Nahele is a dynamic urban planning tool.  Nahele is also a board game that introduces players to the concept of biomimetic design. 

 

Project Focus

Context

ASU and Kamehameha Schools partnered to develop a plan for an overgrown forested lot in the city center of Hilo Hawaii.  We were seeking to braid Hawaiian culture and the natural world through a building.

The concept was simple; provide structure that integrates into and enhances the forest.  Image provided by Zhenqi Wang

Nahele Hale: A Portal to Hawaiian Nature and Culture

Our cross disciplinary design team studied Life's Principles to provide a foundation for Nahele Hale (Forest Home).  We utilized five forest strategies allowing the structures to enhance the natural functions of the forest and minimize human impact.  

 

What Happened to the Game ?

The biomimimetic structures were capable of adjusting to both man made and natural disturbances.  As such, a dynamic decision making tool was needed to allow Nahele Hale to reach its full potential.  Nahele offers Kamehameha Schools a simulation tool that provides strategies and direction for how Nahele Hale can successfully be developed.

 

Rules

 

Game Play

The game begins with a site survey, then moves through 4 turns, each comprised of 3 phases; New Growth, Program, and Disturbance.

 

Playing the Game

The player with the highest score wins.  Points are scored based on the value of the land developed, the amount of New Growth forest added to the site, the amount of program completed, and the amount of native animal habitat conserved.

 

Board Design

The development site was divided into 170 hexagons, excluding the area that is not owned by Kamehameha Schools.  Each hexagon represents the space needed to build one of our teams proposed structures.   Each hexagon was then assessed on six different criteria to determine a land value.  The criteria were weighted based on the priorities of the project, giving increased value to accessibility and privacy and decreased value to land susceptible to regular flooding.

Image provided by Yannan Tang Master of Urban Design ASU

The hexagons were colored to reflect a more youthful energy and to clearly differentiate the value of each location.  Any hexagon that was comprised of trees approximately 25 feet or taller was marked with an orange dot.  Trees of this height are desirable Hoary Bat habitat, an endemic endangered species that we wanted to promote within the sight.  While our structures could provide alternative bat habitat we want to discourage the removal of large areas of habitat until suitable native forests can mature.

 

 

Final Prototype

Each board is comprised of 415 individual pieces.

 
 
 

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