Analyse
Ingels’ statement aligns with his firm’s (BIG) design philosophy, exemplified by projects like **The Spiral (NYC)** and **CopenHill (Copenhagen)**, which integrate green spaces, energy systems, and mixed-use functions. However, no skyscraper today is *fully* self-sustaining in terms of food, water, and energy—most rely on external infrastructure. The claim conflates *visionary goals* (e.g., biophilic design, circular economies) with *current reality*, where such systems remain partial or prototype-scale. His wording implies a near-term inevitability that overstates actual implementation.
Achtergrond
Ingels, founder of **Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG)**, is known for **‘hedonistic sustainability’**—designing buildings that merge environmental resilience with livability. *The Big U* (2014), a post-Sandy resilience project for Lower Manhattan, proposed flood barriers with integrated parks and social spaces, embodying his ‘ecosystem’ metaphor. While projects like **VIA 57 West** (NYC) or **Amager Bakke** (waste-to-energy plant with a ski slope) test hybrid functionalities, none achieve full autonomy.
Samenvatting verdict
Bjarke Ingels’ 2014 claim about future skyscrapers as 'vertical ecosystems' reflects *aspirational* design principles in projects like *The Big U* and BIG’s later works, but such fully self-sustaining towers do not yet exist at scale.