abilities foundation

time : 2025

place : kingston, jamaica

process : storm water capture; rain gardens; island vibes; equal access for all

completed for : Island City Lab

collaborators : Abilities Foundation; Island City Lab; ARUP

The Abilities Foundation is a vocational school for the differently abled in Kingston, Jamaica. The school campus began experiencing flooding after the City widened the thoroughfare that fronts the campus. Day & Day Company is working with Island City Lab as part of ARUP’s Global Challenge, a community engagement program that engages designers to develop and implement solutions to address the most fundamental needs of society. Currently, the island nation does not accept nature based solutions as a mechanism for solving infrastructural issues like flooding. We have been tasked with integrating the campus’ existing water infrastructure with new green infrastructure to slow, capture, and infiltrate a ten year storm event within a 24 hour period. The green infrastructure will incorporate a network of accessible paths to enhance the experience of the campus and provide a new curriculum focused on addressing the critical role of nature and natural systems to address environmental challenges.