Since 2009, Professor Aimee Buccellato has collaborated with Notre Dame’s Environmental Change Initiative (ECI), the University Architect’s Office, and the environmental engineering firm SmithGroupJJR to develop the master plan for a watershed research facility, the Notre Dame Linked Experimental Ecosystem Facility (ND-LEEF) at St. Patrick’s County Park. Buccellato is the project's lead designer. Her design for ND-LEEF “aims to enable the greatest possible impact of the field research while minimizing the physical imprint of the facility on the environment.” She says the project introduces students to real-world challenges and the role of design in helping to solve land-use and climate-change issues, which she addresses in her fourth-year undergraduate design studio, “Environmental Stewardship Through Interdisciplinary Research and Design.”