Sustainable Recycling Methodologies in Campus Design

1
Binita Mariam George, 1Kataru Lohith Krishna, 1Rubhen Abraham and 2Prof. Yamini
1 2
Third year students Professor
School of Architecture and Interior Design (SAID), College of Engineering and Technology,
SRM Institute of Science and Technology, SRM Nagar, Kattankulathur-603203,
Kanchipuram, Chennai, TN, INDIA;
bg9515@srmist.edu.in; kk2730@srmist.edu.in; a5083@srmist.edu.in;
yaminil@srmist.edu.in

ABSTRACT

Day by day buildings are being demolished without taking considering the waste that is
being generated, and the housing shortage problem is getting critical as the population is
growing and the demand for built space and use of resources are increasing more than
ever. Lately, most architectural designs have been using prefabrication and modular
systems to solve such problems. However, there still is an absence of structures that can
be disassembled and reused when the structure’s life has run its course.
This paper presents the relation between sustainability with respect to recyclable
architecture and energy efficiency. The results show that the implementation of
recyclable architectural concept at the first design stage is practical and feasible, and
ensures its adaptation through time, increases its life span, usability and the material re
usability, while taking the option of demolition out of the equation, which in turn reduces
the construction waste and, consequently, the CO2 emissions, subsequently bolstering
sustainability.

Keywords: recyclable architecture, material reusability, adaptation, sustainability,

modularity

INTRODUCTION

One often wonders, what happens to a building when it is no longer in use or when it is no
longer needed and if there is any way we can retain or reuse the colossal amount of
construction material such as cement, concrete, bricks, tiles, etc. This is where recyclable
architecture comes into play and help in promoting energy efficiency and consequently,
sustainability.

Recyclable architecture uses techniques, equipment, materials and processes that help in
reusing a structure, building a structure than can be reused or remodeling an existing
structure. By definition, sustainable architecture is architecture that seeks to bring about a
quality that minimizes the negative environmental impact of buildings by efficiency and
moderation in the use of materials, energy, development space and the ecosystem at large,
thereby supporting long term ecological balance.

The recycling process might also be used as a gateway to lower energy consumption. Of this,
about 5 million tires are recycled in organic products and in the cement industry.

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Relevance of Recycling in Sustainable Architecture
When designing structures which are sustainably self-sufficient, one must think of its long-
term ambition as well. If you consider the need for demolition of most existing buildings, it is
not due to their structural defects or shortcomings, more often than not it is due to transition
of their initial purpose, thereby deeming the existing building incompetent. Consequently,
this makes the structure and its materials worthless and fruitless. This in itself expresses the
emergence of recyclable architecture. (7)

The first case study encompasses the sustainable development at Higher Education
Institutions (HEIs). Since HEIs have a major impact on growing minds and have a moral
responsibility to educate them about the need of sustainable behavior, it is the need of the
hour to implement environment friendly policies and guidelines. This resulted in the global
trend of HEIs revising their processes and procedures. Whereas the second case study talks
about the sustainable practices implemented in Italy, how the students of an architectural
institution, the University of Naples, were asked to design sustainable environments which
embodied recyclable architecture. This brought about subsequent activities and festivals that
revolved around ecologically stable environments, which is a welcome change after having
acknowledged the constant resource depletion arising around the world. It also talks about
how upcycling as compared to recycling could be a better alternative to sustainable practices.

CASE STUDY I

1. UNIVERSITY OF ALICANTE

1.1 INTRODUCTION

Buildings are places where people spend majority of their lifetime. According to the United
Nations, 1.7 billion people, which are 23% of the world’s population, lived in a city with at
least 1 million inhabitants in 2018. It is estimated that the world’s population will reach 9.8
billion people in 2050 leading to a growth of high-rise building construction in cities in order
to provide work and habitation spaces required by the ever-growing population.
Undoubtedly, the building construction industry is responsible for a significant amount of
global resource consumption and the demand for natural resources will increase with the
population growth in the future. Apart from that, the building industry accounts for more than
50% of the global energy use and over 35% of CO2 emissions. This implies that the building
industry is having an enormous impact on the environment and is responsible for a misuse of
a significant number of natural resources and the generation of waste. Therefore, resource and
waste management has become an important issue in the architectural field.

