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Co-Creating Living Infrastructure Through Citizen Science
Hosted by BIOPOD Co.
Wednesday, September 16
9:30-11:30 AM
Roosevelt Lake in Roger Williams Park (click here for the exact Google Maps pin) | Pine Hill Ave, Providence, RI 02907
Step into Roger Williams Park and experience ecological design at a full scale! BIOPOD Co. is a Rhode Island-founded ecosystem services consultancy that deploys modular, mycelium-based floating wetlands to restore urban waterways, and this guided site tour puts you directly inside a live 20-unit installation. Led by the BIOPOD Co. team, RISD alumni and practitioners are working at the intersection of biomaterials, ecological design, and citizen science. You’ll walk the water’s edge, learning how each module uses mycelium, plant roots, and microbial communities to filter pollutants, capture phosphorus, and build habitat, treating biology itself as a co-creator. Participants use tools to examine real water samples and plant conditions, document observations through a nature journaling exercise, and leave with a clear understanding of how the system is monitored over its 12-month pilot and how they can continue engaging with the site long after the event ends.
Fee: Free! Pay what you wish. Any donation you make supports DESIGNxRI in organizing and executing DESIGN WEEK RI as well as any programs and events throughout the year.
Parking: Parking information available through the City of Providence here. Cars can only drive up to the Seal house, and then location must be reached on foot.
ADA Accessible: Yes
Meet the Speakers
Avantika Velho
Avantika is the Co-founder of BIOPOD Co. and an Indian Biodesigner, Researcher, and Strategic Futurist based in Boston. A RISD Industrial Design alumnus and currently at Harvard, she works at the nexus of living systems, hybrid technologies, and critical design, and leads BIOPOD’s vision of redefining urban infrastructure as vibrant, regenerative socio-ecologies.
Manini Banerjee
Manini is the Co-founder of BIOPOD Co. and an Indian-Singaporean Designer and Researcher based in Boston. A RISD Industrial Design alumnus and currently at Harvard, she bridges disciplines from microorganisms to cities, and drives BIOPOD’s techno-material systems and deployment strategy
Karunya Kumar
Karunya Kumar is an industrial designer working at the intersection of regenerative materials, ecological systems, and biomimetic design. Her practice explores how living systems, biofabrication, and material research can inform new approaches to environmental restoration, adaptive infrastructures, and future-facing design.
