Posted in Sustainable Land Management

Liveable Communities Through Engagement, Culture & Connection

It is every conservationist’s goal to bring nature back to urban areas. Life begins with nature, yet sometimes it needs a little help to keep thriving.

Our current economic crisis is not deterring organisations in continuing vital conservationist work, and many are teaming up together to push forward with finding the best ways to achieve environmental and cultural sustainability.

Webinar 3 of the Liveable Cities Conference: Webinar Series 2020 will take this focus on Tuesday 23rd of June, with three keynote speakers delivering an incredible line-up.

CLICK HERE for the program details and read below for a glimpse of what to expect.

Bringing Nature Back to Urban Areas

Ms Geraldene Dalby-Ball, Director of Kingfisher Urban Ecology and Wetlands

Director of Kingfisher Urban Ecology and Wetlands, Ms Geraldene Dalby-Ball has been doing remarkable work within this field and will be presenting her case studies in webinar 3 of the Liveable Cities Conference: Webinar Series 2020 on Tuesday.

Ms Dalby-Ball’s presentation will show solutions on how to get multiple outcomes from urban waterways and wetlands, through essential consideration. Kingfisher’s goal is to maintain and design urban waterways through the reflection of dreamtime stories and collaboration of the ancient land, its people, and their natural surroundings.

Geraldene is deeply passionate about butterfly conservation and says that even in built up areas, nature can be preserved and helped to be reinstated by using the past to rebuild from. “Projects as simple as Butterfly Birth Places, where through design and planting and engagement, we can bring specific butterflies back, even around high-risk apartment blocks.”

The organisation’s focus is on connecting dream stories with plants and animals, their seasons and cycles, which helps people gain a sense of greater fulfillment, leading them to make better environmental choices that promote a more sustainable way of life.

This presentation is set to be one of honour – of the ancient land, its people and its flora and fauna.

Ways to Make Your Place in Town or City ‘Family’

University of Western Australia’s ARC Chief Investigator of the School of Indigenous Studies, Professor Len Collard

Professor Len Collard, University of Western Australia’s ARC Chief Investigator of the School of Indigenous Studies, will be our second keynote speaker for the final of our Liveable Cities Conference: Webinar Series 2020.

We are very honoured that Professor Collard will share his imperative insight on the land, culture and its people, through his presentation, “Engaging Indigenous Communities in Change.”

Professor Collard says, “from a Noongar cultural perspective, everything relates to everything else – like a big family”. There is however, an issue with the English language translation of the old language, causing a discourse in understanding the true Noongar language.

The Professor says, “the problem here is that moort, katitjin, Boodjar do not translate to English well at all, because English language explains these and other things as being separate to each other. Noongar language explains moort, katitjin, Boodjar as deeply, intrinsically connected – which is integral to a Noongar worldview.”

The Professor’s extensive cultural research is vital to Australia’s history and culture and his presentation is one to not missed, as he transcends us back 50,000 years.

Transitioning Aotearoa’s Streets To Places For People

Urban Mobility Manager of New Zealand Transport Agency, Ms Kathryn King

Organisations such as New Zealand’s Transport Agency are working just as hard to preserve and maximise community culture and sustainability.

Ms Kathryn King, the Urban Mobility Manager of New Zealand Transport Agency will be the final keynote speaker in the Liveable Cities Conference: Webinar Series 2020 next Tuesday. She will present evidence of where transitional design is building safer and more accessible streets, and as a result, it’s creating more trusting and happier communities.

Read more on Kathryn’s work from our previous BLOG and be sure not to miss our third and final webinar in the Liveable Cities Conference: Webinar Series 2020.

REGISTER FOR WEBINAR 3 HERE

You can also register for the full Liveable Cities Conference: Webinar Series 2020 from our Resource Centre to gain access to the final live webinar next Tuesday 26 June, playback access to the first two webinars in the series, and bonus book of abstracts, with 20 pre-recorded presentations and slides from the originally planned 2020 Liveable Cities Conference.

Architectural Design Making a Positive Impact on Sustainability in your Liveable City

If you are faced with the question; “Are you part of a liveable city”, would you know how to answer?

Many would consider any city that they live in as a liveable city, but what does that really mean?

The answer revolves around a few simple words that some of us are well versed with, while others are not. – sustainability, conservation, environmentally friendly, eco-friendly and carbon friendly (to name a few).

Creating a more liveable city comes down to several factors, beginning with residential and commercial designs that offer sustainable features.

