Climate change is impacting the way we live, and work and sea level rise creates new challenges and opportunities for design and construction of homes, office, retail spaces and neighborhood as a whole.

I recently read an interesting article in the University of Miami magazine. A few months ago, a design contest was coordinated by The School of Architecture at the University of Miami, in partnership with Portugal-based Go Friday (which builds “houseboats” that combine a luxury home on land with the mobility of a boat, see link below) for students to design homes that will be compatible with sea level rise, populated cities, sustainability concerns in material and design.

Will these floating homes look like my or your future home in a few years?

The house below, a Japanese lifestyle-inspired houseboat, designed by Lauren Elia, won the top prize. She was one of 18 architecture students who participated in the unique competition to create "floating houses and dwellings that would withstand strong weather, expected to become more severe with the effects of climate change".

Dean Rodolphe El-Khoury says:” We want our students to deal with real-world problems and to engage with stakeholders. We also value travel and immersion in different cultures.”

Southeast Florida local governments have been working for several years to upgrade the drainage infrastructure and groundwater system in various areas.

As an example, Miami-Dade County is on average 7 feet above sea level. The neighborhoods that currently show the highest elevation level are: Allapattah, Coral Gables, Homestead, Pinecrest, South Miami and Wynwood. Real estate in these areas will most probably welcome an increase in value in the coming years.

On another hand, 30 students enrolled in the first-ever “Climate resilience: A Multi-Faceted Approach” course starting this year at the University of Miami. This class was created in order to give students the necessary skills to address urgent issues related to planetary health. They will learn about climate modeling to extreme weather, coral reefs, coastal protection, sustainable building, natural disaster and flooding management, data modeling…etc.

These students are the architects, real estate developers and general contractors of tomorrow.

Aren’t these houses gorgeous?

Photo credits: University of Miami (Lauren Elia) and Go Friday.