Leaf Island™ Regenerates Cities to Function As Natural Ecosystems Through Green Technology

Leaf Island is focused on the design, testing, and fabrication of biophysics-driven, modular, scalable and replicable green/blue infrastructure products and technologies that replicate resilient processes found in nature. Leaf Island’s award-winning approach returns ecosystem functions to cityscapes, streets & coastlines.

Traditionally, high upfront costs and lengthy construction timelines have been a major limiting factor for the widespread adoption of green infrastructure. By taking a modular approach to green infrastructure, we remove the need for custom design and are able to accelerate carbon capture, energy efficiency upgrades, stormwater capture, air pollutant reduction, biodiversity restoration, adaptive reuse of the waste stream, and more, through the restoration of ecosystem services in urban settings. Our products are designed to be 70% less costly than alternatives and can be installed in 1/10 of the time, finally allowing for a scalable approach to green infrastructure.

 

 

Leaf Island provides the tools to bring the living environment back into cities without starting over

Leaf Island™ Regenerates Cities to Function As Natural Ecosystems Through Green Technology

Leaf Island is focused on the design, testing, and fabrication of biophysics-driven, modular, scalable and replicable green/blue infrastructure products and technologies that replicate resilient processes found in nature. Leaf Island’s award-winning approach returns ecosystem functions to cityscapes, streets & coastlines.

Traditionally, high upfront costs and lengthy construction timelines have been a major limiting factor for the widespread adoption of green infrastructure. By taking a modular approach to green infrastructure, we remove the need for custom design and are able to accelerate carbon capture, energy efficiency upgrades, stormwater capture, air pollutant reduction, biodiversity restoration, adaptive reuse of the waste stream, and more, through the restoration of ecosystem services in urban settings. Our products are designed to be 70% less costly than alternatives and can be installed in 1/10 of the time, finally allowing for a scalable approach to green infrastructure.

 

 

Leaf Island provides the tools to bring the living environment back into cities without starting over

Our Technologies

GaiaSoil™ Ultra-Lightweight Growing Media

GaiaSoil is a patented ultra-lightweight green roof medium that provides unparalleled ecological function at a small fraction of the weight of competitor’s green roof media. Nothing else compares.

Now Available for Direct Sale!

GaiaSoil™ Ultra-Lightweight Green Roof Systems

GaiaSoil green roofs use a patented ultra-lightweight soil mix to provide intensive green roof ecological function and enhanced insulation at only a fraction of the weight and maintenance. Waterproof polyurea coating serves as both membrane and root barrier, with a 30-year warranty

Maximum Weight: 34 lb/sq. ft.

Ready for Sale

GaiaSoil™ Floating Wetland

GaiaSoil Floating Wetlands are above-grade high capacity stormwater systems that can replace/complement in-ground rain gardens/swales. In addition to providing ecological benefits, GaiaSoil Floating Wetlands provide flexible traffic safety barriers for pedestrian and bicycle areas alike

Ready for Sale 

HexTray™ Modular Green Roofs

HexTray™ Modular Green Roofs are a next-generation green roof product that utilizes our patented ultra-lightweight growing medium, GaiaSoil, to support the best green roofs on the market. These modular units are hydrologically connected to one another, offering traditional green roof capabilities but at a fraction of the cost and installation time – ideal for all building types ranging from residential homes to massive warehouses.

Prototype in Development

Trellis™ Green Wall System

Leaf Island offers various green wall technologies for any kind of vertical structure – the only constant is cost-efficiency, ecological productivity and dense vegetative coverage. A city typically has 100 times more vertical surface than it does roof area, making green walls the definitive technology for Urban Heat Island Effect (UHI) reduction and air pollution capture

Protoype In Development

EcoBarrier™ Vegetated Bike Lane Protection Stormwater System

Our zero-discharge Ecobarrier Vegetated Bike Lane Protection System utilizes vegetated bike lane barriers and rain gardens to reduce stormwater runoff while protecting cyclists and pedestrians

Protoype In Development

GaiaSoil™ Outdoor & Indoor Furniture

GaiaSoil Outdoor & Indoor Furniture utilizes our patented ultra-lightweight growing medium, GaiaSoil, to create extremely lightweight & modular vegetated furniture for rooftops, patios and even indoors.

