Indigigrow is a social enterprise located in La Perouse, Sydney, whose mission is to both revegetate regions of the endangered Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub (ESBS), educate the local about the importance of local plant species to the overall ecosystem and also train and employ local indigenous peoples with an apprenticeship program. Indigigrow has outgrown their current plant nursery setup at the local primary school and this hypothetical proposal offers an education and sustainability centre for Indigigrow and the local community located on an old military site on Cape Banks Road. The centre is intended to educate members of the local community and school groups about the surrounding natural landscape while in conjunction there is an extensive ESBS revegetation across the site.
The Indigigrow Sustainability and Education Centre encourages exploration and curiosity about the surrounding natural environment. In order to rehabilitate the Eastern Suburb Banksia Scrub in the area to become a healthier ecosystem, an extensive revegetation using zoning will be undertaken to remove invasive species. The buildings have been spread across the entirety of the site, embedded within pockets of revegetation. The design is approached from a minimal intervention technique, where it is recognised that the natural environment is best left to its own devices and fitting humans into this space using the built environment should be done with care and with a light touch. The building structure attempts to acknowledge the plant, animal and human scale. Animals should have an uninterrupted path underneath and above the building and plants are encouraged to encroach right up to the building edge. Finding comfort on an exposed site was the priority for the human experience. At various points, mainly at community gathering points, the wall façade becomes an adaptable seating system for people to stop, listen, talk and gather together.
