Following AHR’s July 2014 global launch, the architecture and design practice has been given planning permission for the first phase of the ‘Green Block’, the 2017 Expo Village in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Green Block Astana is a 100,000sq m (1,076,391sq ft) site that has been masterplanned by AHR. Drawing inspiration from nature and the cellular structure of a leaf, the plan aims to address the nuances of the local climate.

Containing 15 different buildings, from administrative to residential, the site's public spaces will be linked by ETFE biodomes (previously used for the UK's Eden Project, and the Beijing National Aquatics Centre, China) which will provide shelter when circulating the site in extreme winter months.

The £370m (US$587.6m, €470m) scheme has been landscaped to face on to a wetland area, which is intended to act as a barrier against prevailing winds and plummeting temperatures. The construction will seek to incorporate a series of cutting edge sustainability measures, in line with the 2017 Expo ‘Future Energy’ theme.

Work is expected to start on site in spring 2015, ready for the completed project to be unveiled at the World Expo in 2017.