China's first carbon-neutral hotel. Thursday, 20th November 2008 Source : gogreen

Conceived by owners Scott Barrack and Jules Kwan, URBN promises to be the start of a new boutique hotel empire.

No strangers to luxury developments or to China where they have lived for 10 years, the two plan to open another 20 URBN hotels in China in the next three years, starting with Beijing, Hangzhou, Dalian and Suzhou.

The hoteliers will go as green as possible by rehabilitating existing structures, using recycled materials, maximizing green space and introducing eco-friendly solutions.

URBN’s spatial concept, interior and facade design are by A00 Architecture, a partnership of three Canadian architects, best known for conversions of Shanghai’s historic houses into unique residences.

The hotel’s interior designer is Brazil native architect, Tais Cabral, known for her commercial, cultural, residential and retail work in Paris, as well as her furniture design.

Carbon neutrality is a way to offset or reduce carbon emissions in the atmosphere by efforts such as increased energy efficiency, gas capture techniques to reduce harmful gases and generate electricity, and renewable power sources such as wind, solar, bio fuel, and hydro power.

www.urbnhotels.com

www.go-green.ae