Architecture Studio IV

Futurecurrent is informed by the themes of Indigenous Futurism, decolonization, and nascent ecologies. Indigenous Futurism, a dynamic and multifaceted art movement which finds expression in virtual and augmented reality, is inspired by the wisdom of ancient cultures that stretch far into the past while at the same time projecting into vastly imaginative and empowering futures. Decolonization is here seen as a positive effort to co-construct spaces that center and privilege people and cultures that have been and continue to be oppressed, displaced, silenced, and rendered invisible. This means that Indigenous worldviews and ways of being, knowing, and acting guide the way in creating new systems and ways of living together in our shared world. The act of decolonizing is also about unsettling and decentering the dominant systems and cultures that have perpetuated unsustainable ways of living and treat our planet as inputs for manufacture, plunder, and exchange.

Climate change threatens our existence, while human activity has, in turn, wiped out nearly 70% of the world’s wildlife in only 50 years. Wildfires, hurricanes, widespread disease, and ecological disaster will be on the horizon if we do not change. This is an emergency of the highest order, and the shift that is urgently needed will be the biggest project that humankind has ever seen. Nascent ecologies, innovative techniques, and climate resilient strategies, such as those seen in Drawdown and 2100: A Dystopian Utopia-The City After Climate Change form an essential part of our research toolkit. Indigenous and traditional knowledge systems provide a way forward for the entire world as they represent valuable information about life on earth that has been passed down for centuries.

The studio’s 73-acre project site is located in Columbia County in Upstate New York. At the intersection of climate action, sustainability, and social justice, the Schaghticoke Conservation and Cultural Center will contain educational outreach, exhibition, and retreat programming as well as permaculture and agro-food forestry, and will adhere to the seventh-generation principle, which seeks to build a sustainable and viable future for all posterity. Our studio is undertaken in collaboration with two distinguished and accomplished partners: Sachem Hawk Storm, hereditary chief of the Schaghticoke People and president of the nonprofit Schaghticoke First Nations (SFN), Inc., and Roberto Múkaro Borrero, a member of the United Confederation of Taino People. Both are active in national and international organizations that promote the rights of Indigenous people, tribal sovereignty, cultural heritage, and climate change activism. “Schaghticoke” means “the mingling of waters,” signifying the joining of rivers as well as the merging of related Algonquian speaking Tribes. SFN seeks to reestablish the physical and spiritual connection of descendants to the land, conserving it for future generations, to repair damaged ecosystems, to increase biodiversity, to contribute to the mitigation of climate change, and to promote sustainable forestry using Indigenous traditional knowledge.

Project: Schaghticoke Conservation and Cultural Center. Partner Organization: Schaghticoke First Nations, West Copake, New York.

VR Workshop Teaching Assistant: Andrew Homick