The use of wood in architecture must be motivated by more than just aesthetics – it should have a purpose. In the coming 20 years, it will become apparent that wood is the most important material for defining our sustainable future.

The C2C Base Camp is a temporary educational pavilion at the Floriade in Venlo, where children learn about sustainability and cradle to cradle. And wood is one of the main themes. By building huts, children are able to acquire real life knowledge about how to build with sustainable materials, how joints are made and what dismantle-friendly building actually means. The pavilion is a storage area and base camp, around which all activities take place – also in bad weather. The various life cycles of wood and wood recycling are given an appropriate place in the pavilion and the relationship between them is highlighted. The pavilion demonstrates the wide range of uses for wood and clearly explains the meaning of sustainable design and material use during the course of educational programme.

The result is more than just a building; it is an educational experience that the children will carry with them for the rest of their lives. After the Floriade, in October 2012, the pavilion will be demounted, transported and rebuild in a home for elderly people as a culinary pavilion.