The Design Workshop team partnered with the Trust for Governors Island to design and construct a single-story environmental learning center on the island. The Lab at Urban Farm is designed as a place to generate creative solutions to the environmental challenges facing 21st century cities. Built on a site adjacent to three of Governors Island’s sustainability and environmental stewardship programs — GrowNYC, Earth Matters and the Billion Oyster Project — the Lab strengthens the Trust for Governors Island’s capacity to deliver learning experiences aligned with these key programs. It also enables the Trust to partner with organizations working in different areas of environmental education and sustainable design — from renewable energy to waste management; urban agriculture to climate change adaptation — bringing them to the Island to create projects that demonstrate the potential of closed-loop systems, or ways of growing food, generating energy, managing waste, reducing emissions, etc. without depleting natural resources or having a negative impact on the environment.

The Lab at Urban Farm design includes the following components:

• An indoor classroom and workshop space that can accommodate approximately 30 participants and multiple computer stations;
• An outdoor event space that extends from the classroom for larger talks and gatherings that can accommodate a group of approximately 75;
• Flexible spaces that can be used by a variety of programmers and for a range of events of various scales;
• An aesthetic that aligns with the Island’s dynamic nature and takes cues from the surrounding waterfront and landscape;
• The ability to relocate the classroom structure after 3 - 5 years and reuse or repurpose on another site.