Carbon Strata Research Institute

Publication Date

Spring 4-22-2026

Presentation Length

30 minutes

College

O'More College of Architecture & Design

Department

Architecture

Student Level

Undergraduate

Faculty Mentor

Caleb Walder

Presentation Type

Gallery

Summary

Kenai Fjords National Park presents a unique landscape where carbon operates across dramatically different timescales. Geological processes, including glacial retreat and sedimentation, sequester carbon over millennia, while human activity releases carbon almost instantaneously. This project investigates the tension between these slow and fast carbon cycles, framing it as both a spatial and experiential problem. By embedding the building within the fjord landscape, architecture becomes a medium to demonstrate carbon-conscious design practices, making the invisible mechanics of carbon legible and meaningful to visitors. The design expresses these contrasting timescales through materials and organizational systems. The primary structure, composed of locally sourced timber and stone, embodies the slow accumulation of carbon within the fjord ecosystem, while modular, plug-in laboratories reflect the accelerated rhythm of human carbon use, flexible and replaceable. Visitors move through these systems, experiencing the weight of geological time alongside the immediacy of contemporary carbon release. In doing so, the building transforms carbon from an abstract concept into a perceptible, site-specific experience.

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