This is my grandfather. And this is my son. My grandfather taught me to work with wood when I was a little boy, and he also taught me the idea that if you cut down a tree to turn it into something, honor that tree's life and make it as beautiful as you possibly can. My little boy reminded me that for all the technology and all the toys in the world, sometimes just a small block of wood, if you stack it up tall, actually is an incredibly inspiring thing. These are my buildings. I build all around the world out of our office in Vancouver and New York. And we build buildings of different sizes and styles and different materials, depending on where we are. But wood is the material that I love the most, and I'm going to tell you the story about wood. And part of the reason I love it is that every time people go into my buildings that are wood, I notice they react completely differently. I've never seen anybody walk into one of my buildings and hug a steel or a concrete column, but I've actually seen that happen in a wood building. I've actually seen how people touch the wood, and I think there's a reason for it. Just like snowflakes, no two pieces of wood can ever be the same anywhere on Earth. That's a wonderful thing. I like to think that wood gives Mother Nature fingerprints in our buildings. It's Mother Nature's fingerprints that make our buildings connect us to nature in the built environment. Now, I live in Vancouver, near a forest that grows to 33 stories tall. Down the coast here in California, the redwood forest grows to 40 stories tall. But the buildings that we think about in wood are only four stories tall in most places on Earth. Even building codes actually limit the ability for us to build much taller than four stories in many places, and that's true here in the United States. Now there are exceptions, but there needs to be some exceptions, and things are going to change, I'm hoping. And the reason I think that way is that today half of us live in cities, and that number is going to grow to 75 percent. Cities and density mean that our buildings are going to continue to be big, and I think there's a role for wood to play in cities. And I feel that way because three billion people in the world today, over the next 20 years, will need a new home. That's 40 percent of the world that are going to need a new building built for them in the next 20 years. Now, one in three people living in cities today actually live in a slum. That's one billion people in the world live in slums. A hundred million people in the world are homeless. The scale of the challenge for architects and for society to deal with in building is to find a solution to house these people. But the challenge is, as we move to cities, cities are built in these two materials, steel and concrete, and they're great materials. They're the materials of the last century. But they're also materials with very high energy and very high greenhouse gas emissions in their process. Steel represents about three percent of man's greenhouse gas emissions, and