Bird brainchild
Read the following story by Anchalee Kongrut from the Bangkok Post. Then, answer the questions that follow.
Businessman Chak Cherdsatirkul, 30, is the owner of Kaomai Lanna Resort in Chiang Mai province’s Sun Pa Tong district. He planned to turn 70 rai near the resort into a bird sanctuary named Protective Wing. The property, which belongs to his family, had been left undeveloped since 1997.
Chak was thinking of a simple, natural landscape design — a wetland for migratory birds. He was inspired by his trip, three years ago, to the Buraco das Aranas (Sinkhole of the Macaws), a renowned bird sanctuary and tourist attraction in Brazil. This famous sanctuary was once a cave that collapsed to become a giant sinkhole. The owner of Buraco das Aranas, Modesto Sampio, cleaned up the cave and released a pair of red and green macaws. The birds multiplied and their offspring built nests between the sandstone cliffs.
However, Chak’s project to turn his land into a bird sanctuary grew more ambitious when his architect friends heard about it.
“My friends proposed something more challenging, exciting and fun,” Chak said. “Instead of just creating a natural landscape for birds, I was challenged to create a space where birds can live safely and bird watchers can visit.”
The project will be entered for the renowned global Holcim Awards in 2015. The Holcim Awards Competition is an architectural design competition organised by Holcim Ltd, one of the world’s leading building materials companies.
The design of Chak’s bird sanctuary was created by Jariyawadee Lekawatana of Architect Kidd and Assistant Professor Singh Intrachooto, a celebrated architecture lecturer at Kasetsart University. The design simulates natural bird habitats, as well as including a small hotel and birdwatching towers. The construction materials come from nature.