8. Place-based Production: Local sourcing of materials can create jobs and stimulate regenerative business models. 9. Care and Share: Sharing household items through community initiatives can extend their life and promote recycling. 10. Activate Data: Establishing neighborhood data networks can encourage behaviors that support regeneration and resource efficiency. 🌱 Conclusion Overall, "The Regenerative Home" offers a comprehensive framework for reimagining residential spaces that contribute to a sustainable future. By focusing on regenerative living, the report highlights the potential for homes to act as catalysts for environmental restoration and community well-being.
The Regenerative Home: A Restorative Way of Living | SPACE10
Photo — Lucy Hardcastle
Home is where many of us rest and restore. But what if we could extend the home’s regenerating qualities to the rest of the planet? Our latest report explores the building blocks of future homes that give back.
How can we design and build future homes that are better for people and the planet?
At a time when residential homes are responsible for between 17-21 percent of energy-related carbon emissions globally, and 11 percent of global food waste comes directly from households, we must think differently about how our homes impact wider environmental systems.
Our new report, The Regenerative Home, takes a closer look at how we can collectively design dwellings that close the loop, give back, and produce more than they consume.
We share how tomorrow’s home will transform daily routines — and why the future regenerative home will be built on a combination of traditional knowledge and new technologies.
With guidance from leading experts, the report explores four components of the typical home:
- Building
- Energy
- Food
- Belongings
10 insights from the report
Alongside global case studies and key statistics powering the movement towards regenerative living, the report reveals insights such as:
- Retrofit for vitality: Restore and upgrade buildings to prolong their life, enhance energy efficiency, and create and uplift local communities.
- Re-construct: Reuse old building materials, furniture, and components to save costs, reduce demolition waste, and demand for new materials.
- Build naturally: Use locally-sourced natural materials such as straw and clay for new building work and insulation — abundant materials that can be safely returned to nature.
- In-built energy: Integrate solar, green hydrogen, and other renewable energy systems into the exterior and interior design of the home to capture and provide off-grid power.
- Harness heat: Redirect thermal heat from sources such as data centres and city sewer systems to power local buildings, reduce reliance on fossil fuels, and boost local grids.
- Compost kitchens: Move nature’s regenerative systems into kitchens: compost food scraps from home-grown produce using countertop wormeries.
- Waste with benefits: Redesign sanitary systems so residents can turn human waste into fertiliser for plants and gardens, and support biodiversity.
- Place-based production: From furniture to food, local sourcing of the items that make your home can create jobs, preserve skills, and inspire regenerative business models.
- Care and share: Share household objects through joint ownership, as-a-service models, or community libraries to extend their life and use, and promote recycling.
- Activate data: Create neighbourhood data networks to actively encourage regenerative behaviours that respond to environmental shifts, and the availability of resources and energy.