A Laboratory Landscape for the Outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand

As metropolitan Bangkok sprawls and expands, the boundaries of the nearby Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai (DPKY) Forest Complex and UNESCO World Heritage site are under increasing pressure. This project seeks to preserve the integrity of the UNESCO-mandated buffer zone between the Thai capital and the Forest Complex by transforming it into a vast agricultural testing zone.

Blanketed with rice paddies and dotted with agricultural laboratory buildings and schools, the buffer zone would become a testing field, focusing on studying and effectively producing food for Bangkok’s growing population. The project imagines a form of bargain: the more productive this agricultural “laboratory,” the more likely it is to remain an intact and effective protector of the World Heritage site it surrounds.