Waste-To-Food Alchemist: Social Architecture For Food Waste
Speculative Environments
Supervisor - Mr. Cheah Kok Ming
Touted as a food paradise, Singapore shares an unusual relationship with food - the nation’s vibrant food scene is one fraught with heightening complexities of food security and waste management. Similar to many affluent cities, the nation has an insatiable appetite for consumption and has remained relatively unconcerned about its vicious resource-to-waste conversion cycle. In particular, the detrimental impacts of food waste generated has remained largely unfelt as it is mostly concealed from the public’s line-of-sight.
The premise of this thesis is set on subverting current unsustainable food waste management practices through harnessing of food waste as a resource. Focusing on an exploring an alternative architectural typology for decentralizing food waste-to-energy production in local neighbourhoods, the proposition aims to also support closed loop food systems and re-examine the spatial relationships of the local food production-to-waste cycle. Apart from provoking a rethink of current food waste and resource management in Singapore, the undertaking challenges the stigma associated with “waste”, as well as the divide between public and industrial realms of architecture.
The resulting experimental prototype reflects upon the relationships between food waste, technology, environment, culture and society. It marks the culmination of an architectural inquiry process that transcends industrial waste management issues to delve into other socio-political aspects of food and the city - including public education and increasing public participation in the processes of food production to food waste management in communities.
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Email - isabelle.chuaql@gmail.com