Under these circumstances, universities, as one of the fundamental pillars of the society, are
expected to take the necessary steps for promoting sustainability at university level as well as
to fight against climate change. It is not just a question of implementing specific studies in
these areas (i.e., renewable energy and climate change), but also the real application of
measures that will visibly contribute to these objectives. That means that the community of
each university should be familiar with and active users of these kind of measures. In
addition, given the objectives and roles universities have, it is likely that the specialized staff
of universities in the field of energy and policy could and should considerably contribute to

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the design of energy efficiency policies.

In order to successfully implement sustainable policies and actions, recycling and

sustainability must be incorporated in a university’s strategic plan; this way the university
community will facilitate their success. A first step could be raising awareness and promoting
a few simple techniques (such as turning off the lights when leaving a room) for the sake of
reducing energy consumption. More significant work on the field could be based on an in-
depth study of the university’s energy use. This would also boost the university’s
environmental credentials and might make it more attractive to potential students, researchers
and investors. (1)

Studies and researches about climate changes, waste, ecology and architecture (graphic by
M. L Nobile). (1)

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 The role of universities regarding sustainability is presented in figure 1. (Source:
Ferrer-Blas, Bruno, de Mingo and Sans (2004) (3)
1.2 Sustainable Development at European Higher Education Institutions
(HEIs) (1)

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), such as universities, have a key role in the development
of future citizens by influencing their students as they educate them. Hence, universities have
a special societal responsibility, mainly with regard to youth training and public awareness
regarding sustainability. Hence, universities should promote a pattern of development
compatible with a safe environment, biodiversity, ecological balance, and intergenerational
equity (Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar, 2008).

There doesn’t appear to be any leading Energy Efficiency Policy for European HEIs, the
policies applied by the various universities are a part of their efforts in sustainability. There
have been however several declarations concerning sustainable development (including
energy efficiency) and higher education institutions, both at a Global scale and a European
scale.
The COPERNICUS Charter was redesigned and released in 2011 as “COPERNICUS
CHARTA 2.0” by the COPERNICUS Alliance (previously COPERNICUS CAMPUS).
COPERNICUS CAMPUS published a series of guidelines in 2005 in order to help
universities incorporate the principles of sustainable development into the Bologna process.
These include a mention of reducing the universities’ carbon footprint by implementing
measures for water and energy conservation, sustainable building construction and renovation
and other operational practices. (2)

Table 3: Declarations on Higher Education and Sustainable Development (2)

DECLARATION NAME YEAR SIGNATORIES

Stockholm Declaration 1972 UN Conference on Human Environment
Talloires Declaration 1990 Association of University Leaders for a

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Agenda 21: Chapter 36
Swansea Declaration
Kyoto Declaration
Copernicus Charter
Thessaloniki Declaration
World Declaration on Higher Education
for the Twenty-first Century and
Framework for Priority Action for Change
and Development in Higher Education
Lüneburg Declaration
Declaration of Barcelona
The Graz Declaration
Declaration on the Responsibility of Higher
Education for a Democratic Culture –
Citizenship, Human Rights and
Sustainability
RIO+20 Treaty
Sustainable Future
1992 UN Conference on Environment and
Development (“Rio”)
1993 Association of Commonwealth
Universities
1993 International Association of Universities
(IAU)
1994 Association of European Universities (CRE)
1997 UNESCO Conference on Environment and
Public Awareness for Sustainability
1998 UNESCO World Conference on Higher
Education
GHESP partners (International Association
2001 of Universities, University Leaders for a
Sustainable Future, COPERNICUS
CAMPUS and UNESCO)
2004 Education in Sustainable Development
(EESD) 2004 conference scientific
committee
COPERNICUS-CAMPUS, the Karl-
2005 Franzens- University Graz, the Technical
University Graz, Oikos International
Council of Europe Global Network for
2006 Higher Education and Democratic Culture
COPERNICUS Alliance, United Nations
2012 University Institute of Advanced Studies
(UNU IAS), International Association of
Universities (IAU)

