The Underground Pantry
Cultivating a Smarter Future Beneath South Lawn
We propose transforming the underused, heritage-listed South Lawn underground car park into a sustainable agricultural hub. This is an innovative, low-energy solution that provides fresh, affordable food on campus while supporting the University of Melbourne’s social impact and sustainability goals.
This will include employing aquaponic systems as well as the cultivation of leafy green vegetables, herbs and mushrooms. Waste from the university will be incorporated into the system, which produces several products for use by the university, creating a closed-loop system.
This adaptive reuse not only addresses food insecurity but also becomes a living laboratory for sustainable innovation. Bridging disciplines, reducing waste, and inspiring the next generation of designers and thinkers. It also supports student well-being by creating paid employment, volunteer opportunities, and research pathways in alignment with the values of the university.
The Team (Students of Unimelb):
Claire, Echo, Kevin, Tess, Sarah
The project began with two separate groups developing different design ideas for the same site. Midway through the course, we merged to create a more comprehensive concept and explore how far we could push the vision of our Underground Pantry.
Aquaponic Design
We worked with AI tools & photoshop to envision how will the Underground Pantry's aquaponic system will look like in the near future compared to the far future.
By Claire, Echo & Kevin
Mushroom Beds Design
We worked with AI tools & photoshop to imagine and arrange the mushroom beds along the columns of the carpark to make full use of the vertical spaces of our Underground Pantry.
By Tess & Sarah
Futuristic Design
We also envisioned designing for the near future, when Parkville Station opens, by creating a direct connection from the station to the Underground Pantry, attracting more visitors to our farm.
Final Design
Combining the ideas from both groups and the Parkville Station connection.
We recreated our system diagram and incorporated all our individual research on various factors:
1. Nutrients of our Produce (Tess)
2. Recycling Water for WSUD (Echo)
3. Nutrient Cycling within an Aquaponic System (Claire)
4. Mushroom Cultivation Cycle (Sarah)
5. Project Funding (Kevin)