0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

Can the nest we create for ourselves also be a nest for other living things?

Agency
Attachment
Attraction
Connection
Freedom
Inclusion

In Singapore, architectural practice WOHA has started a movement called Totems for the 21st Century, together with founding partners bioSEA, Systmz and GWS Living Art.

Looking at the totem as an object located at the intersection of the human domain and the natural domain, Totems for the 21st Century are designed to make something beautiful as a focus for our emotions and embody our commitment to the protection of the natural world that supports us. Totems are precious and crafted, made with knowledge and passion. Making a totem is a process which directs our energies to healing the planet.

WOHA’s first totem, located in their office in the centre of the city, was designed for the Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus. It is a native bird that is declining in Singapore due to modernisation – its favourite nesting spots in the city are up in eaves of the old Chinese tiles of the shophouses – and while these buildings are conserved, they are being repaired and sealed up and their access points have disappeared. So while it is not an exciting, rare or exotic bird, WOHA thought it was a good target, as it can still be found in the area, in small numbers, and wondered if its population will increase if provided with good homes.

Making a totem is a process which directs our energies to healing the planet.

Here’s how you can build your own eco-active totem:

Know the Species
We can use our knowledge as designers to create a long-lasting object that is a safe nesting spot for animals.

Design with Humans in mind
An object that is beatiful to look at.

Design for Urban Environments
A totem can be a icon and a symbol of love for mother nature.

Totems for the 21st Century’s mission is to encourage and facilitate local interventions that create new habitat for our fellow creatures, while encouraging global action to heal our planet.

The fate of a species depends on the aggregate lived experience of every individual of that species. One pair of birds finding a home you created, and successfully raising a family adds this story to the history of the species.

A totem is a designed object ocated at the intersection of the human domain and the natural domain. The human domain includes the social, cultural and technological spheres, while the natural domain embraces the environmental, behavioural and physical needs of a selected species.

R RE EF FE ER RE EN NC CE ES S