1.2.1 Universities are urged to implement the following principles of action:

 Institutional commitment to the principle and practice of environmental protection

and sustainable development within the academic milieu.
 Environmental ethics promoted among teaching staff, students and the public at large.
 Education of university employees on environmental issues so that they can pursue their
work in an environmentally responsible manner.
 Programs in environmental education involving teachers, researchers and students.
 Interdisciplinarity and collaborative education and research programs related to
sustainable development as part of the institution’s central mission.
 Dissemination of knowledge to students, professionals, decision-makers and the general
public by preparing information didactic material, organizing public lectures, and
establishing training programs.
 Interdisciplinary Networking of environmental experts at the local, national, regional
and international levels, with the aim of collaborating on common environmental
projects in both research and education.

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 Partnerships with other concerned sectors of society, in order to design and
implement coordinated approaches, strategies and action plans.
 Continuing education programs for different target groups (business, governmental
agencies, non-governmental organizations, the media).
 Technology transfer of educationally sound and innovative technologies and advanced
management methods. (2)

There are three approaches that are widely used by HEIs: green building initiative, ISO
14001 and European Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS).

 The green building initiative, also known as green campus, eco-urbanism, green
urbanism, high performance buildings, etc., is a sustainable design concept. One of its
main goals is promoting construction of energy and resource efficient buildings.
However, on its own it cannot guarantee sustainability due to its lack of a systematic
and continuous campus quality improvement. Other shortcomings of this initiative are
the lack of a policy approach to environmental sustainability and measurement of
progress. (6)
 The ISO 14001 standards promote the design and implementation of environmental
goals, policies and responsibilities, as well as regular auditing of its elements.
Alshuwaikhat and Abu-bakar (2008) stipulated that the standard has no weaknesses,
but the lack of social and economic dimension, its generic character, its focus on the
industry, no mention on strategic planning for sustainability, etc., are some of its
limitations. However, Simkins and Nolan (2004) highlighted as main objectives of
this initiative the following:

o Reduce waste, resources depletion and environmental pollution;

o Promote environmental awareness among employees and within the community;
o Provide a platform for companies to demonstrate their commitment to
environmental protection;
o Help management pursue continual improvement in environmental
performance;
o Promote a voluntary, consensus standard approach for environmental issues;
o Demonstrate a commitment to moving beyond regulatory compliance.

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 o The European Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS), developed in
1993, is to bring about changes in environmental performance. This may be the
most demanding, especially with the verified environmental declaration which
has resulted in a lukewarm public and large disappointment. (1)

1.3 Green Campuses

After having signed one (or more) of the sustainability in higher education declarations,
universities must put the precepts of sustainability into practice within their own institutions.
This has resulted in a global trend of HEIs revising their mission and restructuring their
courses, research programs and campus operations.
A Green Campus is a higher education institution that is working to improve its energy
efficiency, resource conservation and enhance its environmental quality. It does this by
educating its personnel and students in matters of sustainability, as well as by creating healthy
learning and living environments. (10)

1.4 Sustainable Campus Networks: ISCN

The signatories of the ISCN-GULF Sustainable Campus Charter are publicly engaging their
institutions to aligning their operations, research and teaching with the goal of sustainability.
They are thus committed to setting concrete goals in order to implement the three ISCN-
GULF sustainable campus principles, and report regularly (and publicly!) on their
organization’s performance regarding them:

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 1.4.1 Sustainability at some EU HEIs

Figure 3: European Universities in the 2013 UI Green Metric Rankings (10)

1.4.2 The University of Nottingham’s Environmental Strategy focuses on:

 Internationally recognized research strengths in the environment and sustainable

energy fields.
 Courses in sustainability and environment related areas as well as modules for other
areas of study.
 Estates operations built upon a strong environmental ethos.
 Adoption of progressive environmental strategies in their capital projects.
Sustainability has been embedded into the heart of the designs. (10)

Table 4: Top 10 ranked EU Universities in the 2014 UI Green Metric Rankings. (10)

