Students from U.S. universities — RISD, Brown, Yale, and UMass Amherst — have been exploring the ecology of São Miguel Island through artist residencies held in 2022, 2024, 2025, and again this year, with the support of the University of the Azores and FLAD — the Luso-American Development Foundation.

Working at the intersection of design, science, and society — in dialogue with local materials, artisans, and institutions — they design with and for nature, envisioning what may become a Butterfly Pavilion, to be built at BioKairos Materia, an organic farm and environmental education center located in Lagoa. The outcomes of this year’s residency, along with the new studies developed during the program, will be presented at vaga.