One with nature- Willow School, New Jersey

This particular project is a part of my favorites in terms of message it carries. The main goal of this project is the building being a teacher to the students. Let's dive in and see how this project achieves the goal of intermingling and teaching the students.

Located at 34 acres, this LEED school seeks to train students in building relationships with people and nature. The site is combination of farmland, woodland and wetlands, The master plan seeks to create a series of outdoor rooms that link the buildings to the beautiful surroundings.

The main building of the campus, the nutrition and wellness center has a depressed area of the roof which allows for rainwater collection. This water is then channeled to a cistern. the water collected in the cistern is used for toilet flushing and hose bibs., used for teh vegetable garden.

There are two parts to the stormwater management. One is the overflow from the cistern where rainwater is collected. it is then conveyed to bioswales via a low flow channel.

The grey and black water is treated on site. A fiber glass settling tank settles the solids and the water then flows to a constructed wetland. here the plants remove suspended solids. This water is then pumped to a recirculating sand filter. This water is then used for the irrigation of softscape and vegetable garden.

Hence, in these ways the intervention achieves its goal. the organic waste generated each month is used as compost in the garden. The vegetables grown here are used in the school cafeteria to prepare lunch. Solar panels are used for the preparation. This LEED certified building has also given the students an opportunity to learn and educate others about how their school has positively impacted local environmental conditions.