Global EU Total Setting and Energy

Ranking Rankin University Country Score Infrastructu and Waste WaterTransportatio Education
g re Climate n
Change
Total points possible 10000 1500 2100 1800 1000 1800 1800
1 1 University UK 7521 687 2025 1575 990 1650 594
of
Nottingham
University
College Cork
2 2 National Ireland 7328 619 1890 1575 1 1625 619
University of
Ireland
4 3 University UK 7112 666 1880 1575 995 1575 422
of Bradford
7 4 University of UK 6808 303 1820 1425 1 1500 760
Plymouth
12 5 Universidad Spain 6748 643 1905 1500 850 1325 524
de Alcala

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15 6 University of UK 6712 855 1695 1425 1 1250 486
Bath
19 7 Bangor UK 6549 1031 1670 1500 995 750 603
University
20 8 Linkoping Sweden 6547 588 1625 1575 1 1275 484
University
21 9 University of UK 6539 732 1350 1425 1 1625 407
Sussex
Autonomous
24 10 University Spain 6501 641 1710 1425 1 1175 550
of Madrid

This involves Key Operational Areas such as:

 Waste and recycling.

 Energy and water.
 Travel and transport.
 Procurement.
 Campus development.
 Awareness raising, training and communication.
 Corporate governance.
 Information services.
 Landscape.
 Teaching and learning.
 Research. (10)

CASE STUDY II
2. DiARC Department of Architecture, University of Napoli Federico II

2.1 INTRODUCTION

The research has been the occasion to reflect on architecture’s useful dimension, particularly
regarding the design of waste collection areas. For many years, numerous architects have
confronted the theme of designing large facilities for the collection and disposal of solid
waste; however, few current researchers are studying the areas closer to citizens, places
within the urban centers, which are destined for the separate collection of waste to be
recycled (plastic, glass, paper, textiles, WEEE, oil). Public administrations throughout Europe
have implemented several strategies and have introduced regulations since the early 2000s to
favor the gradual reduction of urban solid waste production. The Campania Region published
guidelines for the drafting of eco-design projects in Law Order No. 11 on September 13,
2000, when the waste management topic became an emergency.
This research consists of two steps. The first step was the agreement in 2004/2006
between the Department of Architecture of the University of Naples and the
Municipality of Nocera Inferiore, a city of 40.000 inhabitants in the Campania Region,
south of Italy. (8)

2.2 THE FIRST PHASE

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The research was developed with 25 students from the final-year course in Architecture,
who started to design several projects in different parts of the city. The aim was to
demonstrate how to design a waste collection centre as a public space, integrating the
service function with a collateral function (educational laboratories, public areas,
children’s playgrounds, gardens). In 2006, the final projects of the master’s degree in
Architecture students delved deeper into the topic. This virtuous process produced a public
tender for the design of a waste recycling collection centre: The design team
(coordinated by Prof. Architect Sergio Pone) conceived this infrastructure as a ‘hybrid’
architecture, a place that could be used as a public space for events and concerts, a public
square and a com- munity area (Figure 1).
Every year, this structure hosts a festival called the ‘Campania Eco Festival’, and the event
started with the building, which is one of the most interesting examples in Italy of a waste
recycling collection centre that hosts a different ‘hybrid’ function, as conceived in its
architectural design concept. The waste recycling collection centre in Nocera Inferiore is a
public space that at different times of the year becomes a meeting place where the typical
functions of living together blend into functional use, and this helps raise awareness and
educate the citizens on the topic of waste management. During the day, the facility serves as a
normal collection centre. The different setting and the disposal of the waste containers makes
it possible to use the ramp as a stage, and the shelter hosts the area for the public audience.
(8)

Figure 1: Waste recycling collection centre in Nocera Inferiore (drawing by CMMKM, ph.
Campania Eco Festival) (8)

