Alcatraz Nest Project This studio course offers a unique, hands-on opportunity for students from any creative discipline to contribute to an applied design solution that will be deployed as artificial seabird habitat for the Pigeon Guillemot, a threatened seabird that lives on Alcatraz Island. In the process of developing potential nest module solutions, cross-disciplinary discourse and designs will be encouraged. While primarily a design studio anchored in the Ceramics Department, the course will also include work trips to Alcatraz Island and guest lecturers from a range of disciplinary backgrounds, including artists, designers, biologists and ecologists. Through these guest speakers and in-studio discussion, students will be encouraged to consider the following questions:• What is the role of the artist, designer in structuring and mediating our conception of the “natural” world in general, and “restoration ecology” in particular?• How should design interventions in the “natural” landscape be evaluated?• What are the long-term implications of continuing or expanding human interventions into “natural” ecosystems?We will work closely with our community partner Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge,Michelle Hester, marine biologist and Executive Director, as well as partners at the National Park Service.

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