Protoype In Development

BlueBlocks™ Filter Coastline Protection + CSO Treatment System

BlueBlocks protect vulnerable coastal infrastructure from powerful storm surges while filtering Combined Sewage Overflow and site runoff to reduce pollution in our waterways. This system functions in 3 stages: A covered rain garden for CSO/Runoff intake, multiple BlueBlocks in series for accelerated filtration, and a constructed, modular intertidal wetland for final water purification

Protoype In Development

GaiaSoil™ Ultra-Lightweight Growing Media

GaiaSoil is a patented ultra-lightweight green roof medium that provides unparalleled ecological function at a small fraction of the weight of competitor’s green roof media. Nothing else compares.

Now Available for Direct Sale!

GaiaSoil™ Ultra-Lightweight Green Roof Systems

GaiaSoil green roofs use a patented ultra-lightweight soil mix to provide intensive green roof ecological function and enhanced insulation at only a fraction of the weight and maintenance. Waterproof polyurea coating serves as both membrane and root barrier, with a 30-year warranty

Maximum Weight: 34 lb/sq. ft.

Ready for Sale

GaiaSoil™ Floating Wetland

GaiaSoil Floating Wetlands are above-grade high capacity stormwater systems that can replace/complement in-ground rain gardens/swales. In addition to providing ecological benefits, GaiaSoil Floating Wetlands provide flexible traffic safety barriers for pedestrian and bicycle areas alike

Ready for Sale 

HexTray™ Modular Green Roofs

HexTray™ Modular Green Roofs are a next-generation green roof product that utilizes our patented ultra-lightweight growing medium, GaiaSoil, to support the best green roofs on the market. These modular units are hydrologically connected to one another, offering traditional green roof capabilities but at a fraction of the cost and installation time – ideal for all building types ranging from residential homes to massive warehouses.

Prototype in Development

Trellis™ Green Wall System

Leaf Island offers various green wall technologies for any kind of vertical structure – the only constant is cost-efficiency, ecological productivity and dense vegetative coverage. A city typically has 100 times more vertical surface than it does roof area, making green walls the definitive technology for Urban Heat Island Effect (UHI) reduction and air pollution capture

Protoype In Development

EcoBarrier™ Vegetated Bike Lane Protection Stormwater System

Our zero-discharge Ecobarrier Vegetated Bike Lane Protection System utilizes vegetated bike lane barriers and rain gardens to reduce stormwater runoff while protecting cyclists and pedestrians

Protoype In Development

GaiaSoil™ Outdoor & Indoor Furniture

GaiaSoil Outdoor & Indoor Furniture utilizes our patented ultra-lightweight growing medium, GaiaSoil, to create extremely lightweight & modular vegetated furniture for rooftops, patios and even indoors.

Protoype In Development

BlueBlocks™ Filter Coastline Protection + CSO Treatment System

BlueBlocks protect vulnerable coastal infrastructure from powerful storm surges while filtering Combined Sewage Overflow and site runoff to reduce pollution in our waterways. This system functions in 3 stages: A covered rain garden for CSO/Runoff intake, multiple BlueBlocks in series for accelerated filtration, and a constructed, modular intertidal wetland for final water purification

Protoype In Development

How Leaf Island Sees The Urban Landscape

How Leaf Island Sees The Urban Landscape

Underpass Retrofit Vision

A bare, uninviting concrete underpass has the capacity to be transformed into a tunnel of green space that not only looks beautiful, but also delivers immense ecological potential.

Floating Wetlands take up all of the stormwater from the overlying expressway. Their vertical exterior becomes a habitat for bryophytes, which capture the air pollution generated by the thousands of vehicles that pass through this area each day. Its concrete barrier structure protects pedestrians, cyclists and would-be jaywalkers from the high-speed traffic on the roadway.

Dense ivy sprouts from the floating wetlands and planters located at the base of the pillars and grows along cable trellises surrounding the pillars and overlying plinths. This vertically-aligned vegetation utilizes the immense surface area offered by the pillars to essentially eliminate the urban heat island effect through the process of evapotranspiration; not only cooling the nearby area, but allowing vehicles to carry cool air further down the underpass during hot summer months.

The LED lighting above creates a safe, welcoming public space for pedestrians and cyclists at night, while supporting the plant growth in this normally low-light environment. Air quality and temperature sensors cause certain rows of lights to change color, allowing residents to see the effects that this greenspace has on the area.

This is Leaf Island in action.

Contact Us

Igor Bronz
Co-Founder


igor@leafisland.org