Bio-design and bio-craftmanship are winning popularity in our society. We should and have to work towards solutions to lower our CO2 emission. Designing with biodegradable materials is one of the many opportunities. This will eventually lead to an economy that is circular instead of linear.

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To this day, our economy is still primarily linear; Production, usage, waste. However, the technology to reuse or recycle the materials for almost every product has been here for many years. There is a wide range of prototypes already in existence, in the clothing industry, the construction industry, the food industry, and so on. Many of these prototypes show that it is possible to start thinking differently about where our products come from, how they are used and what happens to them when we throw them away.

I strongly believe in this, but at the same time I’m sceptic about the feasibility of these kinds of prototypes. With many prototypes, the production cost and/or the recycling cost are enormously expensive, which makes the market-return not big enough. In addition, producing a sustainable product on a large scale is almost always inversely proportional to its sustainability. Our greatest challenge as architects is therefore to design in a realistic way, as sustainable as possible, regenerative if possible, but always with the economic side of it in mind.

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From this perspective, I decided quite early in the studio not to design a prototype consisting of a specific material. I first wanted to think more generally about what are the basic human needs to begin with. The first thing that comes to anyone's mind when asking that question, is water. Water is a product that is so pervasive that everyone takes it for granted. This is the biggest problem. The value of water is underestimated in every way.

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How do we deal with this precious product?

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When we take a shower, wash something or flush the toilet, the water flows away through pipes into the ground. Most people have little to no idea what happens to that water and if anything is done with it at all.

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This sparked the idea of defining a neighborhood around the Marais-Wiels site for which I wanted to design a public water purification plant. The conventional water treatment plants in Belgium are dirty, ugly and smelly. They are located outside the city, to cause as little inconvenience as possible. Partly because of this, I think people have absolutely no idea what happens with their wastewater. By bringing this type of plant back to the city in an attractive way, I believe it can create a positive change in water usage.

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The question that arises is how do you make something like this attractive?

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My design is based on an existing company called "Organica," which purifies water through the micro-organisms that nestle in the roots of plants. This creates large indoor gardens that can be publicly accessible and provide more green space in the city. So, I started to analyze this concept strongly on a technical level, to know how this purification works and if it is as beneficial as promised.

After my research, I concluded that this could be a sustainable solution for the city of Brussels, as well as economically beneficial. The economic benefit comes from the kilometers of piping that can be saved by creating a closed circuit within the city itself, as well as the reduction in the size of the water treatment plant.

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Our task as architects is to make such a concept attractive to the general public. The site lends itself perfectly to this kind of installation, but the Métropole building needs a solid redesign. In my design, I wanted to ensure that the new building provides an accessible feeling. At the same time, it should be clear that a process is taking place that contributes to the neighborhood. To achieve both of these goals, I designed a restaurant in the greenhouse where the water is treated simultaneously and made sure that the pipes through which the water flows are visible from the street. When unknown techniques are coupled with leisure, we can bring many people to an understanding in my opinion.

“In an ideal scenario, imagine that your food consists partly of the vegetables and fruits that grow on the trees and plants you eat among, enjoying the view of the site and knowing that the water you took a shower with this morning is being purified under your feet.“

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Of course, going to the restaurant is not the sole purpose of this building, so I didn't want to put the focus solely on that. Because of my extension of the conservatory, I am taking away a piece of the existing swamp. I wanted to give this back to the site no matter what. This led to the decision to create a floating platform above the water, where the building now stands, overlooking the site. In this way I give back exactly as much as I take away. In addition, the accessibility of the site is enhanced, but biodiversity can continue to develop because people are not literally entering the site. This platform ensures that it does not remain a restaurant, but that it becomes a place that is accessible to young and old. In a next phase, as a designer, I would close the remaining entrances so that the ecosystem can continue to develop without another person entering the ground. Paths disappear, vegetation evolves, biodiversity increases, and humans can witness it all from the public platform.

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I am convinced that we can make a difference by thinking about the future of our buildings this way. Always keeping the economic aspects in mind, so that it is a realistic project and not just a utopian idea.