The system that this approach led to was not a traditional park at all but lotus - a deployable network of marine laboratories designed to be spread around the globe, for collecting and disseminating environmental information to everyone.

Lotus is a project that contributes to the development of scientific knowledge about the condition of our planet by producing floating sensors that are cheap to build, networkable, and able to geographically record information about our marine environments. Starting within Chicago and then extending across the globe, each sensor will be capable of recording water temperature, air temperature, air humidity, water chemical composition, water bacteria content, as well as levels of underwater and water born noise pollution.

After collecting this environmental information (see the network diagram), each floating laboratory sends its data for storage and dissemination within a freely accessible database that individuals, children, curious citizens, educators, scientists, politicians, designers, and engineers from all nations developed, rich or poor - can access.

This project explores methods through which such a resource can be funded, built and distributed locally, then globally. To do this a light, designed to integrate itself within the sensor network, will be produced for sale - with the proceeds of each sale being used to fund the maintenance and production of additional laboratories. By selling these lights in Chicago and around the globe, the Graham Foundation and other important sponsors will become the founding members of an ever growing, ever more important information resource that, like parks, help individuals connect themselves and their actions back into a larger global environment for the benefit of all citizens.