Hartman University Town and Resort, the foremost eco-friendly university campus in Grenada

Lying in the eastern Caribbean Sea, the Hartman University Town and Resort is adjacent to the Mt. Hartman national park located on the south coast of Grenada. The urban planning project takes into account local environmental priorities. The measures put in place aim to avoid major impacts on the level of biodiversity, by introducing wetland management, mangrove conservation, quarry site reclamation, and provision for existing dove habitat and other living marine resources protection. The project will be the foremost eco-friendly university campus in Grenada with an ecology research institute, international education campus, medical centre, apartments as well as a selection of commercial and recreational facilities for students from all over the world. Through proactive ecological management and sustainable development, the site will be transformed into a treasure trove, establishing an education and cultural exchange centre that reflects the highest standards of environmental design and engineering. The planning seeks to optimize the performance of both buildings and outdoor spaces in a variety of design approaches, e.g. solar studies and wind simulation, and to identify design solutions that optimize the quality and comfort of individual buildings of different scale and the entire university town and resort throughout the year. Through place-making we hope to maintain the ecological value of wetland park and mountainous forest while trying to establish new landmarks and enrich the university and resort user community, thereby bringing significant social, economic and environmental benefits to the area. We want to create an "open air museum" that is accessible to students and visitors, friendly to the local communities and connected with the nature. In terms of energy efficiency strategies, the massing and orientation of the buildings make full use of natural daylight and ventilation; the photovoltaic curtain wall generate power for use on site; combined with a ground source heat pump system which enables effective conversion between light, electricity and geothermal energy. We believe that urban planning is an important part of regional development, which will influence the cultural, economic and social structure, and many other characters of the city. It will also stimulate the local economy, provides numerous new employment opportunities, promote local culture, restores natural habitats, and provides environmental and cultural diversities.