The Nk'Mip Desert Culture Centre (; conventional English pronunciation respelling "in-ka-meep") is an interpretive centre in Osoyoos, British Columbia, Canada, It is owned and operated by the

Osoyoos Indian Band The Osoyoos Indian Band () is a First Nations government in the Canadian province of British Columbia, located in the adjacent towns of Oliver and Osoyoos in the Okanagan valley, approximately north of the Canada–United States border. They ar ...

and is approximately north of the

Canada–United States border The international border between Canada and the United States is the longest in the world by total length. The boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Canada' ...

. It is situated within a semi-arid shrub-steppe desert environment, which is one of the most endangered ecosystems in Canada. The mission of the Centre is to exhibit the Okanagan Desert and the culture of the

Okanagan people The Syilx () people, also known as the Okanagan, Suknaqinx, or Okinagan people, are a First Nations and Native American people whose traditional territory spans the Canada–US boundary in Washington state and unceded British Columbia in the Ok ...

, and to promote conservation efforts for desert wildlife. The Centre has helped to create several spin-off businesses, including a landscaping business, a greenhouse for indigenous plants, a website development business, and a community arts and crafts market.

Exhibits

The Centre includes both indoor and outdoor exhibits and trails. It is designed as an interactive learning environment with hands-on displays and two multi-media theatres. Exhibits include recreated examples of Aboriginal architecture structures: a

Tipi A tipi or tepee ( ) is a conical lodge tent that is distinguished from other conical tents by the smoke flaps at the top of the structure, and historically made of animal hides or pelts or, in more recent generations, of canvas stretched on ...

Pit-house A pit-house (or pit house, pithouse) is a house built in the ground and used for shelter. Besides providing shelter from the most extreme of weather conditions, this type of earth shelter may also be used to store food (just like a pantry, a l ...

, and

Sweat lodge A sweat lodge is a low profile hut, typically dome-shaped or oblong, and made with natural materials. The structure is the ''lodge'', and the ceremony performed within the structure may be called by some cultures a purification ceremony or simply ...

. The building is adjacent to a remnant of the desert, approximately 1,600 acres of which are being preserved as a conservation area. Trailheads lead to 1.5 km of desert paths leading to reconstructed examples of First Nations buildings and interpretive sculptures. The Centre's Rattlesnake Research Program receives support from

Environment Canada Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC; )Environment and Climate Change Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of the Environment (). is the Ministry (government department), department ...

to study

Western Rattlesnakes ''Crotalus oreganus'', commonly known as the Western rattlesnake or northern Pacific rattlesnake, Wright AH, Wright AA. 1957. Handbook of Snakes. Comstock Publishing Associates. (7th printing, 1985). 1105 pp. . is a venomous pit viper species fo ...

and Great Basin Gopher snakes. The snakes are tracked and studied by biologists using radio telemetry.

Facilities

The Centre was designed by Hotson Bakker Boniface Haden architects + urbanists (now DIALOG), and completed in 2006. The construction cost was $6.6 million for the (interior and exterior spaces) facility. The design is both an homage to the traditional winter dwellings of the Okanagan peoples and a literal integration into the natural landscape with a contemporary architectural design. The building is constructed partially underground with the desert landscape extending over the building's planted (green) roof and the front of the building is constructed of a

rammed earth Rammed earth is a technique for construction, constructing foundations, floors, and walls using compacted natural raw materials such as soil, earth, chalk, Lime (material), lime, or gravel. It is an ancient method that has been revived recently ...

facade. This rammed earth wall is constructed of local soils, concrete, and colour additives. At long, high, and thick, it is (as of 2014) the largest in North America. Its thickness and mass provide an insulating value of R-33 that help to provide a more stable indoor temperature than the large temperature swings of the surrounding desert climate. One architectural jurist described it: "the chameleon-like wall defines an ambiguous threshold between landscape and building." Blue stain pine boards are used throughout the interior of the project. This wood,

Lodgepole pine ''Pinus contorta'', with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpin ...

damaged by the Mountain pine beetle and blue stain fungus was harvested from local forests devastated by these species. The use of this material serves as a demonstration project of how this product, which is typically considered unsuitable for a finish material, can be utilized.

Awards

The Centre and its facility have been recognized with architectural, aboriginal, and regional awards:Dialog.ca - architect's project webpage
Retrieved 2014-01-23 * Governor General's Medal in Architecture (2008) * SAB Award, Sustainable Architecture & Building Magazine (2008) * Royal Architectural Institute of Canada - Award of Excellence, Innovation in Architecture (2007) * World Architecture Festival Award (2008) * Lieutenant-Governor's of BC Medal of Excellence in Architecture (2007) * Wood Design Green Award, Canadian Wood Council (2007) * Awards for Excellence in Concrete Construction, Decorative Concrete Award, BC Ready–Mix Concrete Association (2007) * Aboriginal Tourism BC "Power of Education Award" for the Rattlesnake Research Program * Aboriginal Tourism BC "Inspirational Leadership Award" * Okanagan Life Best of the Okanagan 2010 – Editors Choice Awards

References

External links

Osoyoos Indian Band

Architecture-Buildings - photo galleryAboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada - Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre, April 2009

''Nk'Mip Centre Shimmers in Desert'', The Tyee, 22 Oct 2008

Hammer, Brent A. (2011) "Nk'Mip: Creating a "Taste of Place”," Totem: The University of Western Ontario Journal of Anthropology: Vol. 19: Iss. 1, Article 8.
{{authority control Natural history museums in British Columbia First Nations museums in Canada Buildings and structures completed in 2006 Museums in British Columbia Nature centres in British Columbia Tourist attractions in the Okanagan Okanagan 2006 establishments in British Columbia Museums established in 2006