2020_Ruken_Karakus_In a Parallel Universe_Category A
Yassıada is an island at Marmara Sea Turkey, with regards to its historic and political importance from the Byzantium times to the Republic of Turkey; the island is well known with the sea-biodiversity with its coral reefs. In 2015 the Turkish government started the construction to make this uninhabited island into a congress island. Istanbul is a relatively poor city according to the European Green City Index 2012. This project is a praxis of 0 energy island questioning the island`s 2020 self in a parallel universe. At the current situation, the island lost its all endemic plants, perennial corridors and self-growing fruit trees, shrubs, after the transformation the island consists of a huge concrete area. What if it was designed the other way around with an interdisciplinary approach consisting of engineers, environment specialists, smart city dwellers, designers, and the community.
Continuous Productive Urban Landscape (CPUL): Integrating food growing into urban areas
Energy Demand and Energy Production: Energy demand was calculated for a self-sufficient design.
• Solar Energy:
• Wind Energy:
• Crop Plantation:
Stormwater Management and Rainwater Harvesting: Implementing rainwater collection systems are initial; the stormwater management system consisted of three types of natural bioswales: stormwater chains, strip basins and infiltration basins.
Ecological Restoration and Artificial Succession, Rehabilitative Planting: The aim of this project is to rehabilitate the island with artificial succession planting which will rehabilitate the soil and create a climax species at the core to bring back the biodiversity and increase the flora-fauna variety.
While inhabiting the island to create a self-sustainable, self-sufficient, zero energy district which produces its own energy and food to provide a further study for integration in sustainable cities.
