In December 2007, 150 life-sized fuchsia structures occupied the Lower Ninth Ward in New Orleans, where traditional shotgunstyled homes once stood. The Pink Project, as it's called, was a flashy art installation to help bring attention to Make It Right (MIR), the nonprofit started a few months earlier by actor Brad Pitt, architect William McDonough, and architecture firm Graft Lab, to build 150 safe, healthy, and welldesigned homes for the area's forgotten residents. 'Why pink? Because it screams the loudest,' said Pitt at the time. The overthe- top effort raised millions to kick-start the rebuilding effort. Four years later, the foundation is more than halfway to its goal with 80 LEED Platinum homes built.

'The collaborative approach has been our strategy since day one,' says Tom Darden, Executive Director of MIR. Twenty high-profile architects have contributed home designs and MIR continually works with local firms, contractors, universities, and manufacturers. 'We set out to build the best houses we could,' says Darden. 'Then we learn through the construction process ways to save money the next time around.'