Located on eighty acres of dry forest shrubland in the Okanagan Valley, the Geological Field Station serves as base camp for earth, ocean and atmospheric science students as they acquire surveying and sample collection skills used in wilderness exploration. Design and construction of the field station complex is intentionally basic and spare. The unadorned wood-frame structures consist of a small cabin for staff and a main hall that houses learning, dining and washroom functions. Students sleep in large tents pitched throughout the site. The elemental learning environment intentionally simulates life in a remote geological camp. Students experience firsthand conditions in which research is conducted in isolated settings, with a reduced level of comfort, for long hours each day.
UBC Geological Field Station
Oliver, BC
The University of British Columbia
2021
625 m2
front porch
sustainability
LEED Gold equivalent
inaugural students
We want to stress how remarkable we think the Field Station is. It is not only functional and inspirational, it is ideally well-suited to the environment in which it is built.
UBC Department of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences
side porch
entrance
pass-through equipment storage
pass-through equipment storage
student tent accommodation
fieldwork samples collection
sustainability
LEED Gold equivalent
learning and dining hall
learning and dining hall
learning and dining hall
teaching wall
meeting room
staff cabin
staff cabin porch
staff cabin interior
We just wanted to say that we love the Geological Field Station. It meets the functionality we desired with a design that is much better than we ever hoped for.
UBC Department of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences