Kingman Island Environmental Center

The Kingman Island Environmental Education Center is designed to intertwine with adjacent ecosystems, mimicking natural flows and exhibiting their processes as teaching moments for children and adults alike. This education and research center for the will make use of passive strategies for heating/cooling/ventilating and regenerate wetlands.

Constructed wetlands work with a “Living Machine” to demonstrate habitat restoration and natural forms of wastewater treatment and garner LEED innovative credits. Water is harvested for use in the facility while waste water is recycled through the living machine and back into the Anacostia River.

Landforms are built into the side of a hill, providing green space on top and in front of a well-lit, energy-efficient building that manages its stormwater on site. The building itself becomes a part of the landscape functionally and physically. The organic lines of a building built into the earth will mesh with the development of the 9/11 memorial – all while channeling rainwater for use in the building. The center rises from the landscape to offer a place from which to view the islands, the lake, the river, and the neighborhoods around them.

Initially conceived for an invited competition, ISTUDIO continues to further develop the Kingman Island project as a case study in smart water use and regenerative design.

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