Brad Pitt awarded for Orleans project

Film star Brad Pitt has been presented with an award recognising the green credentials of his housing project in New Orleans.

The actor, who was at Bill Clinton's Global Initiative summit in New York, said the project, set up in 2007, has "exceeded my expectations".

Pitt's Make It Right organisation built 13 homes in an area of New Orleans ravaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The houses have environmentally friendly features such as green roofs.

'Greenest community'

Green roofs help cut the costs of heating and keep the houses cool during New Orleans' hot summers.

In response to the award from the US Green Building Council, Pitt said: "We demanded that these homes be sustainable, that they have aesthetic qualities."

He added they were also built with storm resilience, safety and affordability in mind.

The organisation's plaque stated that Pitt's foundation had created "the largest and greenest single family community in the world".

The project is continuing, and Pitt's goal is to have 150 homes up and running by next year.

Pitt, along with actress partner Angelina Jolie and their six children, have a home in the Louisiana city which was refurbished last year to accommodate their expanding family.

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