Princeton adds eco-friendly glass building

The prestigious Princeton University has completed its Sherrerd Hall – a beautiful glass building named after former student and generous benefactor John JF Sherrerd, who died this year.

The US institutions latest addition was designed by architect Joseph Coriaty of Fredrick Fisher and Partners and is aimed at hosting small chats that lead to big ideas, according to NJ.com.

"The idea is to get those people to share ideas and foster a cross-pollination of professors from various departments," Mr Coriaty told the website.

"So theres a number of opportunities for that, including a stair which is very, very wide and kind of irregular so that as people are moving around the building, they run into each other."

The three storey building is also designed in such a way as to reduce energy expenditure by restricting the need for artificial lighting due to the high proportion of glass used in construction. This also saves on heating as the light energy transforms into heat energy.

Finally, the roof will hold a garden of soil trays and small plants to soak up rain water and alleviate pressure on the sewage system.