2.3 THE SECOND PHASE

The research’s second phase, designing the waste collection centers in the metropolitan area
of Naples 2016/2017, is currently ongoing. The research project, funded by the Campania
Region, started in 2016 and considers the possibility of creating a network of waste recycling
collection centers in the metropolitan area of Naples using the regional highway (research
group: R. Amirante - coordinator, P. Miano, C. Piscopo, S. Pone, P. Scala, M. Russo, A.
Acampora, M. Castigliano, V. De Falco, M. L. Nobile,
B. Parenti - Department of Architecture, University Federico II of Naples) (Figure 2) (8)

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Figure 2: The reuse of regional highway’s service areas in metropolitan Naples (drawing by
Alessandra Acampora, Veronica De Falco, Maria Luna Nobile, Bianca Parenti) (8)

Based on the considerations highlighted in the first part of this paper, and considering that
during the 10 years (from building the Ecological centre in Nocera Inferiore in 2007 to the
approval of the research project in 2017) the situation in the Campania Region has been
changing—Campania’s municipalities are currently equipped with waste recycling collection
centers—the research has considered the current legislation and the actions provided for in
the revised Programming Addresses of the Urban Waste Management Plan in the Campania
Region through the addition of the C.I.R.O, Integrated centers for the Optimal Reuse of
Durable Goods, particularly the reuse of WEEE - Wood – Metal - Bulk - Textile.
This consideration was used to initiate a discussion on the hypothesis of designing a
collection space for the modification of such types of ‘waste’, giving them a new life.
This project hypothesis is not only architectural but initiates a virtuous process that
blends the logic of space organization into the management and sustainability of the
proposed actions. The logic of ‘utility’ and ‘reusability’ becomes the main theme for
reconsidering ‘waste’ spaces, urban areas and the architectural objects of the regional
highway’s service areas in metropolitan Naples (disused shelter, parking areas, etc.) (Figure
3)

Figure 3: Upcycling the regional highway’s service areas in Naples: The Integrated centers
for the Optimal Reuse of Durable Goods (drawing by Alessandra Acampora, Veronica De
Falco, Maria Luna Nobile, Bianca Parenti) (9)

2.4 UPCYCLING

Considering the main aim of the research project, this article focused on integrating different
functions into the design of waste management collection centers, highlighting the
‘upcycling’ process. Introduced in the research of architect William McDonough and chemist
Michael Braungart, upcycling is the specific moment that defines the end of one cycle and the
starting point of a new cycle.
The term upcycling was coined in “Cradle to Cradle”, a book on ecologically intelligent
design. In its simplest terms, upcycling is the practice of taking something that is
disposable and transforming it into something of greater use and value. Upcycling
repurposes materials that are not easily recycled into something useful or artistic.
Therefore, the action is intended to return a new quality, breathing new life into
discarded materials. (9)

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Conclusion

Higher education is a growing sector, each year the number of students attending universities
and other HEIs increases. This results in an increasing consumption of natural resources by
HEIs worldwide, with its resulting environmental impact. Unfortunately budgets rarely
increase to match this, and thus HEIs are under constant pressure to make the most of limited
resources. Implementing measures to promote recycling at a campus level (to obtain the same
– or better – results by using less energy and expenditure) therefore makes sense not only for
environmental and sustainability reasons, but for economic ones as well.
Incorporating the concept of sustainability and recycling in a university’s strategic plan is
crucial to obtaining the support of the university community for implementing sustainability
policies and actions. There are many examples and success stories of this process worldwide.
However, there is no need to start with any drastic measures, it could be a simple matter of
raising awareness and promoting a few simple techniques (such as turning off the lights when
leaving a room) that can reduce resource consumption.
The research investigates the possibility of considering waste collection centers not as a
‘problem to solve’ but as ‘an opportunity to play’. Designing the waste management centers
on the highway in Naples was an opportunity to experiment with the upcycle concept in the
abandoned or ‘wasted’ regions that are included in the highway’s service areas. This concept
that is still a work in progress could be improved and applied to other similar areas.

Finally, higher education institutions have a responsibility to help develop the society
they are a part of, whether it be by training future citizens, or leading by example and
inspiring others to do the same. They have therefore a key opportunity to lead the way
along a path of sustainability, recycling, upcycling, etc. and hopefully the rest of society
will follow.

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