In future, change in climate and increase in ocean level will create havoc in many parts of the world. To deal with water rising and worldwide ecological crisis, architect Vincent Callebaut has designed a floating Ecopolis called "Lilypad". Lilypad is a true amphibian half aquatic and half terrestrial city, able to accommodate 50,000 inhabitants. Take a look at these pictures of the original concept.
Inspired of the highly ribbed leave of the great lilypad of Amazonia Victoria Regia, Lilypad is a prototype of auto-sufficient amphibious city with double objective not only to widen sustainability in offshore the territories of the most developed countries but above all to grant the housing of future climatic refugees.
Lilypad is a true amphibian half aquatic and half terrestrial city, able to accommodate 50,000 inhabitants and inviting the biodiversity to develop its fauna and flora around a central lagoon of soft water collecting and purifying the rain waters. This artificial lagoon is entirely immersed ballasting thus the city. It enables to live in the heart of the subaquatic depths. The multifunctional programming is based on three marinas and three mountains dedicated respectively to the work, the shops and the entertainments. The whole set is covered by a stratum of planted housing in suspended gardens and crossed by a network of streets and alleyways with organic outline.
In this way, the goal of Lilypad is to create a harmonious coexistence of the couple Human / Nature and to explore new modes of living the sea by building with fluidity collective spaces in proximity, overwhelming spaces of social inclusion suitable to the meeting of all the inhabitants – denizen or foreign-born, recent or old, young or aged people.
via: Vincent Callebaut http://www.vincent.callebaut.org/page1-img-lilypad.html
