Missouri Dept of Conservation Discovery Center

Narratives

Architect Narrative

Client and Design Team Goals:
• Located in the heart of Kansas City’s urban core, the Discovery Center focuses its educational programs on helping urban children and adults appreciate the bounty and beauty of nature, and learn outdoor skills such as hiking, camping, wildlife viewing and growing native plants.

• The 38,600 square foot building uses sustainable design strategies such as a geothermal heat pump system, an on-site wastewater treatment system, reclaimed wood and masonry artifacts, bioswales, operable windows, daylighting, three kinds of photovoltaics, restorative landscaping and more to teach visitors about using simple natural strategies to their advantage.

• 150,000 visitors each learn about their connection with nature, and the impact they can have upon the living world in order to foster responsible environmental practices through participatory educational workshops.

Program and Site:
• 11.8 acres of restored native habitats or biomes navigated by walkways (used to teach the basics of Missouri wildlife);

• the main facility holds six educational workshops, metro offices for Missouri’s Departments of Conservation and Natural Resources, and various sizes of meeting spaces available to the community

• a 1,000 square foot outdoor pavilion that serves as a staging area for schoolchildren arriving by bus and as a shaded seating area for pedestrians and bikers along the larger trail that connects other institutions along the Brush Creek Corridor

The six workshops include:
• Nature’s Bounty - Ethics of hunting, fishing and harvesting wild edibles.
• Nature’s Garden — Use of native plants for landscaping.
• Exploring the Outdoors - Skills to enjoy hiking, birding and camping.
• Nature’s Palette - Visual arts that explore and express an appreciation of nature.
• Woodworking for Wildlife — Understanding habitat requirements for wildlife; construction of nest boxes and feeders.
• Nature’s Aquarium — Use of watershed models and other water quality investigations.

Design Intent:
• Learn from the past; care for the present; shape the future.

• Interactive workshops engage urban children and families in learning about nature and relevant conservation strategies.

• Building form and orientation optimize solar access and daylighting, while employing other active and passive solar strategies.

• A geothermal heat pump system benefits from the earth’s more constant temperature to provide efficient heating and cooling.

• Operable windows take advantage of natural breezes.

• Plenty of access to daylight and view, augmented by manual override motion sensors for lighting, provide individual control while promoting energy-efficiency. Access to outdoor views throughout the building emphasizes connection with nature.

• Exposed and transparent building systems make the physical relationships clear to young learners.

• An ecological wastewater treatment system (Living Machine®) treats all wastewater from the building’s toilets, sinks, showers and drinking fountains in an exposed greenhouse setting that empties treated water into a waterfall and stream. Reclaimed water is used for flushing toilets, irrigation and recharging the outdoor wetland if needed.

• Building-integrated photovoltaics are demonstrated in four locations on-site: crystalline PV integrated into the sloped glazed roofs of the Living Machine and greenhouse; amorphous silicon PV integrated into the outdoor pavilion’s standing seam roof and off-the-shelf PV panels designed into the main entrance canopy.

Educator Narrative

The Center evolved from a desire to move the metro offices of the Missouri Department of Conservation from mall storefronts and acres of parking to more suitable habitat. An opportunity to partner with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in the urban core of Kansas City became available. To align with the Foundation’s mission of youth development, the Department was challenged to bring an education program that did not duplicate or compete with a traditional nature center.

To facilitate the Conservation Department’s mission to protect and manage the fish, forest and wildlife resources of the state, and to provide for all citizens to use, enjoy and learn about these resources, the challenge was met. The heart of the education curriculum was identified: six themed conservation education workshops for hands-on, curriculum-based learning designed to “Learn from the past, Care for the present, Shape the future.”

Weekdays, these workshops welcome school groups and homeschoolers from kindergarten age and up. Originally described as K-12 programs, the innovative activities have attracted attention from universities and adult groups. Senior groups and garden clubs often tour our center, then return to participate in workshop activities. Saturday opportunities attract mixed groups of children, parents and grandparents, or whole sessions may be reserved by scout, adult or youth groups.

Workshops are designed for a two hour block, and in the development stage, it was thought that one school would attend a morning session, and another would attend the afternoon. Lunch room facilities were not part of the original program, but teachers soon let us know they were not necessary. For the opportunity to attend two workshops that day, teachers taught us that students sitting with sack lunches in the workshop lobby or outdoors at the pavilion could work just fine. Now, we encourage groups to stay for two sessions, have incorporated a zero-waste lunch component and added benches for their comfort.

It is significant enough to teach conservation in an urban environment with a workshop format, but to do so in a building that also teaches is a true gift. Learning is inherent in the workshops, but not limited to them. Green design features incorporated into the building and grounds offer examples of wise use, and encourage us to examine what we might consider “waste.” The use of recycled building materials showcase timbers and masonry artifacts from Kansas City’s past, giving them a new venue in a starring role. The wastewater treatment facility demonstrates how nature cleans water biologically and gives us a second chance to use our water. The geothermal heat pump uses the temperature of the earth to heat and cool the building, at times simultaneously. Active and passive solar features tap the sun’s energy to lower our electric bill.

An auditorium and meeting rooms were included to provide programs and space for civic conservation partners and donors, and have blossomed into gathering places for regional discussions of sustainability and promise. By providing knowledge and skills, and encouraging action, we shape the future.