A partnership between the Audubon Society of Rhode Island and Roger Williams University Assistant Professor of Architecture Leonard Yui and his students has changed the landscape at the Touisset Marsh Wildlife Refuge in Warren.

Five Ecological Piers is a multi-dimensional and thought-provoking art installation that educates visitors about the environment and environmentalists, habitat, climate change and sea level rise.

Professor Yui and Audubon Senior Director of Conservation Scott Ruhren teamed up to create and site the project at the Warren property, which was selected not just for its proximity to the University but also because it represents several different local habitats in a geographically compact area.

Professor Yui, who is also director of Wildish Design, conceived of the project while walking the property with Mr. Ruhren.
"Scott was kind enough to come to my urban ecology class to share issues about ecology and biology," said Professor Yui. "He runs all the Audubon sites in the state and we've worked together other projects.

"We walked this site a couple of times and thought about how can we use this place as a point of inspiration but also environmental education?"

"It's an alternative way to appreciate the refuge," said Mr. Ruhren. "There's a lot of varied habitats, represented landscapes, in a small area here."

Each 20 foot tall pier is made from native Eastern White Pine sourced from a local mill after being cut down for a new development. The wood was then charred by students using 500,000 BTU torches and lightly varnished in a classic 18th Japanese technique called shou sugi ban. It both preserves the wood and yields a finish that blends in nicely with its natural surroundings.
Each pier represents a famous environmentalist: Rachel Carson, John Muir, Marjorie Stoneman Douglas, Wes Jackson, and Aldo Leopold. Excerpts from their seminal works have been bored into the piers in Morse code. These environmentalists were selected because they represent, iconically, the landscapes represented at this Audubon property.

The holes comprising the morse code passages are sized to provide habitat for native bee species, while perches sited at each punctuation point provide a welcome respite spot for local birds.

The creation and erection of the piers, phase one of the project, is complete. Now phase two is in development, and that will include a digital component, with QR codes that provide visitors with information including the quoted passage of the represented environmentalist, as well as information on the ecological differences found in each setting.

Phase 2 will also see the addition of sea level rise markers for the flood plain using values shared by research organizations like the Coastal Resources Center (CRC) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The piers act as measuring devices and are situated in various habitats on the refuge that mark expected sea level rise and storm events for the years 2050 and 2100.

Though the QR codes are not yet live, visitors can access the information by typing wildishdesign.com/qrtest into their phones while on site by each pier. Professor Yui expects the digital interface to be completely live by the end of the year.

Professor Yui explains that this installation is different from other educational tools available on sea level rise as it connects impacts to a specific location. “Sea level rise oftentimes is studied from kind of an aerial perspective,” he said. "And while that information is definitely important, from an individual perspective, it's really hard to relate to. The strategy with this installation is to have people understand the site first. What is the current ecology of the Touisset property and what do visitors enjoy about the site? Then overlay how sea level rise might affect this space.”

For more information on this project and the Touisset Marsh Wildlife Refuge, visit asri.org.