How can New Bedford and Fairhaven adapt to climate change and its future impacts? Students from seven universities nationwide have some ideas.
“Envision Resilience: Designs for Living with Rising Seas,” on display at the New Bedford Art Museum through March 23, features adaptive proposals for the South Coast’s future.
The students’ designs and renderings illustrate how infrastructure, housing, neighborhoods, and shorelines in New Bedford and Fairhaven might adapt to the ongoing effects of climate change.
“Envision Resilience was born out of an idea to inspire community members and amplify community conversations through innovative visionary ideas from students in a way that starts to change the perspective about our future under climate impacts,” said Claire Martin, project manager of ReMain Nantucket, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting solutions for resilient futures for coastal communities.
For the past four years, Martin has overseen the Envision Resilience challenge project in universities. She said that the most exciting aspect of the exhibition is the diversity and breadth of approaches that students bring.
Chandana Palika, a student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, focused on cultural resiliency for her project, seeking ways to bring communities together during the challenging times of climate change. She drew inspiration from the life customs of the Wampanoag tribe for her work on Acushnet Avenue. Palika describes her project as ”from the people and for the people.”
Alejandro Rodriguez, a student at the University of Florida, focused on creating a sense of community and improving the industrial components of the New Bedford area. In an environment dominated by factories, Rodriguez said he aimed to present a project that fosters a stronger connection between people and the water.
Undergraduate and graduate teams of students studying engineering, architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, and climate science spent more than a year engaging with the communities of Fairhaven and New Bedford to bring their projects to life.
“Why would anyone come to this exhibition? Hopefully, to be inspired,” said Martin. “It will allow people to leave with more optimism for the future, connecting with the broad and daunting topic of climate change in a way that resonates uniquely with them.”
Email multimedia reporter Eleonora Bianchi at ebianchi@newbedfordlight.org
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