A study in sustainability
April 23, 2014
By Anne Halliwell
While most students are taking classes inside, others are working under the sun, putting the finishing touches on portable living space prototypes outside Pence Hall.
These wooden structures are part of a project and collaboration with the Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, which covers more than 14,000 acres in Bullitt and Nelson counties, according to its website.
Bernheim asked the College of Design to look into sustainable design projects, said Bruce Swetnam, an associate professor of architecture at UK.
“We’ve had projects with them in the past, but this is the first thing we’ve built full-scale,” Swetnam said.
The goal, Swetnam said, is for the students to learn how to incorporate elements of sustainability technology into their work and consider how the natural elements could affect design.
“We’re kind of just doing this to connect with the community,” Swetnam said. “‘Outreach’ is probably the best word for it.”
There are 12 students currently completing five of the models. In a more complete form, the units might be used for researchers or artists to travel out from a permanent location to spend a few days living on their own in the forest, Swetnam said.
Swetnam used about $3,500 in endowment funds to purchase wood, rope and other materials made from renewable resources.
Some of the designs were created with the ability to generate electricity or hot water, although those systems are not part of the current project, Swetnam said.
“The more we can harvest from nature, the better the design,” Swetnam said, referencing Bernheim Forest’s interest in sustainable energy.
Swetnam described the project as a research and prototyping initiative and said that if the designs are ever used, they will need to undergo refinement.
“We’ve got some of the administration from Bernheim coming down to our design reviews,” Swetnam said.
After the reviews in about a week, the Bernheim administration may move some of the prototypes to Bernheim to display at an organic farming event on May 17, Swetnam said.
“What’s kind of unique about what we’re doing is … generally architecture students will work with graphic designs … or models,” Swetnam said. “They’re taking their designs beyond concepts and into design development.”
