The urban jungle takes on new meaning in architecture

SINGAPORE:The island nation of Singapore will soon host an ambitious effort to make urban centres environmentally sustainable. Picture a jungle inside a skyscraper and it gives you a sense of the idea.

Solaris, phase 2B of a new research and development complex called Fusionopolis, is set to become the city-state's most eco-friendly skyscraper and is the brainchild of Malaysian architect Ken Yeang. The 1.4-kilometre high, 15-storey building has a "green infrastructure" and will contain the longest continuous vertical stretch of vegetation of any building in the world, with plants and cascading landscaped terrace gardens running right the way up through the building. This will help with ventilation and keeping the building cool, but is also supposed to make people feel good.

Yeang has an interest in the environment as well as a progressive architect. "Saving the environment from continued devastation is the single most important issue for our tomorrow," he said recently.

He believes that building upwards will ultimately prove more environmentally friendly because of pressures caused by urban sprawl.

He has described his building style as a "vertical expression of horizontal design" and the Solaris building embodies this notion. This translates roughly into turning a leafy part of the city on its side and transforming it into a skyscraper, with the vegetation still intact.

He is variously described as a bioclimatic architect or a proponent of "Vegitecture".

The project is scheduled for completion in 2010 with an estimated cost of €75 million.