Land-Ally

Land-Ally turned a one-acre agricultural field just outside Eindhoven into a participatory nature reserve managed as an interspecies collaboration between people, plants and animals. Open to the public, it invites people to experience a connection with nature by taking care of it hands-on. While studying the existing ecosystem, Marte van Haaster's design research considers how human behaviour and governance have impacted the land. These insights determine the methodologies to care for the land, form the interspecies land community to restore imbalances, and contribute to allyship and wellbeing. Objects designed to foster collaboration with animals and plants are placed on the land and activated in care routines to facilitate restoration.