‘Blue Nomad’ Floating Habitats Could Be Future Homes For A Drowning World

Students from the Swiss boarding school Institut auf dem Rosenberg have teamed up with SAGA Space Architects to unveil the “groundbreaking design” for Blue Nomad—a self-sufficient floating habitat that could be the prototype for future homes when water covers the Earth.

As the climate crisis worsens, there’s no denying the urgent need for architects to come up with innovative home designs that can withstand flooding and water damage if (or when) ocean levels continue to rise.

Other designers have offered their takes, including a floating city concept with cutting-edge healthcare, a ‘Dubai Reefs’ concept paired with the world’s largest ocean eco-project, and even a 1,800-foot turtle ‘terayacht’ that doubles up as a floating city for 60,000 residents.

The Blue Nomad concept differs from the others as instead of a permanent home, this design caters to the “modern nomad”—or people who primarily travel and live on the water instead of staying put in a single location.

Students aged six to 18 were inspired by Polynesian nomadic settlements from centuries ago, which allowed communities to explore the wider world through the Outrigger, a boat made from organic materials balanced by a side pontoon.

Using artificial intelligence to bring the visions to life, Rosenberg’s modern adaptions could house two permanent nomads and two guests within each unit. These floating hubs would rely only on solar energy to provide propulsion, fresh water, food production, and electricity.

According to the institution, the exteriors of the residences would be built from structurally-optimized weaves of flax fiber, allowing multiple units to be connected to one another so homeowners can share resources and build their own “neighborhoods” on the water.

“Blue Nomad is climate sci-fi coming into reality, grounded in the vast ocean exploration heritage of Polynesian outriggers,” explained Sebastian Aristotelis, co-founder of SAGA Space Architects.

“It is fitting that it is co-designed with the problem solvers of tomorrow, the students of Rosenberg. It gives me joy to work with this new generation of thinkers and leaders who are motivated to solve the challenges posed by climate change,” he continued.

Going forward, the designers are working on bringing the prototype to life, with the life-sized version of the Blue Nomad habitat to be unveiled at the upcoming London Design Biennale and Monte Carlo Energy Boat Challenge.

[via Wallpaper and Fast Company, images via Institut auf dem Rosenberg]