concrete is over five percent. So if you think about that, eight percent of our contribution to greenhouse gases today comes from those two materials alone. We don't think about it a lot, and unfortunately, we actually don't even think about buildings, I think, as much as we should. This is a U.S. statistic about the impact of greenhouse gases. Almost half of our greenhouse gases are related to the building industry, and if we look at energy, it's the same story. You'll notice that transportation's sort of second down that list, but that's the conversation we mostly hear about. And although a lot of that is about energy, it's also so much about carbon. The problem I see is that, ultimately, the clash of how we solve that problem of serving those three billion people that need a home, and climate change, are a head-on collision about to happen, or already happening. That challenge means that we have to start thinking in new ways, and I think wood is going to be part of that solution, and I'm going to tell you the story of why. As an architect, wood is the only material, big material, that I can build with that's already grown by the power of the sun. When a tree grows in the forest and gives off oxygen and soaks up carbon dioxide, and it dies and it falls to the forest floor, it gives that carbon dioxide back to the atmosphere or into the ground. If it burns in a forest fire, it's going to give that carbon back to the atmosphere as well. But if you take that wood and you put it into a building or into a piece of furniture or into that wooden toy, it actually has an amazing capacity to store the carbon and provide us with a sequestration. One cubic meter of wood will store one tonne of carbon dioxide. Now our two solutions to climate are obviously to reduce our emissions and find storage. Wood is the only major material building material I can build with that actually does both those two things. So I believe that we have an ethic that the Earth grows our food, and we need to move to an ethic in this century that the Earth should grow our homes. Now, how are we going to do that when we're urbanizing at this rate and we think about wood buildings only at four stories? We need to reduce the concrete and steel and we need to grow bigger, and what we've been working on is 30-story tall buildings made of wood. We've been engineering them with an engineer named Eric Karsh who works with me on it, and we've been doing this new work because there are new wood products out there for us to use, and we call them mass timber panels. These are panels made with young trees, small growth trees, small pieces of wood glued together to make panels that are enormous: eight feet wide, 64 feet long, and of various thicknesses. The way I describe this best, I've found, is to say that we're all used to two-by-four construction when we think about wood. That's what people jump to as a conclusion. Two-by-four construction is sort of like the little eight-dot bricks of Lego that we all played with as kids, and you can make all kinds of