The world's largest floating office building opens in the Netherlands, where unsurprisingly it will host the offices of the Global Center on Adaptation.

Anchored in the harbor of Rijnhaven in Rotterdam, both office and organization will make a fighting partnership in the attempts to lessen the impact of climate change on our society, particularly in a country that's below the level of the sea.

Floating Office Rotterdam, or FOR, was recently inaugurated by King Willem-Alexander, and former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon who heads the team taking up residence in the 4,500 square-meter (48,500 square-foot), three-floor office space.

Built of prefabricated timbers arranged atop 15 custom built concrete pontoons, the upper floors feature wrap around terraces to enjoy the view of the city.

An overhanging roof shades the interior from the sun. Powering FOR is an 800 square-meter array of solar panels hooked up to batteries ashore.

It also uses the northerly waters of the Dutch harbor as a heat sink to regulate temperatures in the offices without using climate control. Finally the offices are fully recyclable after the materials are no longer safe for continued use.

"We designed our floating office to reflect the values of its inhabitants: the Global Center on Adaptation," writes Powerhouse Company, the architects of the FOR.

"This Rotterdam-based NGO… aims at promoting planning, investment, and technology to mitigate climate change.

"The carbon-neutral building is designed to be climate resilient and will float if sea levels rise due to climate change. Our climate-resilient office is both an illustration of the center's mission and sets an example for how to build sustainable floating structures."

The Global Center on Adaptation has a lease in the building for ten years, after which it will move to another tenant.

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