The Blue Planet, a swirling vortex designed to suck you in to learn about life under the sea, opens in Copenhagen. Designed by 3XN, The Blue Planet is now Europe's largest aquarium and is devoted to education about aquatic animals as well as the important connection between water and the planet. Filled with 7 million liters of sea water, the aquarium has a variety of exhibitions to introduce the young and old to different animals and environments. Naturally, the aquarium is also dedicated to saving endangered species, improving water quality, protecting habitats and raising environmental awareness. The Blue Planet, is the newest version of the Denmark Aquarium in Copenhagen dating back to 1939. Located on the shores of (Oeresund), the aquarium has a picturesque view of the sea and convenient access to roadways and the city. Design of the project began back in 2007 through an international competition, which local firm 3XN won with their swirling proposal. Construction was completed in 2013 with an official opening date of March 22nd of 2013. The design is meant to draw you in, like a whirling vortex and pull visitors down into the depths of the water to explore and learn about life under the sea. Kim Herforth Nielsen, Creative Director and Principal at 3XN, who is the architect of the building explained, "Our wish was to bring our visitors all the way down to the world of the fish. Therefore, the design of The Blue Planet is based on the story about water and life under the sea. We visualize the construction as a whirlpool which draws visitors into the depths to the fascinating experiences waiting among fish and sea animals from all over the world." Upon entrance into the center of the vortex, the public can choose one of four whirls, each with different exhibitions including the coral reefs, the ocean, Africa's lakes, the Amazon river, the Faro bird cliffs and even an exhibit about the ocean right outside the aquarium. The Blue Planet is home to 450 different species and 20,000 fish and other aquatic animals, which include sharks, sea lions, dwarf crocodiles, moray eels, barracudas and much more. Water inside the aquarium is filtered and recycled in a closed loop system, while seawater is used to keep the entire facility cool. One of the whirls with indoor gardens and vegetation is naturally lit from above with skylights. The Blue Planet is devoted to nature conservation as well as raising awareness to water issues. The aquarium partners with researchers for scientific collaboration and work to reduce over-fishing, pollution and endangered species. It was also designed to be sustainable and self-sufficient as part of their mission to further and promote solutions that benefit the environment and nature.

Once a year, the whole world looks to the Nobel Center in Stockholm, Sweden to announce the Nobel Prizes. The center recently announced plans to relocate to a new building, and out of 140 architects, 12 have been selected to compete to design the new home of the Nobel Foundation and its related cultural and educational activities. Notable designers include OMA, Herzog & de Meuron, BIG, and David Chipperfield Architects. The majority of the selected applicants were from Europe and Scandinavia, with only SANAA's Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa chosen from outside the region. The Nobel Foundation's new building will incorporate areas for digital media, museum exhibitions, meetings, scientific conferences, a library, a cafe, and a shop. The architects have been asked to consider both the site's historical content and the natural environment in their plans. Each of the twelve firms will be expected to establish a close working relationship in cooperation with the client over the course of a very lengthy planning process. "The competition will begin once the majority of the project's financing has been secured. Encouraging discussions are currently on-going with several donors, and we are confident that we will secure the necessary financing to begin the architectural competition and carry out the project during the current calendar year." says Lars Heikensten, Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation. On December 1, 2011, the Nobel Foundation and the City of Stockholm signed a declaration of intent to work jointly towards the creation of a permanent Nobel Prize Center, to be located on Nybroviken, an inlet of the Baltic Sea in the heart of Stockholm, Sweden. They have agreed on a site on the Blasieholmen peninsula that is owned by the City of Stockholm.

