With Local River, french designer Mathieu Lehanneur has introduced a whole new dimension of conscious eating for fish-eating locavores.  His freshwater aquarium-refrigerator design allows conscious foodies to raise their own fish and grow a vegetable patch in their living room. The system is supported  by the natural exchange and interdependence between fish and plants: The plants extract the nutrient-rich water for growth while simultaneously acting as a natural filter, purifying the water to provide a healthy environment in which the fish can grow themselves. This process mimics natural pond ecology and maintains the vital balance for the ecosystem in which the fish live. It also allows fish eaters to better trace their culinary footprint, which, in an age of fish-decline due to extreme overfishing, is something worth acknowledging.

Leveraging the power of plants as purifiers is something that we, at ecosistema urbano, are excited about too. You may remember our post about our water-purifying prototype at the Plaza Ecopolis – a design that we have entered into the 2011 Buckminster Fuller Challenge. It works similarly , as a water purification system that has been engineered to assist natural macrophyte purifying processes in plants. After purifying the water, ecosistema urbano´s  natural system stores water for reuse on the project site or within the surrounding community.