The Green Church

If “green” is an environmental concept applicable to the design and construction of buildings and landscapes, then we should not limit the scope of the concept solely to the natural environment. Rather, we should include key “environments” in which designers operate, including the socio-cultural, political, and natural environments. In this paper, I present a case study in“green” design that expands the scope of the concept and recognizes the interrelationship between these multiple environments. Using recent construction and renovation on the campus of the FirstPresbyterian Church of Berkeley as the case, I show how these environments are mutuallysupportive. Moreover, I argue that if designers simply consider the natural environment, theirlaudable goals may never be realized. In the first part of the paper, I provide a background on the project and its physical and socio-cultural setting. Second, I discuss how the different “environments” were addressed in the planning and design of the project. I then introduce specific“green” strategies that were employed in the design of the new and renovated buildings. These include considering renovation as the first imperative, thinking holistically about the entire campus,and applying a simplified approach to “greening” the buildings. I conclude by offering suggestionsfor future designers interested in reducing the environmental impact of their buildings.Keywords: Sustainability, Adaptive Reuse, Human Context