Small homes & small prices

Currently, the diversity of the home industry has been developing new ways of living, due to some changes in the society. In this post I will point out a variety of examples, who all share the same intention: the fact that small homes are upcoming which costs way less money.

What is it like?

One of the examples is the yurt, which is related to the tiny-house movement. This movement is based in the USA but now also finds its first followers in the Netherlands. You don’t have to pay mortgage for such a tiny house and it also includes a much smaller footprint. The difference between a yurt and recreational houses like a mobile home or a holiday home is the fact that one is allowed to live in these yurts or tiny houses permanently.

Another sample is an idea of Kasita, a designing firm, who invented tiny homes which can move from place to place. The homes are exactly the same size and set up with small technology. All facilities are included, only in a clever way. It is the tendency to begin in Austin in 2016. This link will explain how homes like these can move from a place to another: ://www.facebook.com/CollectiveEvolutionPage/videos/1887653478127712/

 

Alejandro Aravena

The last signal is from Architect Alejandro Aravena, who won a Pritzker Price by offering  free designs for small homes.These designs are based on a low budget, which means that these houses can be rented for moderate prices. His intention of offering these design is related to the prospect that in 2025 1.6 billion people will live in unsafe housing.

 

The reasons behind the story

In former times, there was also thought of a house for exchanged students which is called ‘space boxes’. These models of homes are a kind of harbinger for the current tiny homes for reasonable prices. The overall factor of the tiny houses is the occasion that money is sometimes not that important to people anymore, or people don’t make that much money. As a result of the descent in the house market and the economic crisis, it is hard to pay the amount of money which is asked. There is less cash in circulation due to these happenings. Therefore it is necessary to live in a smaller house.

However, for some people money is not significant any more. This can be concluded due to a combination of the trends individualization and sustainability, which both enclose a longer period of time. The need for the freedom of an individual to operate the way he or she likes is growing. The perception of freedom changes, and money happens not to be an issue. The open world and the internet brought us more knowledge about every topic we can think of, such as a sustainable way of living. The main point is, that the individual of today wants to live their own way, because knowledge taught us there’s more freedom in life when you seem to care more about the environment than about products and belongings.

Technology also had an impact on houses, especially the designing part. Homes can be built in a more efficient way than before, because technology invented new ways of implementing facilities into our homes. Just like mobile phones and computers, technology can increase by inventing smaller gadgets with the same (or even more) options than a previous one. Houses become smaller, however the technology part becomes bigger.

Future perspective

So, smaller houses for smaller prices. It seems very logic and not that special, nevertheless there is more to discover. If this will continue, it will have an impact on the environment. The footprint of many houses will be smaller, the amount of empty houses will reduce and the term ‘less is more’ will be an environmental slogan.

If people have the opportunity to simply change their homes any time they want, why want to travel all around the world a few times a year? In that case, we will have less travellers, so less traffic and less co2 emissions. At the same time, it is exactly the opposite of globalization. People do not longer want to travel all around the world, but want to stay at their own comfortable places. Are we going back to former times, in which we felt safe in our own country with our own species? We will see…

See you next time,

Amy Melenboer ♥

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Sources:

://www.facebook.com/CollectiveEvolutionPage/videos/1887653478127712/

http://www.ed.nl/regio/eindhoven/spaceboxen-op-tu-e-1.2140712

http://www.nrc.nl/next/2016/01/04/liever-een-yurt-1574418

http://www.techinsider.io/alejandro-aravena-publishes-home-designs-for-free-online-2016-4

A walk through the city

The world of today is stuffed with people, buildings and a lot of traffic. The city life is not always that comfortable, let alone the fact that it is a hectic way of living. However, still many people decide to build up their life in the big city, which I think is related to the fact that a city has so much to offer. The city is a sparkling place which is full of activity. It has many places to work and nice hotspots for filling up your free time. Anyhow, the benefits of living in a city are not always that noticeable anymore. So the future needs a solution.

Two examples

 

First of all, mobile provider Vodafone and Philips are collaborating on a lightning product, in which they combine the Internet of Things network with the LED street light system.  Vodafone’s network, which content the machines that pass on information to each other, uses every separate light dot and connects it to the single machines they have. Therefore, the machines will pass on the information to the next one, by using Philips’ City Touch. In this manner the street lightning connects the different devices and creates a whole lightning network.

Paris is being redesigned

Besides, Paris is redesigning its largest crossings in the city, due to the lanes of traffic that ruin the once so popular memorials. The seven largest intersections are being redesigned to take away the cars and to make place for (especially) pedestrians and cyclists. In this manner, there should be less noise, smog, traffic and Paris would definitely be less chaotic.

Another square in Paris

Why is this appearing now?

