Bioregional Pedagogies
Jakob Travnik is an architect and researcher with several years of experience in architectural education. Together with Andreas Arndt, Melanie Dienst, Volker Dienst and Amanda Sperger, he is currently part of UNISONO, a long-term development initiative for the Vienna Boys Choir campus in Sekirn, Wörthersee, acting as a testing ground for interdisciplinary cultural production and education, addressing social, economic and environmental issues in the Alpe-Adria bioregion.
The research project aims to develop a blueprint for the establishment of new bioregional hubs, hosting pedagogical formats dedicated to bioregional and circular approaches towards architecture and design.
In an initial phase, the project proposes to research and evaluate Atelier LUMA in Arles, France as a case study of an already functioning bioregional hub. Drawing upon its portfolio of projects and established partnership network, it will investigate, develop and test pedagogical formats for diverse user groups (universities, companies, individuals), which transmit Atelier LUMA’s knowledge and approach towards learning from and with its bioregion.
Based on the case study of Atelier LUMA, the project will extract its key characteristics and develop a blueprint for new bioregional hubs which can be established in different contexts throughout Europe.
In a second phase, the project envisions the blueprint to be applied at the Vienna Boys Choir campus in Sekirn, Wörthersee, using it as a case study for the implementation of a new bioregional hub. Situated within the greater Alpe-Adria bioregion, spanning parts of Austria, Italy and Slovenia, the eight-hectare plot consists of fields, forests, a direct lake connection and existing building infrastructure in need of repair – all features representative of its bioregion, offering a direct testing ground for circular economic practices.
The campus is currently used by the choir as a summer residency and remains unused throughout the rest of the year. The ambition is to keep the plot for future generations of the choir as well as to open it up to the general public for all year-round, experimental cultural programming.
