Design 21: Social Design Network

Viren Brahmbhatt, is Principal of de.Sign, an architecture/urban design firm engaged in creative and sustainable design practice with projects, nationally and internationally. Viren is also a Visiting Professor at the School of Architecture, Pratt Institute, New York in the Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment. Previously, he has collaborated on several research and teaching projects about sustainable design and cities with the School of Architecture & Urban Design and the Earth Institute at Columbia University in New York. Viren holds a Masters degree in Architecture and Urban Design from Pratt Institute and an undergraduate degree from the School of Architecture (CEPT), Ahmedabad, India where he also holds a faculty position (visiting).

Viren's recent work includes architectural projects for community facilities, master plans for residential/mixed-use developments in Brooklyn and other sites in New York City. At present, he is working on small and large-scale eco-centric architectural and urban design projects in New York, New Jersey including the Vintage Car Maritime Museum in California. His ongoing work in India includes sustainable architecture and urban design projects including housing, three integrated townships, a university campus in Pune (India) and mixed-use/residential projects in Thane (Mumbai), Kolkata and other cities. These projects target zero-energy, eco-efficiency, water harvesting and self-sufficiency along with innovative technologies and design that include green labor and construction practices.