Much of the architecture world has embraced the concept of green building, but the designers whose projects are featured in the slideshow below have taken green building to the extreme. Not only are these edifices built to the highest of eco-friendly standards, they're also equipped with features that actually improve the environment.
For example, both the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis and the Green Innovation Centre in Paris are made specifically with materials to promote cleaner air and ward off smog. And the habitat-fostering greenscapes implemented in California's Academy of the Sciences and Monterey Bay Shores let native plant life and wildlife thrive.
These buildings prove that when it comes to green building, it's not just about how little damage your architecture does to the environment, but what it can give back to the environment.
11 Green Buildings That Give Back to the Environment
11
Anti-Smog Architecture in Paris
Vincent Callebaut's Green Innovation Centre
10
Flowering Architecture
Budding Eco Building Breathes Life Into Chilean City With Green Wall
9
California Eco-Resorts
Monterey Bay Shores Will Be World's Greenest Getaway
8
Water-Filtering Bridges
China's Miyi Tower Will Clean River Below, Foster Cultural Arts Above
7
Green Museums
California Academy of Sciences (UPDATE)
6
Green Water Fronts
Chicago Eco-Bridge
5
Smog-Reducing Architecture
I-35 Bridge in Minneapolis Made of Cemstone
4
Green 'Lungs' for Urban Areas
Kjellgren Kaminsky's Eco-Friendly 'Vision for Heden' in Gothenburg,
3
Air-Filtering Architecture
The 'CO2 Scraper' is a Carbon-Positive Creation for High-Pollution Area
2
Carbon-Eating Cement
Hard and Hungry 'Novacem' Eco-Building Materials Absorb CO2
1
Carbon Capturing Power Plants
Is This The Answer To Global Warming?
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Greenchitecture
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Anti-Smog Architecture in Paris
Vincent Callebaut's Green Innovation Centre
24 Bay Area Innovations
15 Wilderness Resorts
So Romantic, Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Reynolds Wed at One
Water-Filtering Bridges
China's Miyi Tower Will Clean River Below, Foster Cultural Arts Above
Living Walls
Oulu Bar & EcoLounge
International Eco-Cities
Singapore and China Team Up for Tianjin
Green Walls & Roofs from G-Sky
Vancouver Turns A Healthy Shade of Green
Green Japanese Cities
Sakai City Waterfront Mega Solar Power Generation Plan
Eco-Friendly Car Plants
Ford Rouge Truck Plant
Aeroponic Home Air Filters
‘Breathe Easy' is Packed With Toxin-Absorbing Plants
Sub-Zero Refrigerators
NASA Air Filteration Technology
Air Cleansing Concrete
Solar Activated Eco Paving
Solar-Powered Sails
China Cuts Cargo Costs with Clean Power
Eco Friendly Beachfront Resorts
Palmetto Bay Resort in Belize
Clean Air Gardening
Oxygenating Watering Can
Smog-Reducing Architecture
I-35 Bridge in Minneapolis Made of Cemstone
Sinuous Eco-Friendly Rooftops
The Park House
Modern Rope Bridges
Pedestrian Bridge Helps Chileans Cross the Highway
Avian Air Filters
The Plane Clean Air Filter For Traveling Germaphobes
Folding Greenhouses
Daniel Schipper's Urban Gardening Idea
Super-Sized Solar Plants
China Plans to Construct World's Largest Source of Sun Power
Solar-Powered Masonry
Brick Lights Offer Eco-Friendly Lighting at Night
Designing to be Green
Eco Tech Disassembly