Paris Tests Public Facilities for the City of Tomorrow

Text and photos by Chen Chi-Hsiang. This is a sustainable development plan in the emerging urban renewal area of the 13th arrondissement on the Left Bank of the Seine in Paris, featuring a newly undergrounded railway and a brand-new cityscape near the Mitterrand National Library district. Perhaps this area is not yet marked on the latest maps of Paris, and these platinum-silver buildings have only recently emerged. Behind the buildings lies a row of lush green walking paths and parks. This new-generation public facility, the "la Parisette dry toilet," is located on the Claude Lévi-Strauss promenade. The facility resembles a potted plant full of flowers and foliage; it is an odorless public (dry) toilet with self-sufficient solar panel power equipment that converts urine into plant fertilizer, saving energy and reducing carbon emissions. It serves as an exploration advocating for humanity's future sustainable development in response to global warming and resource issues. Bernard Caille, co-founder of Naturalia, said, "Our dream is to place humans within the organic matter cycle." This is a test of public facilities for the City of Tomorrow developed by Paris.