Cities have been growing for a long time, due to some trends which appeared a bit earlier. Think of urbanisation, the time when people decided that they want to live together in a small community. Also globalization and migration have caused a removal of people from all around the world to the wealthy and developed cities.

However, some kind of cities are becoming too full, which has a negative effect on the inhabitants. Like I said before, the city got stuffed with buildings, people, traffic and a lot of other stuff. I explicitly call it ‘stuff’, since that reflects the way many people think about the current situation.  Owing to this opinion, the need for normally taking a walk in the city and the possibility to breathe, both literally and figurative, is coming up.

The society has much more knowledge about the threats that can harm the world, as a result of the need to be more open and transparent to each other. Sustainability is therefore a value which is very significant at the moment. The question how we can build on a sustainable future is often discussed.

A green view in Paris

Paris wants to hitch in by removing some occupied roads around the memorials you can find in the city. By doing that, they create an open space filled with people, bushes, trees, benches and a lot of fresh air.

Vodafone and Philips are also willing to dive into a sustainable city, by developing a lightning network that is connected because of the internet. It saves a lot of energy by using LED lights, and also the co2 emissions will be reduced.  Finally, the quality of life will be improved as a result of the safety which has grown in the cities. These lightning makes people feel embraced during their walk, and in this manner the streets will be more pedestrian-friendly.

Prospects

In the city of the future we are able to walk many more miles than before. The guidance we receive during a walk, is also improved by that time. We have created the space and joy to put on some decent boots and parade through the streets of our favourite city. The city of the future is a combination of technology and offline happiness at the same time. The internet of things will help us to create a more sustainable way of living in our own town. The city of the future will also contain separated areas. It can be very chaotic, hectic and full of traffic in one area, but extremely quiet, peaceful and with full of pedestrians in the other. There will be places to escape from the busy life and where you can have a little break, and just breathe.

Eventually, everybody wants to walk the line

 

See you next time,

Amy Melenboer ♥

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Sources:

http://www.fastcoexist.com/3058685/paris-is-redesigning-its-major-intersections-for-pedestrians-not-cars

http://www.brainport.nl/en/news-developments/philips-and-vodafone-join-forces-for-connected-lighting

http://www.cbronline.com/news/internet-of-things/smart-technology/vodafone-m2m-tech-to-make-city-lights-smart-connected-with-philips-lighting-4839100

Durable energy for lasting consumers

Over the last few years, many companies have been in the news due to different kind of scandals. You can think of a revelation of money which is snatched away or CEO’s that delivered false documents, and so on. Many citizens have been complaining about the reliability of such companies, and after all, I absolutely think that they have got that right!

The essence

After criticism, distrust and anger, companies are willing to make a change. A beautiful example is located in the United States of America. The DOE (Department of Energy) organised a better-building-challenge for the first time this year. The DOE invented a real life TV programme in which two companies, Whole Foods Market and Hilton Worldwide, are giving each other criticism and new opportunities to save more energy. They swap during the shows and are searching for points of improvement. ‘May the best HVAC win’ is the slogan. (HVAC means: heating, ventilation, air-conditioning)

 

Whole Foods Market and Hilton Worldwide in the better-building-challenge

The motives behind the story

There are a few reasons for such a (real life) TV show like this. As I said earlier, the different scandals that are revealed during the years is one of them. However, there are more grounds and changing motives. According to citizens, they gradually discover that many stories, documents, people and companies are not telling the truth. Everything can be based on a lie, and that is a thing we know nowadays. Because of disclosures, we become needy of a world that shows more openness, in which we all can be transparent. The consumer can actually see what the companies are doing and in which way they are saving more energy.  Nevertheless, the companies are being judged by each other, what is tending to be a great example of being sincere and transparent.

A bigger context

If we date back to a few earlier and larger trends, we can relate to digitisation and the way technology taught us to think for ourselves. Due to these trends, people like you and me were discovering more and more information about companies, for instance. As a matter of fact, technology made sure that if there is something revealed, people will share this on social media with the consequence that everybody will know it sooner. As an individual we can look up everything we want, at any time, at any place. All this is making the authorities less powerful and what is even more important…less of a ruler!

Beneath you can see the first episode, where Hilton Worldwide visits Whole Foods:

How it sequels

Companies are no longer trying to only tell the people they are of good willingness. The next step is to really show everybody how it is done, when it is done, where it is done and more of such questions. True transparency is the future, a world where secrets can not be hidden. But…. where does our privacy go?

What do you think of this topic?

 

See you next time,

Amy Melenboer ♥

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sources:

http://www.fastcoexist.com/3057043/watch-the-department-of-energys-earnest-kind-of-adorable-energy-efficiency-reality-show

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/HVAC.html

http://betterbuildingssolutioncenter.energy.gov/beat-blog/hilton-worldwide-swap-experience-teamwork-makes-all-difference

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfkBti0H8ZU