2026 Texas ASLA Merit Award
Play with Playa

Title: Play with Playa: A Nature Based Learning Playground for Lubbock’s Playa Lakes

Play with Playa is a community centered and research driven playground concept rooted in the unique ecology of the High Plains playa lake system. Designed for underserved neighborhoods in Lubbock Texas, the project reimagines a seasonal and often overlooked wetland as a living classroom where children learn through direct interaction with land water and climate. The project responds to categories that emphasize social impact environmental stewardship and evidence based design by integrating ecological restoration child development theory and participatory methods into one cohesive landscape.

Playa lakes are critical to regional biodiversity stormwater management and aquifer recharge yet they are frequently treated as vacant or unsafe spaces. Play with Playa reframes the playa as a playful educational and restorative environment. The design introduces topographic play mounds seasonal water basins native grass and wetland gardens shaded learning zones and hands on science stations. These elements allow children to observe water cycles soil movement wildlife habitats and seasonal change through active exploration.

The project is grounded in developmental and learning theories that emphasize experiential social and constructivist learning. Children engage through building drawing observing and storytelling transforming the landscape into a site of curiosity and agency. Community workshops and child led design activities shaped the spatial layout and program ensuring that the playground reflects local voices and cultural meaning.

By merging ecological infrastructure with play and education Play with Playa meets the category requirements for innovation sustainability and community benefit. It demonstrates how play spaces can function as living laboratories supporting climate literacy public health and environmental responsibility while giving children a meaningful role in shaping the spaces they inhabit.