I am interested in constructing an installation at the Audubon Center in Deb's Park to integrate bamboo; a material for shelter integral with the cultural identity of my homelands in the Philippines, woven in community with local fallen branches and twigs found on the Butterfly Trail. 

During the days of installation, park goers are invited to learn which fallen branches are helpful to gather, and we will line up and weave them together with twine around the bamboo frame that I will install as the structure's armature. 

Bamboo, or Kawayan as we called it in my first language, is known for its sustainability and thousands of uses in daily life.  In the West, this abundant grass is often known as “invasive,” although, where I am from, they say that if you have access to bamboo, you will never be homeless. 

As we gather, we will think about the way local Californians have practiced land management for thousands of years by clearing underbrush to keep forests hosts to many understory plant species, as well. 

The basic frame of the structure is eight bamboo posts around 4 ft in height that will be spaced out at least 2 feet apart to form an octagon. In the bottom, these bamboo posts are individually connected to flat pieces on the ground that work as a stand.  Thinner bamboo pieces will go into the top part of the posts to add more height to the structure. These will be held together by smaller bamboo pieces that connect them to each other and reinforced with knots. The gathered wooden branches and twigs will be woven together with twine. 

A separate roof frame is made from a repurposed wooden umbrella and is connected to the top part of the main structure with ropes, creating the overall tension that helps keep the structure firm. The general shape is similar to yurts, and other traditional circular dwellings.

In the interior, I will install a painted low circular table of repurposed wood where people can gather, where animals can seek habitat, and anyone can contemplate how we make a home from our cultures and our surroundings and how we all need shelter; fauna, humans, nomads, and migrants alike.