cool things out of Lego at that size, and out of two-by-fours. But do remember when you were a kid, and you kind of sifted through the pile in your basement, and you found that big 24-dot brick of Lego, and you were kind of like, "Cool, this is awesome. I can build something really big, and this is going to be great." That's the change. Mass timber panels are those 24-dot bricks. They're changing the scale of what we can do, and what we've developed is something we call FFTT, which is a Creative Commons solution to building a very flexible system of building with these large panels where we tilt up six stories at a time if we want to. This animation shows you how the building goes together in a very simple way, but these buildings are available for architects and engineers now to build on for different cultures in the world, different architectural styles and characters. In order for us to build safely, we've engineered these buildings, actually, to work in a Vancouver context, where we're a high seismic zone, even at 30 stories tall. Now obviously, every time I bring this up, people even, you know, here at the conference, say, "Are you serious? Thirty stories? How's that going to happen?" And there's a lot of really good questions that are asked and important questions that we spent quite a long time working on the answers to as we put together our report and the peer reviewed report. I'm just going to focus on a few of them, and let's start with fire, because I think fire is probably the first one that you're all thinking about right now. Fair enough. And the way I describe it is this. If I asked you to take a match and light it and hold up a log and try to get that log to go on fire, it doesn't happen, right? We all know that. But to build a fire, you kind of start with small pieces of wood and you work your way up, and eventually you can add the log to the fire, and when you do add the log to the fire, of course, it burns, but it burns slowly. Well, mass timber panels, these new products that we're using, are much like the log. It's hard to start them on fire, and when they do, they actually burn extraordinarily predictably, and we can use fire science in order to predict and make these buildings as safe as concrete and as safe as steel. The next big issue, deforestation. Eighteen percent of our contribution to greenhouse gas emissions worldwide is the result of deforestation. The last thing we want to do is cut down trees. Or, the last thing we want to do is cut down the wrong trees. There are models for sustainable forestry that allow us to cut trees properly, and those are the only trees appropriate to use for these kinds of systems. Now I actually think that these ideas will change the economics of deforestation. In countries with deforestation issues, we need to find a way to provide better value for the forest and actually encourage people to make money through very fast growth cycles -- 10-, 12-, 15-year-old trees that make these products and allow us to build at this scale. We've calculated a 