Modern technology is now proving that there are new ways of building more sustainable homes, commercial offices and even shopping centres. We did some investigating around Australia and found a few architects that deserve to be praised for this kind of work.

BREATHE ARCHITECTURE – MELBOURNE

A Melbourne architectural company leads a great example by designing carbon neutral homes and commercial properties. Several architects met in December 2019 and collaborated on how to achieve carbon neutral home designs. They are now working together to achieve a more sustainable future in Australian cities.

The Design Director Jeremy McLeod, who founded the company in 2001 together with Tamara Veltre, has asked business owners to pledge that they will take their business into a carbon neutral future via an Architects Declare Architects Act movement. It’s a promise where united architects aim to take Australia into the future with new, modernised designs that will be 100% green powered, carbon audited by 30 June 2020 to ensure it’s working, and will be carbon neutral by 30 December 2020.

Visit their website and check out some of their incredible designs already achieving a carbon neutral future.

BENT ARCHITECTURE – MELBOURNE

Another Melbourne-based architectural company that needs to be praised for their outstanding sustainable work is Bent Architecture.

Established in 2003 by Directors Paul and Merran Porjazoski, they have built and designed sustainable buildings that have won a number of national and international awards, including two open design competitions (Growing Up Green Roof and Living Places Public Housing.

They have proven themselves to be leaders in both residential and commercial designs that are environmentally sustainable, and low costing.

LIVEABLE CITIES CONFERENCE: WEBINAR SERIES 2020

The list goes on with several organisations in Australia already making a positive and sustainable impact in our cities that need to be acknowledged and the Association for Sustainability in Business has been lucky enough to be secure some of the experts in the country for our new webinar series.

If you are interested on how others are successfully achieving positive sustainable results within communities, the first webinar of the Liveable Cities Conference: Webinar Series 2020 is all about sustainable design and architecture making a positive impact on the future of sustainable liveable cities.

The first webinar will be held live online on Tuesday 9th of June 2020 between 10:00am – 12:30pm. The schedule includes three successful case studies delivered by keynote speakers, showcasing how sustainability can be implemented into your liveable city through an intellectually sustainable design. Here’s two of the case studies that will be presented online in June as part of the webinar series.

GINNINDERRY PROJECT

Ms Jessica Stewart; the Sustainability Manager of the Ginninderry project will be speaking about how they have effectively advocated homes with smarter energy solutions that have allowed them to uphold their Ginnindery Green Start Communities rating by constructing sustainable dwelling which create the same or more energy than they consume.

EAST VILLAGE AT KNUTSFORD

Ms Naomi Lawrence, the Senior Development Manager at DevelopingWA, will be the second webinar speaker, delivering a presentation on the case study of the East Village at Knutsford, one of the most highly desired villages to live at in Freemantle in Perth.

The three-part webinar series is set to propel you into the future of sustainable design and several steps closer towards achieving the main goal; to improve sustainable lifestyles.

 

 

These Charts Show Just How Much Forest We’re Losing Every Year

The tropics lost 12 million hectares of tree cover in 2018, the fourth-highest annual loss since record-keeping began in 2001.

Of greatest concern is the disappearance of 3.6 million hectares of primary rainforest, an area the size of Belgium. The figures come from updated data from the University of Maryland, released today on Global Forest Watch.

Old growth, or “primary” tropical rainforests, are a crucially important ecosystem, containing trees that can be hundreds or even thousands of years old. They store more carbon than other forests and are irreplaceable when it comes to sustaining biodiversity. Primary rainforests provide habitat for animals ranging from orangutans and mountain gorillas to jaguars and tigers. Once these forests are cut down, they may never return to their original state.

For the first time, new data on the location of primary forests can help distinguish loss of these important forests from other tree cover loss (read more about the data here). The data reveals that despite a growing number of zero-deforestation commitments from governments and companies, primary rainforest loss hit record highs in 2016 and 2017 due to fires and remained above historical levels in 2018.

 

The loss of primary rainforests looks different across regions—including what’s driving it, where it’s happening and its impact. Here’s a deeper look at the trends:

Which countries are losing the most primary rainforest?

 

In 2002, just two countries—Brazil and Indonesia—made up 71 percent of tropical primary forest loss. More recent data shows that the frontiers of primary forest loss are starting to shift. Brazil and Indonesia only accounted for 46 percent of primary rainforest loss in 2018, while countries like Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Democratic Republic of the Congo saw loss rates rise considerably.

