This article was originally published in Waterloo Engineering news.
A Waterloo School of Architecture professor’s research has captured a top sustainable design award and will be showcased at Expo 2020 taking place in Dubai next year.
Elizabeth English was awarded first place in the sustainable products category of the Architecture MasterPrize Product Design Award for her Buoyant Foundation Project of which she is the founder and director.
Elizabeth English of the School of Architecture won the Architecture MasterPrize Product Design Award for her buoyant foundation work.
Designed for flood-prone areas throughout the world, the retrofitted houses float without damage during flooding while remaining grounded under ordinary conditions. The earth-friendly approach works in synchrony with natural flood cycles, rather than trying to control the forces of nature.
The Architecture MasterPrize Product Design Award recognizes exceptional architectural product designers and manufacturers along with those achieving excellence in architectural projects and practice.
English has been selected to have her research, entitled Vulnerable in Vietnam, featured at Expo 2020 Dubai’s Global Best Practice Programme called Small Steps, Big Leaps, Solutions for Sustainable Impact.
Including the global best practice showcase at Dubai’s Expo is intended to “shine a light on projects that are providing real solutions to the world's biggest challenges.” Twenty-five million people are expected to attend Expo 2020, which runs from October 2020 to April 2021.