Description:

A Collective Shift investigates coastal resiliency strategies for Island Bay, Te Whanganui-a-Tara, necessitated by rising sea levels caused by climate change. This project proposes restoring the original coastal dunes to replace the current sea wall, to allow the ecosystem to carry out its innate role of adapting to and protecting the area. I have designed a temporary pavilion to offer shelter and equipment to volunteer community groups, to host them as they restore this vital ecosystem. A Collective Shift engages with the foreshore site by reinstating coastal dunes along the esplanade. The pavilion intervention will be constructed and withdrawn from the site following the completed planting of the coastal dune strip. In the future when the area may no longer be suitable for human habitation, this research advocates that the favourable intergenerational option for ecologies and communities is to have conscious strategies to relocate homes to safer areas. The project offers an approach to coastal dune restoration and a means for how human interaction can enhance the site’s vitality. The pavilion is designed with storage to hold native sand binding kowhangatara and pingao seedlings, landscaping tools, as well as a locker to stow personal belongings while volunteers are out on the dunes. It’s composed of uncovered and sheltered seating areas and includes an accessible bathroom, access to drinking water and dining areas. The pavilion utilises modular design for deconstruction methodology, allowing it to be withdrawn from the site with minimal trace once the ecosystem is restored. The design applies deconstruction at a modular level including the foundations, framing, cladding and roofing components—as these modules function at a greater level—rather than the deconstruction of individual elements. It focuses on the technical ability of materials to be separated, using quality materials for optimal reuse. The design employs dry methods of assembly using mechanical fasteners over adhesives or welding, utilising as few strong fasteners as possible; bringing into action connections that are accessible for the process of assemblage and deconstruction. Together, these modules make up the deck platform and pavilion shelter. The space facilitates agency for volunteers through programmes that enhance practical skills of nurturing and caring for the local environment. These programmes in turn enhance the coastal resiliency strategy for Island Bay through active care, education, and community interaction by restoring adaptive, thriving ecosystems. The reinstated foredunes radicalise the design purpose, guided by the bay's innate power and what this place naturally calls for. Humans removed this system, and it will take human intervention to restore it. While the pavilion can facilitate the act of planting in a matter of years, the dunes will grow and exist for centuries. A Collective Shift provides the short-term physical infrastructure, and an approach to restoration, enabling the dune systems to regain their course as a resilient, self-sustaining ecosystem.