Toyota's Urban Greenery Mission
Today I stumbled upon some of Toyota’s so-called ‘greenification’ mission. Initiating several projects such as the Roof Garden Corporation, the Japanese car brand aims to contribute to the improvement of the urban environment. The Roof Garden Corporation was established in December 2001 and focuses on achieving sustainable urban greenification by making buildings greener and developing trees that improve the environment by utilizing both engineering technologies and natural science technologies, which improve the innate ability of plants to purify the air as well as enhance positive climatic effects through transpiration and providing shade.
“The loss of vegetation in urban areas has resulted in serious problems such as the heat-island effect, air pollution, drought, and flooding. Due to difficulties in the greenification of urban areas at the ground level, a lot of attention has been focused on ways of greening buildings. By adding greenery to the enormous areas made up of city building rooftops and walls, it is possible to greatly contribute to the improvement of the urban environment.”
The project attempts to stimulate others to create their own green rooftop gardens and therefore presented a type of green roof tiles to help them getting further. The lightweight tile-based system is as easy as laying down carpet and is able to water itself by a direct connection to irrigation systems. Furthermore, the grass tiles do not require any additional structural upgrading to existing roofs. Installing a rooftop garden has never been easier. Inhabitat explains:
“At only $43 per tile, the TM9 system provides a modular, easy-to-install, cost-effective option for green-minded homeowners. In terms of maintenance, the tiles need only be cut once a year, thanks to a special breed of Korean velvet grass. And of course, like all green roofs, you’ll rest easy knowing that your easy installation is providing a natural cooling effect, thermal insulation, and a little extra flora in your home environment.”
