Green Glossary: Adaptive Reuse

As the term implies, adaptive reuse can be defined as "the adaptation of an existing structure for a use different from its original or previous use, e.g. the conversion of an office building into apartment units." While it's not green in the strictest sense of the philosophy, the concept of adaptive reuse inspires and provokes humans to rethink the seemingly endless cycle of tearing down and rebuilding. "In Europe," says Wiki, "buildings originally constructed as royal palaces are often reused as art museums; well-known examples of this being the Louvre in Paris, France, and the Winter Palace in St Petersburg."

While adaptive reuse has come to be associated with architecture in popular usage, it's an idea being adopted within a broad range of venues. Not every reuse has to be as grand as the Louvre. Each of us can be inspired to work some adaptation and re-usage into our tinier choices.