The Adaptive Re-Use of and Existing Tower Framework
(Aqua Tower by Studio Gang)



Right now, there is a crisis of epic proportions hovering over our world that threatens our very existence and quality of life. This calamity involves every person on this planet and no one is immune to its wrath.

The CDP building will develop ideas suggested within the individual master plan concerned with educating the populace into the wide issues of climate change. In choosing the form in which the research institute would be placed, it was important to utilise the landmark feature, the tower, as an architectural device. Just as the lighthouse serves as a beacon for boats and ships, this tower serves as a beacon for the future of climate change.

Making everybody fully aware of global issues in this location is far beyond the scope of a single building. However, the forces at work in this place have the potential to educate the entire town, effectively making those small contributions needed for a sustainable urban environment. In this light, the building therefore becomes a symbol as well as an institute. Whilst the debate continues about whether it is too late to avert the changes inflicted on our planet by rising temperatures and as a global community, the question of whether we should make advances toward adaptability is an idea which is presented in this thesis. If we are to hope for a better future we must lower our fossil fuel dependence and this is not only achievable by building new efficient buildings but also taking a step back to look at buildings past.

In a scenario where a chosen tower is no longer fit for use and would become derelict, my project, suggests ways in which to revitalise the building by enhancing its use. The addition of a new Climate Change Exhibition and Conference Center at the base provides the informal invitation to the public to visit this building. The addition of a Technological Climate Change Research Institute in the vessel at the top of the top solidifies the buildings new status as a future for climate change. In the spaces originally inhabited within the tower, many office, apartments and live work units will further enhance the life of the building. _