IAIA Science and Technology Center

The Science and Technology building required a highly regulated environment to protect archived works of art, as well as a clean and healthy environment for the large concentration of students who occupy the building regularly.

The Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development (IAIA) is one of 36 tribal colleges located in the United States. The Science & Technology building located in the IAIA Campus houses media labs, conservation/science labs, faculty offices, and a unique digital dome, as well as the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts’ permanent collection.

The Science and Technology building required a highly regulated environment to protect archived works of art, as well as a clean and healthy environment for the large concentration of students who occupy the building regularly. Because of the digital dome and the permanent art collection, there is a higher concentration of occupants in this building. Creating a healthy environment for large groups of people became an integral part of the design.

Sustainable features like low-flow fixtures to save water, occupancy detectors to turn lights off if a room is empty, and better insulation for improved temperature control aided in the creation of an environmentally- and socially-responsible building for the IAIA. Though it was only expected to achieve LEED Silver, the use of daylighting to maximize natural lighting and reduce energy use, double layers of two-inch thick insulation to increase temperature control, and recycled and regional materials allowed the project team to push to LEED Gold.

Additional features of the Science and Technology building include preferred parking for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles, a green cleaning plan, water use reduction and a controlled stormwater runoff system. IAIA also implemented a Ride Share Policy, and 5% of the building’s total parking area is reserved for candidates who sign up to car or van pool under the Ride Share Program; another 5% of parking space is reserved for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles.

IAIA Science & Technology Center is situated on 140 acres only fifteen minutes from the center of Santa Fe, New Mexico, one of the most cultural and artistic cities in the nation. The site has amazing views of mountains in all four directions and connects to biking and walking trails. Approximately 49,500 square feet of the site area has been devoted to habitat restoration and the maximization of open space, which amounts to 57.6% of the project site.