Indonesia massively reduced primary forest loss

 

Primary forest loss in Indonesia dropped to its lowest rate since 2003 last year, continuing a hopeful decline that started in 2017. Primary forest loss was 40 percent lower in 2018 than the average annual rate of loss from 2002-2016.

The country saw an even more dramatic decline in forest loss in protected forests, suggesting that recent government policies are working. On peatlands deeper than 3 meters, which have been legally protected from development since 2016, forest loss dropped 80 percent from the 2002-2016 average. And in areas under Indonesia’s forest moratorium, primary forest loss dropped 45 percent in 2018 compared to 2002-2016.

The country is already seeing financial benefits from this decline. In February, Norway announced it will compensate Indonesia for reducing its deforestation-related emissions as part of a climate and forest partnership the two countries signed in 2010.

This article was originally published by the World Economic Forum. Click here to continue reading entire article.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT CREATING HEALTHY, HAPPIER AND MORE SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

Solar uptake spikes on farm & in rural industry in Tasmania.

Tasmania’s uptake of solar power is up 25 per cent, whilst the nationally solar uptake has fallen by 24 per cent over the same period.

The figures come from the government agency, the Clean Energy Regulator (CER), that documents the issue of solar certificates nationally.

Solar power advocates Solar Citizens said the data revealed the trend reversal.

Solar uptake on Tasmanian farms soars

Solar uptake on Tasmanian farms soars

Consumer campaigner with Solar Citizens, Reece Taylor said in the first five months of this year the uptake of small scale solar in Tasmania had been up by at least 25 per cent and could be higher because of the lag in CER publishing monthly results. could be higher.”

“This year there have been over 1,000 installations of small scale domestic and commercial solar compared with less than 800 at the same time last year.”

He said in Tasmania around one in 10 households had solar energy.

“In Queensland the ratio can be one in three so there is plenty of scope for uptake of small scale solar in Tasmania.”

Mr Taylor attributes the turn around to the recent energy crisis when Basslink was disabled, coupled with an extremely dry year which depleted Hydro’s water reserves.

He said people were concluding that Tasmania was not as well equipped as it should be to deal with energy self sufficiency as it should be.

He said this, on top of increasing power costs, was contributing to the rising interest in going solar.

A major project on Bruny Island involves a rollout of solar systems and battery storage to thousands of homes.

It is hoped that power security will address the power blackouts and reliance on diesel generators which are currently used over peak summer holiday times.

He said renewable energy was cheaper, cleaner and more reliable.

Derwent Valley farmer Michael Parsons runs sheep on his property and has invested in 200 hectares of irrigation for cropping.

He has put in a 40 kilowatt system with 250 panels and runs a 30 kilowatt pump to pull bore water from 150 metres.

“I think we are about $6,000 to $7,000 saved annually by running the irrigation on solar.

Other farmers in the district are also making the solar shift with interest in making savings on the operation of cool rooms, milk vats and irrigation.

Read more.

Sheep Cutting Solar Farm’s Maintenance Costs

University of Queensland is saving $50,000 a year in mowing costs at its Gatton campus solar farm by using sheep to keep the vegetation down.

In May last year,  the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) research facility in the southern hemisphere was switched on at Gatton. Comprising of more than 37,000 solar panels, the facility covers a fair bit of ground.

The ABC reports that to mow the grounds used to take 4 days – and cost a significant chunk of change.

Ten sheep were bsheep-solar-farmrought in to help cut mowing costs and seem to be enjoying their new digs; a 4.5 hectare section of the facility.

Given the success of the trial, a further 2.5 hectares will be opened up for the sheep.

It’s not uncommon for livestock to mingle with solar panels. We reported in May that goats and sheep will be used at a solar farm in Japan to help maintain electricity generation at the facility. That scenario goes beyond keeping the grass down – it seems vines growing on fences can throw shadows on some of that plant’s panels, reducing their efficiency.

Renewable energy and agriculture can often go hand-in-hand. Just last week, the Climate Council released a report regarding the renewable energy opportunities available to bush battlers through mixed grazing and electricity generation.

And it’s not just solar power stations where this can be done. At some wind farms across Australia, livestock can be seen contentedly chomping on grassy areas among the turbines, unperturbed by the gentle swooshing of the blades. We’re unaware of any reports of cows suffering from Wind Turbine Syndrome.

One things for sure though, there’s nary a cow to be seen grazing among the electricity generation turbines at the coal-fired Hazelwood Power Station in Victoria; nor sheep in the nearby Morwell open cut coal mine.

Read more.