The Wadden Sea Centre Vester

Vedsted

GOAL no. 11, 12, 14, 15

Denmark’s largest, flattest and wettest national park covers a magnificent but also sometimes dangerous and fragile natural landscape. The Wadden Sea Centre inspires visitors to explore, appreciate and protect the delicate marshlands.

The global rise in tourism puts pressure on nature and thus on fragile landscapes. Many visitors lack knowledge about how they can best help preserve the natural landscapes they have come to experience. This is also true of the 500-kilometre-long coastal landscape known as the Wadden Sea. The area is now Denmark’s largest national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Wadden Sea Centre tells the story about the natural qualities of the national park and hosts exhibitions as well as education and research activities. This project extended and transformed the existing Wadden Sea Centre into a one-of-a-kind building which nestles into the flat landscape in a celebration of the region’s natural characteristics and local architecture. The roof and exterior walls are thatched, demonstrating the qualities and resilience of local materials and traditional crafts. The salt in the air naturally impregnates the straw, making the use of chemicals unnecessary. The same applies to the Robinia timber used for the exterior walls.

The Wadden Sea is home to a fragile ecosystem and a habitat and breeding ground for migrating birds. The unique marshlands shaped by tidal movements over millions of years provide habitats for wildlife and plants but can also sometimes create dangerous conditions for people. At the new visitors’ centre and on guided nature walks, visitors learn about the unique landscape and how they can safely and respectfully tour the dramatic marshlands.

Since the reopening of the Wadden Sea Centre it has become an iconic attraction in its own right, and the number of visitors has been tripled. This project demonstrates how architecture can attract visitors to an important natural area and inspire them to explore, appreciate and protect nature.

Project details

Where: Okholmvej 5, Vester Vedsted, 6760 Ribe

Opening year: 2017 (phase 1) and 2021 (phase 2)

Client: Esbjerg Municipality

Architects and advisors: Dorte Mandrup, Marianne Levinsen Landskab (landscape), Steensen & Varming and Anders Christensen ApS (engineer), JAC Studios with Jason Bruges and No Parking (exhibition design), Fortheloveofflight (lighting design), Kim Andersen ApS in corporation with Arne Klüwer and Hemmed Tækkefirma (thatching)