Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Built on a damaged site once used for steel production, the project is built like a nest, reusing nearby and available materials from local scrap and salvage suppliers.

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    Holcim Foundation Awards Acknowledgement prize 2011 North America presentation for "Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, USA" (l-r): winner Jeanne Gang, Studio Gang Architects, Chicago, USA and Bernard Terver, Area Manager US of Holcim Ltd

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Now an important stop on a bird migration route, the design includes a screened observation deck made of recycled rebar visible to birds to eliminate bird strikes.

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Ecological industrial context.

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: High-resolution version of image above - JPG (2.1MB)

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Divisible by functions.

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: North and south elevations.

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Columns show industrial past.

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Auditorium for public learning.

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Plan and multiple uses.

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    Project entry 2011 - Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials, Chicago, IL, United States: Screen eliminates bird strikes.

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    Jeanne Gang is Founding Partner of Studio Gang with offices in Chicago, New York, San Francisco, and Paris. Photo: Courtesy Studio Gang.

  • Awards Acknowledgement prize 2011–2012 North America

Situated on a former production site in a historic industrial region outside Chicago and once the largest steel producing region in the United States, the center’s location was primarily chosen because of its position as important resting stop for migratory birds. The Ford Calumet Environmental Center serves bird watchers and as educational facility, teaching about the regions environmental past, present, and future.

By Jeanne Gang - Studio Gang, Chicago, IL, USA

Ideas: Ecosystem Restoration

Situated on a former production site in a historic industrial region outside Chicago and once the largest steel producing region in the United States, the center’s location was primarily chosen because of its position as important resting stop for migratory birds.

The Ford Calumet Environmental Center serves bird watchers and as educational facility, teaching about the regions environmental past, present, and future.

Environmental center and bird-watching facility using recycled materials

Project authors

Project updates

October 20, 2011 | Holcim Foundation Awards 2011 | Washington, DC, USA

People-focused designs at the heart of sustainable construction

The winners of the 3rd International Holcim Awards competition for sustainable construction projects and visions from North America have been announced. A total of USD 300,000 was presented to ten diverse and innovative projects from Canada and the USA at a ceremony in Washington, DC. The winning projects show how greater levels of sustainability can be reached in building and construction through people-focused designs that include simple adaptation, innovative materials, and clever architecture.
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July 15, 2011 | Regional Jury Report – North America | Chicago, USA

“The surprising sourcing of the materials is a convincing strategy, perfectly matching the project” – Holcim Awards Jury

The jury acknowledges the maturity of the overall concept based on a fully integrated design, construction and technology principle. The surprising sourcing of the materials is a convincing strategy, perfectly matching the project, which possesses a dimension for repetition, at least as a principle for the awareness for resources. The careful approach to bird protection while encroaching into their habitat enables the protection program and is complimented by the educational capacity of the project.

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March 31, 2011 | Project Entry & Details | Chicago, IL, USA

Project Entry 2011 for Region North America

Situated on a former production site in a historic industrial region outside Chicago and once the largest steel producing region in the United States, the center’s location was primarily chosen because of its position as important resting stop for migratory birds. The Ford Calumet Environmental Center serves bird watchers and as educational facility, teaching about the regions environmental past, present, and future. The starting point of both the design and construction principles is the idea to reuse materials available through the previous industrial function of the site that are found at local scrapyards and salvage suppliers – mimicking the birds’ behavior of collecting material to create nests. 

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pin Chicago, USA

Chicago, USA