20-story building: We'll grow enough wood in North America every 13 minutes. That's how much it takes. The carbon story here is a really good one. If we built a 20-story building out of cement and concrete, the process would result in the manufacturing of that cement and 1,200 tonnes of carbon dioxide. If we did it in wood, in this solution, we'd sequester about 3,100 tonnes, for a net difference of 4,300 tonnes. That's the equivalent of about 900 cars removed from the road in one year. Think back to that three billion people that need a new home, and maybe this is a contributor to reducing. We're at the beginning of a revolution, I hope, in the way we build, because this is the first new way to build a skyscraper in probably 100 years or more. But the challenge is changing society's perception of possibility, and it's a huge challenge. The engineering is, truthfully, the easy part of this. And the way I describe it is this. The first skyscraper, technically -- and the definition of a skyscraper is 10 stories tall, believe it or not — but the first skyscraper was this one in Chicago, and people were terrified to walk underneath this building. But only four years after it was built, Gustave Eiffel was building the Eiffel Tower, and as he built the Eiffel Tower, he changed the skylines of the cities of the world, changed and created a competition between places like New York City and Chicago, where developers started building bigger and bigger buildings and pushing the envelope up higher and higher with better and better engineering. We built this model in New York, actually, as a theoretical model on the campus of a technical university soon to come, and the reason we picked this site to just show you what these buildings may look like, because the exterior can change. It's really just the structure that we're talking about. The reason we picked it is because this is a technical university, and I believe that wood is the most technologically advanced material I can build with. It just happens to be that Mother Nature holds the patent, and we don't really feel comfortable with it. But that's the way it should be, nature's fingerprints in the built environment. I'm looking for this opportunity to create an Eiffel Tower moment, we call it. Buildings are starting to go up around the world. There's a building in London that's nine stories, a new building that just finished in Australia that I believe is 10 or 11. We're starting to push the height up of these wood buildings, and we're hoping, and I'm hoping, that my hometown of Vancouver actually potentially announces the world's tallest at around 20 stories in the not-so-distant future. That Eiffel Tower moment will break the ceiling, these arbitrary ceilings of height, and allow wood buildings to join the competition. And I believe the race is ultimately on. Thank you. (Applause)
