This US AID funded project seeks to improve the eco-tourism infrastructure in NFA's Kalinzu Forest Central Forest Reserve. Besides the Visitor Centre itself, the project also comprises of a 500m long suspended canopy walk and a forest campsite.
The main building will act as the new gateway into the forest and as the place where all visitors are briefed before their hike to the famous chimpanzee population of the forest. The design seeks to minimise the footprint of the building which is defined by a light-weight canopy hovering above and tying together four independent volumes. The existing main forest path is virtually left untouched and will traverse straight through the pavilion. A central opening in the roof as well as a staggered and deliberately soft building edge will make it hard to distinguish where the landscape ends and the architecture begins.
Whereas natural materials such as stone and timber, sourced within the region, will be used for the four volumes, the light-weight steel canopy has been designed in a way that it can be largely pre-fabricated and erected on site with minimal damage to the sensitive environment.
