Today, we’re going back to more recent history with the Environment and Natural Resources 2 building on East Lowell Street. Opened in 2015, it’s called ENR2 to separate it from the Dennis DeConcini Environment and Natural Resources Building, which opened in 1999 at on North Park Avenue. 

However, you could argue that this building is distinct enough. 

LEED platinum-certified and designed to mimic a slot canyon, ENR2 boasts green techniques, like natural air conditioning thanks to the building’s shape, rainwater capture and storage, and a minimalist design that reduced the amount of materials needed to build it in the first place.

Construction started in June 2013 and lasted until May 2015, costing $75 million. The building has faculty offices, conference rooms, support spaces with laboratories and a large classroom auditorium. 

Hidden on the bottom on ENR2 is Slot Canyon Cafe, a cafe with plenty of tables and couches offering coffee and snacks. 

There’s also a looped video of a hummingbird nest playing in the cafe. Formerly it showed a live feed of a nest that was built near the cafe before it opened, but those baby birds left the nest a while ago. 

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