Katherine JohnsonSIP Interns: What are they up to?
Junior Landscape Architecture major and Urban Studies minor, Kayla Payne, Built Environment intern, has started designing Global Gardens- Phase Two. Global Gardens, started in 2021, is a project on UK Campus that encapsulates cultivating inclusive cultural spaces through nutritional science.
Built Environment is partnering with The Food Connection, UK Healthcare, College of Agriculture Horticulture Club, and College of Design Construction Phase, to bring Global Gardens to UK campus.
What was Phase 1? What is Phase 2?
- Phase 1 consisted of research on plant species and campus demographics through surveys on campus.
- Phase 2 is the creation of a garden prototype at a smaller scale.
The planter box will be composed of sustainable materials such as wood, Corten steel, and fiberglass cloth. This material is long lasting and able to has temperature control elements to withstand the everchanging weather of Kentucky. Fiberglass cloth is also a lightweight material, allowing for the planter boxes to be modular and moveable around UK’s campus for maximum interaction.
In the beginning stages of her project research, Kayla studied the “Tiny Seed Library” from Berea College in Berea, KY. This project implements a community garden on the college campus which features garden workshops that aim to “grow” at home knowledge. By using this example, Kayla plans to use the Global Garden Packet to select food products such as tomatoes, rosemary, cilantro, etc. She hopes to plan a cross over with NatureRx to cultivate a medical tea herb garden.
This project aids in making the pursuit of sustainability goals an integral part of the UK student experience, which is one of UK’s sustainability goals. Actually, it’s one of our five guiding principles;
- Make the pursuit of sustainability goals an integral part of the UK student experience
- Reinforce the University’s commitment to our people
- Decarbonize Campus Operations
- Become a Zero-Waste Campus
- Model Environmental Excellence
Specifically, this project will contribute to sustainability on campus by supporting the work outlined in priority action 1.3.1 “leverage sustainability programs to increase awareness of – and access to – basic needs resources,” action 1.3.2 “increase support for sustainable living practices and empower students to take leadership in advancing sustainability in residential spaces,” as well as action 1.3.3 “increase the number of students and programs utilizing campus greenspaces for wellness (Nature as Medicine or NatureRx) and place-based environmental learning.”
“I am so excited to construct my project, as this will be a first of my designs going from the design phase to a potential construction and implementation of the build on campus!”
Kayla Payne, SIP Intern
We are excited to support Kayla in her project and to see the positive impact Global Gardens has on campus!
