AD5 // ELEVATED Edens

FALL 2024 // CRITIC RILEY STUDEBAKER // TEAM LILLIAN NELSON, ADITI PILLAI, BRADY GEISLER // Speculative proposal of a post-human Amazon fulfillment center using robotic labor to create protective environments

This proposal repurposes robotics within an abandoned Amazon warehouse in Moore Haven, Florida, to create elevated, predator-proof habitats for the endangered Florida Grasshopper Sparrow. By deconstructing warehouse elements, robots construct towering “edens” that protect the sparrows from predation and habitat destruction.

These structures, elevated 15 feet above the warehouse floor and encased in electrochromic film, hydroponically grow native prairie grasses like Bluestem to provide essential nesting materials and food. Large-scale industrial robots (ABB2600) assemble the edens and excavate rubble, which is reused as hydroponic substrate, while smaller robots (UR10e) maintain the grasses, monitor environmental conditions, and adopt a “Good Fire” cycle by trimming overgrowth to mimic natural prairie burns.

Electrochromic film toggles opacity to signal nesting suitability, ensuring a continuous rotation of habitats in peak, regrowth, and overgrowth phases. Advanced computer vision tracks bird species and detects predators to repel threats while guiding sparrows with frit-etched patterns on the film. This project explores how robotics and ecological technologies can restore critical habitats, adapting natural systems to ensure the sparrows’ survival in a rapidly changing world.