You can help Biophilia Treehouse deepen its root
The UCLA Counterforce Lab team is back at Pando HQ at the Sisters of Social Service compound in Encino, CA making improvements to the Biophilia Treehouse prototype and furthering development. For both the Sisters and Pando, the structure stands as an iconic symbol of radical commitment to the vision of an integrated ecological system extending across the whole of the biosphere.
The structure was placed on a prominent hill overlooking the lake and campus in 2023. Now, ROOTBALL readers can play an important role to help the Treehouse deepen its roots.
First presented as a concept at Pando Days 2019-20, the Biophilia Treehouse stands today as a fully realized prototype of the original concept: a living public-art sculpture that welcomes native birds and plants while providing visitors with unique opportunities for education and reflection. The installation in Encino is the first in a series of Treehouses the creators hope to build across LA County, focusing especially on park-poor neighborhoods. When built in sequence, the necklace of structures will form a wildlife corridor that reconnects fractured habitats at the tree-top level.
Facilitated by Pando’s expansive network, both grant money and land were secured to build the proof of concept. At six feet high, an elevated garden blooms; at twelve feet, a ring of bird nesting boxes rest where, in one of them, is an oak titmouse pair that has returned for the second spring in a row.
The Biophilia Treehouse prototype will soon become an outdoor classroom where third graders from the Heart of Los Angeles after-school program, along with pupils from the local Lanai Road Elementary School, will help prototype a bespoke curriculum called “Our Neighbors, the Birds” with the assistance of UCLA students.
“I visit the site every time I’m on campus,” says Betsy Hunter, Pando’s community outreach coordinator. “The sculpture is extraordinary and gets me thinking about something more than just the mundane features of everyday life, but about who we are, why we’re here, and what we can do to support the welfare of all creatures.”
With ongoing research and development work to support at the location, the UCLA team is asking for your help, dear reader.
The following improvements to the immediate area are needed: tree-trunk furniture for outdoor classroom seating ($1,500); steel edging and decomposed granite to fortify the surrounding area against erosion ($1,000); sturdy handrails for the staircase leading to the Treehouse structure at the top of the hill ($1,500); additional plantings ($600); signage ($500), and sensing technology for scientific research.
Please consider a donation – as well as contributing some of your own elbow grease if you live anywhere close to the area!
To contribute labor, inquire here: info@pandopopulus.com. To make a financial contribution, visit Pando’s Donate page to contribute any amount (make sure to specify “Biophilia Treehouse” in the comment section).
From the Biophilia Treehouse team, Thanks!