The Agricultural Research Center for Climate Change operated by the Rural Development Administration researches the development of crop varieties to respond to global warming, succeeding the National Institute of Subtropical Agriculture. Jeju Island, with its diverse temperature distribution by altitude from Hallasan’s mountain areas to the coast, provides favorable conditions for evaluating crop growth and quality. Recently, due to global warming, Jeju’s native plants have migrated to the southern coast’s warm temperate zone, and subtropical vegetables and fruits have been introduced, making Jeju a prime site for climate change-related crop research. The new research center is built in the middle of a vast grassland, so the design focuses more on the building’s function than site context, emphasizing “people’s efforts to respond to climate change” as the core concept. As a public institution, it aims to provide an amenity environment with stability and symbolism as well as distinction and originality. Though initially planned as a single research building, the project expanded into a master plan considering the future implementation, including additional support facilities such as an agricultural machinery storage building.

Taking into account the unique structure of the research center which utilizes space above the ceiling, the exterior design features thick, massive horizontal slabs layered and stacked in varying depths, providing rhythm to the façade while functioning as shades that modulate daylight and as balconies enabling observation of the crops being cultivated. The interior layout promotes comfort and safety for researchers by employing a double-loaded corridor system that separates laboratories and offices around the corridors. Within the resulting central void space, an atrium is introduced to admit daylight from skylights down to the first-floor lobby.