Grain Collective

The jury recognises the Carol Pino Learning Garden for expanding the idea of the school landscape. The project weaves food production, ecological literacy, climate adaptation and shared use into the fabric of everyday education through thoughtful detailing and a careful spatial dialogue with its surrounding urban edges. Its gardens, orchards, outdoor classrooms and stormwater systems make cultivation and environmental literacy into direct experiences rather than abstract lessons. The grid-based structure gives food production a clear organisational logic and pragmatic use, showing that cultivation is systemic, seasonal and maintained through regimes of collective care. As a school-led project, it offers a strong and replicable model for connecting education with land, food production, and community resilience.

A Community-Shaped Rain Ready Landscape In the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, chronic flooding disrupts daily life – turning streets, courtyards, and community spaces into persistent hazards long after storms pass. With aging infrastructure and rising groundwater leaving residents vulnerable to days-long pooling, the South Jamaica Water square offered a chance to turn public space […]