Tanvi Khurmi – Bartlett School of Architecture Bio-Integrated Design
Alexa Cam
Man I Che
Blue Garden is a functional permaculture garden located in intertidal zones that exhibits the potential of seaweeds. Seaweed has a large carbon sequestration capacity as well as bioremediation properties. Moreover, it is used in a myriad of consumer goods and foods. Reintroduction of seaweed into coastal areas has the potential to develop complex and bio-diverse ecosystems that have been depleted. Thus, directly contributing to the EU Green Deal’s ambitions to reduce pollution and increase biodiversity.
This project seeks to address a number of environmental concerns through novel materials and fabrication techniques. The material is almost entirely waste based using waste from the seashell industry and the fabrication method explores materials from site and energy from tides can be used to create complex geometries. These innovations can move beyond the scope and context of this project and apply to more traditional constructions and processes.
The intervention is imagined to be an interactive botanic garden of sorts, where certain species are put on display. Unlike a botanic garden; however, the species are not brought from elsewhere, their growth is facilitated and encouraged through formal, material, and environmentally informed interventions. Creating spaces from humans and non-humans to collide is an essential part of combatting the climate crisis. By facilitating these interactions designers can generate care amongst species that can lead to further green innovations in other sectors.