SEA TURTLE RESEARCH & REHAB CENTRE

KÂAT Architects will be in charge of creating a centre, organised by the Ministry of Environment & Urbanisation of Turkey, that will “ensure the cyclic continuity of the natural and cultural resources of Iztuzu Beach and its ecosystem, which is considered to be one of the rarest natural ecosystems of the world”.

With the aim to conceive an eco-friendly hub, the new DEKAMER facility “will raise awareness, motivate and encourage researchers, volunteers and visitors from all around the world while producing negative carbon footprint”.

Located in Iztuzu Beach, one of the most important protected beaches in southern Turkey, the winning proposal is a project that “listens to the sound of the living elements in the area, produces highly sensitive and qualified spaces, and develops a delicate approach, forming its own language”.

The intervention considers all the elements of the fauna and flora and the natural and cultural surrounding landscape. Aiming to preserve and keep these rich components, the centre’s conceptual approach revolves around creating an experience and a function that favours the context.

Inspired by the organically curved and dynamic traces of the beach tides, the surrounding tall red pines and the reeds that form the ecosystem, KÂAT Architects propose an architecture that will be integrated within the region. The design recalls the natural phenomenon of crown shyness, where trees don’t touch each other for surviving purposes, in order to generate a building that coexists with the rest.

A multiple canopy structure, reflecting the slope of the topography will allow for the natural life of the soil to continue. Each canopy will hold a distinctive program consisting of closed, semi-open and open spaces.

Via ArchDaily | Images courtesy of KÂAT Architects