Nurai Island | Share and Share Alike

Everyone knows its de rigeur amongst the really rich to purchase their own private islands. From Johnny Depp’s island in the Bahamas to Mel Gibson’s Mago Island in Fiji, David Copperfield’s magical Musha Cay to the British Virgin Islands owned by Richard Branson, these big spenders can relax knowing their beachside antics won’t appear in next week’s US Weekly. But don’t think Robb Report jetset don’t have a conscience, rumor has it they are now considering sharing an island. How very socially responsible.

Nurai Island is located northeast of Abu Dhabi, the second largest city in the United Arab Emirates. The island promises to be the travel destination for the rich and famous with the construction of “a boutique luxury hotel resort with 60 suites, 31 beachfront estates and 36 water villas”. Speaking of the latter, “the multi-storey water villas alone will span 515 square meters each, and comprise three bedrooms, four bathrooms, a private rooftop garden with spa pool, private infinity pool, multiple decks, outdoor barbeque area, gourmet kitchen and concealed service quarters”.

The 130,000 square meter island will also boast private residences 3000 – 6050 square meter residences consisting of five-bedroom and six bathrooms. “Each Seaside estate will include a private beach and garden, rooftop garden with spa pool, infinity swimming pool, indoor reflecting pools, concealed service quarters, entertainment patios, outdoor dining areas, chef and show kitchens, and outdoor showers”. Very nice. The project is a collaboration between Studio Dror of New York who’ll design the residences and Paris-based AW2 who’ll do the hotel.

So if you’ve got a spare 20 million euros to purchase private residence (huh? Johnny Depp entire island only cost $3.6 million), you’ll have to wait until 2010 to meet your ethically-minded next door neighbors.

Mumbai Tower | The Greenest Kept Secret in India

Lately, a mysterious building in the heart of Mumbai has been growing two floors a day. Literally growing. It’s covered in plants. It’s the greenest kept secret in India, until recently, when owner and oil tycoon Mukesh Ambani finally revealed his plans for what he purports to be the most environmentally friendly building in Mumbai. It’s called the Residence Antilia.
Architecture in Mumbai often looks very green in color because of the popular blend of modern Indian architecture and ancient Indian Vaastu, which calls for a lot of greenery in the design. In the Vaastu tradition, the spine of the building reaches up, towards enlightenment, and the foliage on the building creates “gardens-in-the-sky.” The Residence Antilia takes this concept to the extreme, creating the largest and tallest living wall in the world.
The plans show a variety of landscaping: garden tiers, terraces, waterfalls, ponds and recreational facilities. The Residence Antilia will be one of the tallest buildings in Mumbai, and all of the floors are included in the green wall. The views will also be spectacular, some of the best in the city.

It’s a stunning building. The ancient Indians were on to something; creating buildings that are living gardens are not without their environmental merit. The plants increase green space, reduce the urban heat effect and help absorb runoff from rainwater. These features are especially important in Mumbai, with its 13 million residents and propensity for flooding.
The Residence Antilia does call into question, however, the definition of green building. Yes, the building is the color green, but does it have any other green features? Because of the secrecy, it is possible that the other green features simply have not yet been released. But, the Residence Antilia is a good example of the need to examine green buildings closely, especially when they’re owned by an oil company.
The other side of this argument is that a building doesn’t have to be covered in PV panels, using only the energy from wind turbines and built with all recycled material to help solve the climate crisis. Even just creating a building that’s not a horrifying polluter is a good thing. The Residence Antilia is definitely a step in the right direction and a beautiful building to boot.