PGA Prairie Hopper

This environmental education pavilion is a pre-fabricated, portable, off-grid, structure showcasing innovative green technology. The pavilion will fold-up, be transported as a shipping container and be re-deployed at a series of sports events, providing shade, two-story views, refreshments and environmental education for diverse public communities not ordinarily exposed to advanced green technology and education. The structure is intended to be fun, functional and educational and is constructed of re-used components, high-recycled content steel, recycled content shade cloth and modular, xeriscaped planting trays. Protected within a limestone-composite thermal and evaporative-resistant mass, native prairie grasses, cactus and several hundred additional species thrive without regular irrigation. The project was deployed 55 days from napkin-sketch, through detailed design, fabrication, assembly, and delivery. Remote team collaboration was facilitated by a central BIM database and various social networking applications. All professional services were pro-bono in the interest of advancing environmental education and construction prefabrication technologies. The shade screens variably articulate to provide optimized shading whatever the pavilion orientation, then fold flat for transport. Ganged, evacuated-tube solar thermal collectors provide potable, sanitary hot water. The pavilion is self-powered by building-scale wind turbines and high-efficiency photovoltaics.