Greece's cash-strapped government detailed its plans to sell 28 state-owned buildings on long-term lease, including tax offices, ministry buildings, and the main police headquarters in Athens. A government privatization fund said it hoped to make US$ 39 million annually from the lease agreements lasting 20-25 years. Included on the list of buildings for sale are the main properties used by the ministries of justice, education and culture, 12 tax offices and the greater Athens police headquarters. Potential investors should express their interest by April 19, according to a statement by the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund. Greece is under pressure to speed up its privatization program by its rescue lenders, the other eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund, who have been providing bailout funds since 2010 that are set to total US$ 312 billion. Greece holds an extensive privatization program to increase revenue and reduce the budget deficit. At the end of last year Greece's Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund announced, that one of the best real estate properties - the Athens former airport in the coastal area of Athens Ellinikon will be sold. Earlier Greece HRADF has identified 40 uninhabited islands and islets that could be leased for as long as 50 years to reduce debt as pressure grows on the country to revive an asset-sales plan key to receiving international aid. At the beginning of last year Archaeological treasures including the temple of Delphi, the most popular site after the Acropolis, were available as backdrops for filming and photographic shoots.

The proposed 388-meter, 108-story Australia 108 tower has been given the green light by the Victorian Planning Minister, Matthew Guy. The city council had initially opposed the project because of fears it would overshadow the Shrine of Remembrance, a monument to the World War I dead of the Australian state of Victoria. Australia 108 will feature 600 apartments, the nation's highest hotel and restaurants seemingly floating 84 stories above the city. The 108-storey tower, which will be the 18th-tallest building in the world, is planned to rise near the 297 meters tall Eureka Tower. The new skyscraper designed by Nonda Katsalidis. He explained the Australia 108 will be the most speedily constructed skyscraper and could dominate Melbourne's skyline in little more than four years. He also added that during construction will be used prefabricated structural sections. Currently the tallest skyscraper of southern hemisphere is Q1 Tower. The 323 meters tall skyscraper put into operation in 2005 again in Australia. The tallest skyscraper in Melbourne is Eureka Tower, which is 297 meters tall.

Japanese architect Toyo Ito, whose buildings have been praised for their fluid beauty and balance between the physical and virtual worlds, has won the 2013 Pritzker Architecture Prize. Along with Tadao Ando, the 1995 Pritzker laureate, the 71-year-old Ito is the dean of Japanese architecture, though with his mop of black hair he looks many years younger. He is best known for his 2001 Sendai Mediatheque, a seven-story glass box of a building that was dramatically shaken, though only lightly damaged, by the Tohoku earthquake two years ago. Some of Ito's notable creations include the curvaceous Municipal Funeral Hall in Gifu, Japan; the arch-filled Tama Art University Library in suburban Tokyo; the spiral White O residence in Marbella, Chile; his stadium for the 2009 World Games in Kaohsiung, Taiwan; and the angular 2002 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London. Like much of his work, it distills a series of complex technical breakthroughs into a spare, even-keeled finished product. The Mediatheque's structural and electrical systems are bundled inside 13 vertical tubes, leaving library and exhibition spaces open and accessible from all sides and visible from the street through floor-to-ceiling glass. Ito has designed museums, stadiums, houses and commercial buildings across Japan. His largest and most ambitious project to date, the 58 thousand square meters Taichung Metropolitan Opera House, is under construction in Taiwan and due to open next year. Ito began his career at Kiyonori Kikutake & Associates after he graduated from Tokyo University in 1965. He founded his own architecture firm in 1971. He has also been a teacher and mentor to many Japanese architects. Two former associates in his office, Ryue Nishizawa and Kazuyo Sejima, who run the firm SANAA, were the joint Pritzker winners in 2010. Ito will receive a US$ 100 thousand grant and a bronze medallion at the formal Pritzker ceremony May 29 at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. The 71-year-old architect joins such masters as Frank Gehry, I.M. Pei, Tadao Ando, Renzo Piano and Wang Su, the first Chinese architect who wins the Pritzker Prize , in receiving the honor that's been called architecture's Nobel Prize. Ito, the sixth Japanese architect to receive the prize, was recognized for the libraries, houses, theaters, offices and other buildings he has designed in Japan and beyond.