Amount Awarded:
 $1,000
Funding Received:
 2020-2021
Project Status:
 Completed

Executive Summary

The Power to the Pollinator Project will develop a 600 sq. ft. on-campus pollinator garden consisting of native flowering plants, evergreen shrubs, and year-round woody shelter. The diverse planting collection will ensure that native pollinators have a diverse food bank from February to October with places to overwinter and burrow. As the plants mature, long-term symbiotic relationships between invertebrates, micro-organisms, and other wildlife species will also develop. Designed to provide food and habitat space for the PNW’s threatened bumble bees, mason bees, butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds, this project will pave the way for an extended wildlife corridor consisting of low-maintenance, pesticide-free landscapes. The garden’s proximity to Odegaard Library will also provide students with a quiet, meditative space away from their studies and the opportunity to study ecological systems in a nontraditional setting. At the moment, UW lacks an ecology-focused landscape plan, and it is my goal with this pollinator project to kickstart a dialogue on the role of diverse ecology within urban spaces. By blending ecological diversity into the built environment, a pollinator garden near the heart of campus will testify to the importance of design activism, educate students and faculty about the potential relationship between cities and native ecosystems, and spark research opportunities that unite urban spaces with environmental science, biology, forestry, landscape architecture, art, and engineering.

Primary Contact:
Daniella Slowik
dslowik@uw.edu