Edible entrance wins award

The structure incorporates edible plants and information displays with the idea that children, waiting parents and even passers-by can learn about growing food.

It was designed by Melanie Pau for her Master of Architecture thesis at The University of Auckland, and built with help from fellow Masters students Yusef Patel and Stefan Panovski. The trio jointly won the 2013 Bentley Student Design Award, a global prize which has never before been won by New Zealanders.

Melanie’s design is an open-source construction system which she has made freely available to any individual or community.

The modular system consisted of 50 ply pieces all designed to slot easily together. This simple assembly process allowed members of the community to be involved in construction; volunteers, including parents and students, did most of the building work.

See www.melaniepau.com for more.