Parking lots are major part of our environment and are public places that have great impact on our city structure and design. It is the first place in almost every building or a gateway through which employees, customers and visitors enter into the building. So we need to be considerate while developing such an important part of environment. Green infrastructure is the ideal way to build parking lots with ecosystem issue consideration.

Green parking refers to parking lots and facilities that incorporate environmentally friendly features. Innovative approaches to planning and design can ease the negative impacts of parking lots.

With mercury rising with each passing day and the sun shining callously, it’s essential to prepare yourself to combat the alarming summer blaze. Lack of proper care and too much exposure to extreme heat can cause dizziness, low blood pressure, dehydration, skin rashes, heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Some simple measures can help you keep healthy, vitalized and beat the oppressive heat.

Here are a few tips to take care of yourself during summer:-

Eat small and often
Eat small, regular meals during the day. Make sure you eat breakfast, as it avoids low blood pressure and dizziness during very hot days. Keep your diet light and refreshing and avoid heavy foods.

Globally, Electronic waste or E-waste is posing a major challenge to our environment and health. E-waste can be loosely defined as all electronic and electrical equipment that is discarded. With technology and its advancements becoming an integral part of our lives demand for electronic equipments is on a rise. With technological evolutions making yesterday’s equipment obsolete, volume of electronic waste is increasing. Electronic and electrical equipment contain different hazardous materials known to have detrimental impact on human health and environment. The sheer volume of e-waste and its toxic nature has necessitated governments across the globe to develop a regulatory framework for e-waste management.

E-waste Management and India

E-waste management is managing the e-waste by reusing, recycling, refurbishing, disposing the electronic products without damaging the natural and human environment. Most developed nations have woken up to the challenge of e-waste management and developed a regulatory framework for monitoring and evaluation of e-waste segregation, disposal, recycling by consumers, businesses and electronic equipment manufacturing companies.

Imagine cruising along the iconic Queen’s necklace while indulging in some gastronomic delights! Mumbai, now has a dine aboard double-decker bus that will ply between Nariman Point and Chowpatty along Marine Drive. The custom-made bus with an open-air upper deck and an air-conditioned lower one will tour along the seafront road and serve pre-cooked food that will be made warm as orders come through. The service has been launched by Chennai-based food and entertainment company, The Moving Cart.

Innovative Concept
In this first of its kind service in Mumbai, patrons can soak in the magnificent views of Marine drive through the cosy ambience of the lower deck or through the open air deck. This moving restaurant offers Mumbaikars and tourists a perfect avenue to relax and unwind while enjoying delicious food on the move.

Operations & Maintenance area of Express Towers gets a fresh lease of life, combining the essentials of health, happiness and safety

Art is not the only field where aesthetic value is of concern. Merging art with infrastructure has been the main crux of the Express Towers’ recent repositioning excercise. The driving force behind the revamp was the strong belief in the aesthetic value of art by combining the essentials of health, happiness and safety.

Repositioning of Express Towers implied taking the ideas of sustainable principles forward, continuing to uphold the values inherent and creating natural spaces for beauty. In short, the idea was to achieve a blend of contemporary design and innovation to reduce the environmental impact.

Wider promenade and an even more beautiful skyline can be anticipated, post desired facelift of the 4.3 km Marine Drive stretch

When in Mumbai, few things are more pleasurable than spending a relaxed evening on Marine Drive watching the sun setting – one of the best places to spend the evening in Mumbai is this landmark, located at the northern end of Mumbai, the Marine Drive stretch, the most famous road in the entire city, is indeed its pride.

The 4.3 km long road, named Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, will soon get a fresh lease of life. Post-makeover, revelers can look forward to a smooth stretch of road, wider promenade laced with palm trees, adding to the aesthetics of this iconic road which connects Nariman Point to Girgaum Chowpatty.

The Sassy Spoon is the newest and trendiest restaurant in the central business district of Nariman Point, the commercial hub of Mumbai. Located on the ground floor of Express Towers, the bistro offers a rejuvenating experience to patrons by the way of its lush, green outdoor seating as well as chic, elegant interiors.

The recently-opened eatery offers a menu that is innovative, healthy and delightful. Put together by Chef IrfanPabaneyand Chef Rachel Goenka, the menu boasts of unusual combinations of different flavours. It twists on a traditional theme and surprising inspirations across starters, soups, salads and divine desserts. It also specializes in a lighter lunch menu, including some delectable open faced sandwiches. All paired with over 60 types of wines and other beverages.

Nelly Sethna, one of the most reputed and contemporary designers of her time, was a Kalamkari revivalist, who matched traditional skills with contemporary relevance to keep the rich and ancient tradition thriving. Kalamkari is a type of hand-painted or block-printed cotton textile. She played a vital role in the transformation of the art and patronized it by infusing new sets of aesthetics.

TRANSFORMING KALAMKARI
A reputed artisan and master craftsperson, Sethna has been successful in making craft an integral part of our everyday life through Kalamkari. Her body of work comprises murals, wall hangings, floor coverings, interior fabrics and other weaves.

By way of textiles and weaves used through Kalamkari, Sethna managed to pay tribute to a continuing – yet timeless – tradition of Kalamkari. She chose her themes from the Puranas or the epics. And her stories were depicted in the form of a series of horizontal panels with the narrative script running throughout.

Green building concepts are more than 2000 years old. The ancient Anasazi Indians who lived in the south-western part of what is now the US, constructed dwellings called pueblos, which were completely non-toxic and healthy, being built of only organic materials like natural stone, mud and wood. They are considered the first examples of green building becausethe Anasazi oriented their dwellings to the light, besides rainwater was captured and used for irrigation and the building was heated and cooled without electricity.

Modern Green Building Movement

Thousands of years later and hundreds of civilizations afterward amid rapid urbanization and decreasing space for development, modern architects are reviving green building concepts again. Today, green buildings mean sustainable structures that are environment friendly and resource-efficient throughout their life-cycle– from design to construction, operation, maintenance, renovation and demolition.  In the end, the practice ties well with classical building design concerns of economy, utility, durability, and comfort.Green architecture is articulated inspirationally in the book Natural Capitalism as buildings that “create delight when entered, serenity and health when occupied and regret when departed”. Not surprisingly, this concept has gained immense popularity the world over during the last decade.

“Products are made in the factory, but brands are created in the mind.” Leo Burnett

Realty branding in India is a relatively new concept. Gaining prominence only during the 21st century, the phenomenon is a by-product of the natural progression of the real estate industry which has gone on from providing the basic amenity of shelter to endowing occupants with a lifestyle. Houses and offices are not merely about convenience today, they reflect an individual’s way of life and prosperity. In such a scenario, the choice of a realty brand becomes extremely significant.

A branded builder is one whose projects sell well on the parameters of reliable construction, innovative design, provision of desirable amenities within its vicinity and convenience of location. Besides these, realty investors also associate brands with softer aspects like integrity in business-dealings, transparency of information and peace of mind with regards to their investment.