This Friday, the 2010 FIFA World Cup gets under way in South Africa, marking the first time an African nation has hosted the global sporting event since it began in 1934. With 3.8 million tickets for sale, the month-long tournament, organized by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, is expected to draw approximately 450,000 foreign visitors. Image courtesy FIFA (top); GMP (above) Click on the slide show icon to see additional photos. The South African government has reportedly spent billions on infrastructure improvements and stadium construction since the country was selected in May 2004 to host this year’s tournament. The
A controversial plan to use grazing animals to reverse the process by which grassland turns into desert has won the Buckminster Fuller Challenge, an annual competition focused on solving sweeping global problems. Photo courtesy BFI Allan Savory took home first prize for Operation Hope, a program in Zimbabwe. Related Links: Appalachia Scheme Wins Bucky Fuller Challenge Buckminster Fuller Challenge Launched Why Fuller Matters More Today Than Ever Before This afternoon, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., biologist Allan Savory took home first prize for Operation Hope, a program that proposes using cattle and other animals to revitalize fragile
While the bulk of the Haiti rebuilding effort has been focused on Port-au-Prince in the wake of the devastating January 12 earthquake, one architect-led nonprofit group is turning its attention to outlying areas. The Rural Haiti Project, a Brooklyn-based organization founded in 2006 by Herve Sabin, a Haitian-American designer, has conceived multi-purpose community centers for Jacmel and Camenette, towns in the southern half of the country. The buildings would primarily serve as schools but could offer separate spaces for Internet cafes and government meetings. They also would double as storm shelters. Sabin estimates that each shelter will cost $60,000 to
Image courtesy Renzo Piano Building Workshop Piano's building, totaling 85,000 square feet, respects the scale of its predecessor but does not mimic its cycloid vaults. Related Links: Piano's Design for Kimbell Museum Revealed Piano Designing Kimbell Expansion Kimbell Taps Piano for Expansion The Kimbell Art Museum expansion project is finally moving forward. On May 27, the institution unveiled Renzo Piano's final design for a $70 million building adjacent to Louis Kahn’s masterpiece. The concrete and glass pavilion will double the museum’s gallery space while allowing it to reserve the original building for its renowned permanent collection. The museum first proposed
After decades of practicing architecture in New York, François returned to his native Haiti to set up a design and construction firm in Port-au-Prince. Here, he speaks candidly about his experience working in the troubled island country. Yves François is a firm owner who defies convention. The 45-year-old designer was born in Haiti but spent most of his childhood in Brooklyn. In 1986, he earned an architecture degree from the New York Institute of Technology and went on to work for 10 years at Pepsi as a facility manager and architectural consultant. He later held similar positions at Philip Morris
Last week, two years after its first occupants moved in, the owners of the 55-story office tower at New York City’s One Bryant Park celebrated the building’s official opening with a reception in the lobby.
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