R-Urban Poplar in London is a civic space and ‘living lab’ where locals can experiment with ways of taking charge of their food supply
On a stiflingly hot and dusty morning at the height of the summer’s third heatwave, traffic thunders down the A12 arterial route through east London. A high, red-brick wall rises by the road. What few passersby will realise is that this ivy-topped wall shelters an urban oasis, within which sits an unprecedented sustainable project.
The world’s first “community powered” sauna – heated by food waste from residents of the neighbouring housing estate – is set to open here.