In the project “Greening Schools!” theoretical as well as practical approaches to implementing green walls inside and outside of school buildings are examined. Green walls are installed in two newly built schools and will be installed in another school which is presently in the planning and construction phase. The goal of the project is to develop a guideline which summarises the project findings about green architecture in school buildings.
Ausgangssituation
Climate change, increasing urbanisation and densification in intra-urban areas require new ways and solutions to enhance the quality of life and general well-being in the urban population, where Children and young people spend the greater part of their day in schools. But open spaces in schools are mostly neglected and often not planned or designed appropriately to meet the requirements of the daily school routine. High-quality learning spaces and a sense of well-being in the interior and exterior spaces of the schools would therefore support the learning process. The project “Greening Schools!” deals with this issue and shows ways of implementing green walls in interior and exterior school spaces in order to improve the quality of stay and learning. Two schools in Vienna in which green walls were implemented serve as study areas: BG/BRG 16 at Schuhmeierplatz in Ottakring and BRG 15 in Diefenbachgasse.
Ziele & Ergebnisse
The goal of the project – next to the implementation and evaluation of green walls in new school buildings – is to record and report on the perceptions of the R&D projects in form of a guideline. The guideline includes information about green architecture in school buildings for the planning and building phase as well as redevelopment, construction, care and long-term maintenance (taking the summer holidays into account) of the green walls. The guideline addresses Austrian schools. Additional teaching materials and “lessons learned” about the social process are available for other interested schools. Interactive exchange formats for interested schools, the school environment, management and other stakeholders complete the project.
Innovation
The project deals with green walls in newly constructed buildings which are thermally isolated tending to cause high air humidity in the rooms. For this reason, mould exposure is examined in the present project. For the first time, the effects of green walls on isolated facades are also explored. Statements indicate that external green walls harm the styrofoam insulation and the anchor points cause thermal bridges. Research which verifies or falsifies these findings does not yet exist.
Webseite: http://gruenezukunftschulen.at/
