[media-credit name=’BRYAN FAUST/Herald Photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]A multitude of complex designs, drawings and diagrams all detailing the future possibilities of the University of Wisconsin’s first “green building” surrounded Tripp Commons Friday afternoon.

The exhibition at Memorial Union showcased Milwaukee and Madison students’ proposals for the construction and design of a “green building,” an environmentally efficient building, that will house environmental programs such as the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Department of Landscape Architecture and Land Information, and Computer Graphics Facility.

“I was very excited about the work the students did to find what it means to be a green building,” Mark Nelson, UW Department of Environment, Textiles and Design professor, said.

UW-Madison professors Nelson and Jim LaGro and UW-Milwaukee professor Jim Wasley began by introducing the project and summarizing its main objectives. Wasley, an architecture professor, stressed the “opportunities for students to think as a group” and the chance to create “a path-breaking building.”

A number of students attended and were pleased with the public presentation. UW environment and behavior studies graduate student Jennifer Elsen said she was especially interested in the aspect of including the natural environment in design. She said she found it important to attend because of green buildings’ tremendous significance in the future.

According to the presentation, buildings and their construction consume 54 percent of U.S. energy. Wasley said the objective of green buildings is not only to “reduce the negative impact on the environment,” but also to “restore the environment.”

At the meeting, vibrant posters illustrating various plans lined the walls. Two models, complete with movable pieces, were displayed. Students and professors prepared with anticipation while the general public waited.

UW-Milwaukee architecture students outlined their building ideas, some proposing new structures where Charter Street and Linden Drive intersect. Other students suggested the creative reuse of current structures, such as Van Hise Hall.

Ideas included the addition of an ‘intelligent’ building facade that would respond to environmental changes and a water treatment system where water collected from the rooftop would be purified and used for plumbing and irrigation purposes.

Milwaukee student presenter Melissa Guarin particularly enjoyed working on a project that was “real and viable” as well as the opportunity of “working with other departments and schools.”

Interior design students from the Madison campus presented possible thematic designs within the new building. Ideas revolved around the concept of “being green,” using indoor waterfalls, stone pathways, skylights and windows, natural textiles, wooden flooring and indoor gardens to bring the feeling of the outdoors in.

Additionally, a plaza was proposed outside of the new structure, which would incorporate more ‘green’ ideas. Drawing inspiration from existing plazas in Chicago, Seattle, Oakland, California and Allentown, Pennsylvania, UW landscape architecture students generated environmentally friendly plans including native plants, outdoor seating, solar lighting, porous paving, bike storage areas and the use of recycled materials.

Wasley sees this “concerted effort” between the two universities as a positive step towards realizing a dream.

“Universities have a profound influence on the market as well as the marketplace of ideas,” Wasley said.