There’s no question, the environmental and social challenges of the 21st century are complex. While design alone may not solve all of these issues, Big Future Group believes that many of the adverse effects of climate change can be mitigated by sustainable design. As designers, we hope to address not only the immediate physical effects of climate change on communities, but also provide a framework of practices that advances quality of life issues with minimal impact to respective ecosystems over time, with specific attention to sustainable practices that minimize human impact on water, land, energy consumption, and biodiversity. These sustainable building methodologies can help people adapt, and sometimes even benefit from the effects of extreme environmental conditions that have become the new normal.

While sustainable design remains at the forefront of climate related dialogue, Big Future Group approaches the conversation from a different perspective: a multi-disciplinary collaboration of research and expertise. The founders—Sharon Davis, Julie Farris, Arun Rimal, and Eric Rothstein—met while working on the design and construction of an award-winning Women’s Opportunity Center in Kayonza, Rwanda. Together, they represent fields of architecture, engineering, hydrology and landscape architecture, to collectively explore multi-faceted solutions to food shortages, flood/drought, deforestation, unavailable access to energy, poor sanitation and health conditions, and an increasing carbon output.

Their work in Rwanda is a good example of the work they’ll be doing moving forward. The project, sponsored by Women for Women International, is made up of 20,000 sq ft of space covered by roofs that serve to shade and shelter women, and simultaneously harvest rainwater with durable cisterns. Rwandan women living in the area handcrafted a half-million bricks on site in order to build classrooms, which are made up of curved walls that create intimate communal spaces. The project also incorporates a landscape designed to nourish the community, a communal kitchen, lodging, and a marketplace to sell goods made there. While working together on this transformative project, the four decided that the Women’s Opportunity Center project was just the beginning, and that more work was to be done. In June of 2011, they founded Big Future Group.

Utilizing innovation-generating design methodologies, Big Future Group will develop achievable goals for specific community-based projects, and multi-disciplinary teams will research, design, and build sustainable infrastructure for areas in need. Big Future Group’s projects are focused on scalable, replicable and transferable measures, as these practices are essential to sustainability and viability.  The projects also aim to serve each community’s unique site conditions, values and communal needs, which can often lead to unexpected opportunities for innovation, essential for future progress.

To learn more about Big Future Group and their initiatives, visit www.bigfuturegroup.org.