Agroecological Pavilion

Sustainable food production and consumption are critical societal demands all around the world. In a scenario of scarcity of natural resources, frequent climate change, and a society heavily hit by food insecurity, expanding access and supply of food with less environmental impact while reducing losses and waste should be a priority.
Urban agriculture emerges as a potential solution to a number of interconnected issues in urban systems, including waste management, health, land use, the possibility of reducing distances between production and consumption, the use of idle spaces in the city, the disposal of household garbage, and the generation of occupational activity with subsequent income generation. Furthermore, it can actively impact city adaptation to climate change and sanitary crises, such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic.
The Agroecological Pavilion is an urban farm that aims to combine the production and commercialization of affordable food with uses aimed at education and professionalization in a building lined on the premises of sustainable architecture and open to community participation in order to reduce the negative environmental impacts of traditional food production methods, food insecurity, and food waste. Additionally, it enables a generator of employability, income, and education targeted for people who are in social vulnerability.
The farm counts with the participation of the community, occupying jobs, and enjoying workshops in agriculture, cooking, compostage, and nutritional education in order to teach the population, especially the most vulnerable portion, to produce food in their communities, prepare nutritious meals, and also develop a professional vocation in these areas. Further, the farm will allocate spaces for research in technology related to agriculture, and the community will be able to participate in pedagogical visits to get to know the production and have contact with fresh products, seeking to re-signify the relationship of society with food.

In order to have protected agricultural structures in urban surroundings, the project aims to investigate what architectural features are required and explore the most environmentally friendly methods by fusing architectural and agronomic technologies, investing in a variety of protected crops using hydroponic, aquaponic, and aeroponic techniques, as well as more conventional soil-based farming methods.
The entire building is designed to function as a productive ecosystem that seeks to renew natural resources rather than exploit them.
The production will be used to trade in low-cost products in markets and restaurants in the building. Only the product that is already intended for something or someone is harvested. What remains or passes from the harvest season goes to the compost sector and/or to a biodigestor, which will produce energy to run the facilities, with waste on the brink of zero. In addition, strategies for environmental comfort have been adopted in a passive manner, not only for users but also to ensure the good efficiency of the internal and external cultivation areas of the project. Additionally, the structural design of the project is determined by the choice of systems in engineered wood (MLC and CLT) seeking a relevant response, both for the formal and typological proposal, while at the same time being compatible with the intention of minimizing the environmental impact of the building and its function.
Thus, the agroecological pavilion presents itself as an experimental project that seeks, through architecture, a solution to reduce food insecurity in urban centers while recovering the environment rather than exploiting it.