A skyscraper that rises 27 stories above Singapore's busy streets is among the latest buildings to reflect the city-state's commitment to green living. Built by Woha, an architectural firm based in Signapore, it adds to the list of environmental design successes that have sparked up the skyline.

"In the face of global warming, unprecedented urban population growth, and increasingly dysfunctional infrastructure, WOHA's architectural strategies and planning principles are now applicable to every large city in the world," the company explains. "The crimson-colored Oasia Hotel Downtown tower comprises a vine-clad stack of open-to-the-elements atria, and the new vegetation growing on the façades and contained within the building amounts to more than ten times that of the site in its natural state."

The Oasia is indeed clad in a striking crimson; the building is 190 meters high, with four "sky terraces" that serve as open-sided urban oases, all sheltered from above. The green of 21 different species of plants already peeks and pokes through the perforated aluminium exterior cladding. Apart from the plants growing on the mesh frame, an additional 33 varieties of tree, shrub and other greenery were selected to introduce biodiversity into the space.

"With Oasia, we've seen so many birds and insects flying around the building," says Richard Hassell of WOHA. "People respond so well to seeing a hummingbird flying right outside their office window."

In time, most of the building is expected to turn green, with just flecks of red across the 300-room hotel visible beneath the canopy. The plants also require minimal maintenance, since it can be hard to hire aerial gardeners and high-flying landscapers – a situation that other living buildings have encountered.

The plantings help to cool the building while allowing a natural, filtered light into the spaces, an attractive feature in the tropical climate. Glass and steel skyscrapers that work in other climates aren't always the best solution. At Oasia, the airy aluminium mesh helps to keep that air flow in motion, but so does a system of high-energy fans that circulate the sea breezes able to reach the high rise structure.

For guests of the hotel, the "tropical tower" is a monument to the Oasia brand. The unifying theme of all Oasia properties is "recharge, refuel and refresh," and the hotel chain builds its customer experience around these three pillars of wellness. Business travelers often compromise that wellness as they skip exercise workouts, veer from their healthy eating routines, and fail to sleep as well as they do at home. The hotel's design is in part an attempt to help those busy travelers rest easier.

Since Oasia centers its business model on meeting these needs, the natural exterior is a natural fit for the brand as well. The new Singapore tower moves that holistic sense of sustainability beyond the rooftop gardens found at other properties – in Kuala Lumpur, for example – and breaks new ground in "green" that its architects say can be replicated in other cities across the world.