呢個係我祖父 呢個係我個仔 細個嗰時,爺爺除咗教我木工 佢仲教我一個道理 如果你將樹砍落嚟變成一樣嘢 咁你就要盡力整出 最靚嘅嘢嚟榮耀棵樹 而我個仔提醒咗我 全世界嘅科技產品同玩具 有時候都比唔上一堆小木頭疊高 咁有啟發性 呢啲係我參與過嘅建築物 我平時喺溫哥華同紐約嘅辦公室裡邊 參與世界各地嘅建設項目 視乎我哋喺邊度工作 我哋嘅建築有唔同大小 唔同風格、用唔同材料 但木頭一直係我最喜愛嘅材料 我會講一個木頭嘅故事畀你哋聽 我鍾意木頭,部分原因係因為 每次人哋走入我設計嘅木製建築 我發覺佢哋嘅反應完全唔一樣 我未見過有人 走入鋼筋水泥建築物去擁抱樁柱 但我就喺木製建築裡面見到呢幕 我睇到人哋點樣掂啲木 我相信呢個背後一定有原因 就好似雪花一樣 地球上冇兩塊木係一模一樣嘅 所以木係好美妙嘅事 我鍾意將木諗成係 喺我哋建築物上留低嘅大自然足印 係大自然嘅足印令建築物 能夠將我哋同大自然連繫起嚟 宜家我住喺溫哥華,好近一個森林 嗰度嘅樹可以生到 33 層樓咁高 而喺加州海岸嘅紅木林 樹木可以生長到 40 層樓高 但係大多數木建築都只有四層樓高 喺好多地方,建築法例限制咗我哋 木製樓宇唔能夠高過四層樓 包括美國 宜家已經有例外 我覺得需要有例外嘅情況 而且我希望法例會改 我之所以咁諗係因為 今日世界一半嘅人口住喺城市 而呢數字仲會增長到 75% 城市同人口密度代表 我哋嘅建築將會愈嚟愈大 而木材會喺城市裏面扮演一個角色 我咁諗係因為世界有三十億人 會喺未來二十年需要一個新嘅家 就啫係話,未來廿年 新嘅建築物需要興建 去迎合世界 40% 人口嘅需要 今日,城市裏邊每三個人 就有一個住喺貧民窟裡邊 全世界有十億人住緊喺貧民窟 一億人無家可歸 建築師同社會面對嘅挑戰 就係要為呢啲人搵到棲身之所 但問題在於,當我哋搬到城市 而城市通常以兩種物料起成︰ 鋼筋同水泥 呢兩種都係好好嘅材料 但係佢哋係上世紀嘅建材 需要好多能源去生產佢哋 仲會喺生造過程中釋放大量溫室氣體 鋼材佔咗人類溫室氣體排放量嘅 3% 水泥就佔咗 5% 以上 所以諗諗,今日溫室氣體排放量嘅 8% 係嚟自呢兩種建材 我哋冇諗過呢樣嘢好多 我哋冇成日諗下建築究竟要點 呢度係一份美國有關溫室氣體嘅統計 差唔多半數排放量嚟自建造業 能源用量方面,情況都係差唔多 我哋成日講交通,但係交通只係排第二 雖然好多時啲嘢都係同能源問題有關 但係碳排放同樣重要 我覺得問題最終係 我哋該點樣同時解決 三十億人嘅房屋需求 而又關照到氣候 其實呢個問題正喺度發生緊 呢個問題代表我哋要創新 所以我會覺得木材將會係對策嘅一部分 我會話畀你知點解 作為一位建築師,木材係唯一一種 我可以使用、兼靠太陽生成嘅大型建材 森林裡面嘅樹生長 放出氧氣、吸入二氧化碳 當樹木死咗瞓喺地下時 佢哋會將二氧化碳釋放返去 大氣層或者泥土裏面 如果樹木遇上山火 碳都會重新釋放到大氣層 但如果你將木頭攞嚟起屋 或者做傢俬、玩具 咁樣其實可以封存到好多碳 一立方米嘅木頭可以儲存一噸二氧化碳 我哋控制氣候嘅兩個方法係 減少溫室氣體排放同搵碳嘅儲存空間 木頭係主要唯一一種 能夠同時做到以上兩個方法嘅建材 以前,我哋一直相信地球 會製造我哋嘅食物 今個世紀,我哋需要相信 地球會製造我哋嘅家 當城市化嘅速度係咁快 而我哋慣性諗木建築 最多只有四層高時 我哋可以點做到用木起樓呢? 我哋要減少鋼材同水泥嘅用量 同時要興建更大嘅木建築 我哋正籌備緊起一啲三十層高嘅木大廈 我哋同工程師 Eric Karsh 合作 我哋合作做呢個項目係因為 我哋有新嘅木製品可以用 我哋叫呢啲做巨型木嵌板 呢啲嵌板將年幼嘅樹 生得唔高嘅樹、細片嘅木 集合埋一齊變成咗大型嘅嵌板 八呎乘六十四呎,備有唔同厚度 要形容呢樣嘢最好嘅方式係咁: 我哋平時諗到嘅木都係 2X4 規格 於是大家好容易就會話木係 2X4 2X4 規格似係細個 玩八個點嘅樂高積木 你可以用咁大嘅樂高積木 造出千變萬化有趣嘅嘢 但你哋記得細路嗰時 你哋喺地牢摷嚟摷去 可能摷到一個有二十四點嘅積木 你會諗︰ 「酷,咁我可以起一個好大嘅嘢𡀔, 整咗出嚟一定好正。」 於是事情唔一樣 巨型木嵌板就似嗰塊有廿四點嘅積木 佢改變咗我哋起樓嘅規模 我哋研發出一個叫 FFTT 嘅嘢 佢係一個開放部分使用權嘅產品 可以用嚟起各式各樣嘅建築 我哋可以用呢啲大型木建材板 每次最多起六層樓 呢個動畫顯示啲建築物 點樣好簡單嘅連埋一齊 呢啲建築無論咩文化同建築風格都啱 為咗起嘅時候安全 我哋特別設計令呢啲大廈 適合溫哥華嘅環境 就係即使有三十層樓高,都有抗震能力 當然,每次當我提起呢個 人哋都會問︰ 「你係認真嘅?三十層?點可能?」 啲人問咗好多好好、好重要嘅問題 我哋都花咗一段時間解答問題 同埋將問題寫喺我哋嘅報告上面 我只會講其中幾個問題 先講下防火,因為我覺得 防火係大家第一個諗到嘅問題 呢個唔難理解 我會咁樣講 如果我請你點著一枝火柴 再將佢點著一轆木 轆木唔會著,啱唔啱? 我哋都知道唔會點著 但要點燃一樣嘢,你必須從細塊開始 慢慢由細燒起 最後至將大塊嘅加到火裏邊 所以當你放轆木去燒嘅時候 佢當然會燒啦,但係會燒得好慢 而我哋用緊嘅呢個新產品,巨型木嵌板 就好似大塊嘅木咁,佢哋好難燃燒 而且當佢哋燒起上嚟嘅時候 火勢會出奇地預測得到 所以我哋可以用防火嘅科學知識 嚟預測火勢 並將木製大廈設計得 同水泥鋼材大廈一樣安全 第二個大問題︰森林資源 全球溫室氣體排放量嘅 18% 嚟自採伐森林 斬樹係我哋最後嘅方案 應該咁講,我哋最後先至考慮斬樹 現今嘅幾種可持續嘅伐木模式 畀我哋有節制咁取得木材 而斬得嘅樹都必須要適合呢套系統 我覺得呢啲諗法會改變伐木嘅經濟模式 喺受伐木問題困擾嘅國家 我哋需要畀到森林最大嘅價值 並鼓勵大家利用 樹木快速生長週期去賺錢 十年、十二年、十五年嘅樹木 都可以用嚟製造呢啲嵌板 同畀我哋大規模咁起樓 我哋計過一幢廿層嘅建築 只需要北美洲十三分鐘長出嘅木 我哋需要嘅就係咁多 呢個就係好嘅碳故事 但如果我哋起一幢 廿層高嘅鋼材水泥大廈 水泥生產過程將會排出 1,200 噸二氧化碳 如果我哋以木嚟起 我哋可以封存到 3,100 噸二氧化碳 即係話,兩者嘅二氧化碳排放量 相差 4,300 噸 差唔多等於 900 部車一年嘅排放量 諗諗嗰三十億需要新屋嘅人 或者呢個方法可以減少碳排放 我希望我哋宜家會 喺建築革命嘅起步階段 因為呢個會係起摩天大廈嘅最新方法 但最大嘅考驗係嚟自社會 對於創新冒險嘅心態 而且呢個考驗好大 工程嘅部分,老實講係好容易嘅 我會咁講 摩天大廈最初技術上嘅定義 講你都唔相信︰ 凡係十層或以上高嘅樓都算係 呢座係芝加哥嘅第一座摩天大廈 當時人哋經過佢下面都會驚 但喺佢建成後嘅短短四年 艾菲爾起咗巴黎鐵塔 而且佢起鐵塔嘅時候 佢改變咗全世界城市嘅天際線 促使好似紐約同芝加哥 咁嘅城市開始競爭 開始起愈嚟愈大嘅建築 將天際線愈推愈高 亦令到工程學嘅知識 亦都愈嚟愈成熟 我哋喺紐約為明日一所理工大學嘅校園 整咗呢個建築模型 我哋揀呢個項目做例子 等你可以睇到呢啲建築會係點嘅樣 外觀可以改,所以我哋只係講佢嘅結構 我哋揀呢個嘅原因係 佢係一間理工大學 而且我相信木材係最先進嘅材料 因為只有大自然至擁有佢嘅專利 但對於呢點我哋無法接受 但正因為咁 我哋嘅建築裏面 應該要有大自然嘅痕跡 我正喺度搵緊一個機會 締造另一個「巴黎鐵塔時刻」 當世界各地嘅建築愈嚟愈高 倫敦有一幢九層高嘅木製樓 澳洲都有一座新嘅木製樓 大概十至十一層樓高 呢一刻,我哋開始將木建築愈起愈高 我哋希望,我都希望 我嘅城市溫哥華 可以喺不久嘅將來 起到二十層高嘅全球最高木建築 下一個「巴黎鐵塔時刻」 會打破木建築以往嘅高度 然後同水泥鋼筋大廈一齊比天高 我相信呢場競爭終有一日會開始 多謝 (掌聲)