The San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) recently announced an international competition for ideas on responding to sea level rise. Based on the need for new shoreline design concepts to address climate change and sea level rise, the competition seeks responses to various design challenges, such as: building in an area that is dry now, but that may be wet in the future; retrofitting existing shoreline infrastructure such as shipping ports; shoreline configurations that allow temporary inundation from extreme storm events; or flood protection inland of marshes.
According to the contest site, proposals may involve any type of project within the built and natural environments, at any scale relative to an estuary. Ideas may address sea level rise for a particular shoreline element or structure, or it may address the larger issues related to a site, a neighborhood, commercial districts, public infrastructure, transportation systems or an entire watershed. All entried are expected to solve a meaningful sea level rise problem.
The competition is open to everyone -- including architects, ecologists, coastal engineers, civil engineers, biologists, landscape architects, planners, artists, developers, builders, and even ordinary citizens. First place is $10,000. Additional award funds of up to $15,000 could be awarded to worthy projects. Projects are due by June 29, 2009 and will be displayed in the San Franciso Ferry Building.
To learn more visit, http://www.risingtidescompetition.com/risingtides/Home.html.
