This project and its development represent a distinct opportunity for students to engage in the design and analysis of a potential new building on campus–albeit a building of limited and purposed functionality. The longer aim is, of course, to fund and construct the building. Yet, at all stages of the design and feasibility process, students will be originating ideas, working with one another, and sourcing the faculty and administration in our learn-by-doing process. The proposed services of the Resiliency Tunnel are fundamental to the operation and well-being of the UW Farm, which is an institution of growing importance to the student body.

The UW Farm currently engages the UW community by removing barriers to participation in the urban food system: no fee is required for participation; sites are open from dawn to dusk, 365 days per year; site access is available to UW students, faculty, staff, and the general public; farm research and facilities provide food for the community; and the farm was declared an essential operation during the pandemic (staff, research allowed to work on-site). Produce is delivered to three sectors: 1) sold to multiple UW dining locations, or “farm to campus;” 2) a weekly paid subscription box, or Community Supported Agriculture (CSA); and 3) regular donations to UW Food Pantry. In 2017 MOU was signed with the Intellectual House, for space to grow food for First Nations students. Today, there is a Native Garden, where First Nations Students, under the leadership of a Food Sovereignty Liaison co-managed by the Farm Manager and Director of the Intellectual House, can grow culturally important produce. Annually, over 2,000 visitors from at least 24 units, plus the general public, visit the three farm sites either as a volunteer, for a laboratory assignment, field trip, tour, research, or internship. In addition, over 5,000 people “visit” the farm or learn remotely via social media, educational videos, the website, and a weekly newsletter. However, increasing awareness about the causes and impacts of climate change have increased demand for education on sustainability and innovation that has not been matched by expanded facilities and opportunities.

This project benefits from the wide breadth of UW community engagement permitted by our involvement with several key groups. We have utilized the post sharing feature on Instagram so related groups on campus (UW Sustainability, the UW Food Pantry, the UW Farm, and the UW Foster School of Business) could share our advertisement on UW Solar’s Instagram pertaining to volunteer or credited opportunities for students. UW Sustainability will continue to share educational information on the project with the community, which will raise awareness and serve as one pathway for gathering future volunteers. We have additionally received assistance from several departmental advisors (including from the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences (SEFS) and College of Built Environments (CBE)) in distributing advertisements through emailing lists. These connections will assist us with educating the UW community about opportunities supported by the tunnel design and construction process as well as its operation once implemented.

An important vehicle for raising awareness for our project will be an informational video we are developing with a non-profit called the 2050 Project (2050project.us), started by two alumni of the UW Evans School for Public Policy. This video will highlight the origin and significance of the project, student and community groups involved, and our overarching vision. Additionally, it will serve to inform the public, gather additional student volunteers as needed, and potentially draw investors to sponsor additions to the tunnel, such as indoor vertical farming. As we approach implementation, we plan to increase our engagement efforts through a number of additional avenues, potentially including on-campus signage, tabling in Red Square, holding an event as part of UW Sustainability’s Earth Day week, and publishing in student news sources. We hope to participate in the UW Indigenous Food Symposium later this year, in which we will seek consultation on integrating Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) in our project as well as our aim to raise awareness of the impacts of historic boarding schools on local Indigenous communities. We also plan to enhance the educational opportunities permitted by the tunnel by collaborating with local and Indigenous artists, creating interactive installations that go beyond simply revealing design details and elaborate further on the role of food in IIndigenous communities; specifically the repercussions of boarding schools.