Posts Tagged ‘design’
Speed Date a Sustainable Designer
Posted in Events by sashashtargot on January 30th, 2012
| 19 February , 2012 | ||
| 1:00 pm | to | 3:00 pm |
Are you renovating or building? Do you have plans and ideas you’d like to discuss with green architects or building designers? The Alternative Technology Association (ATA) would like to invite you to Speed Date a Sustainable Designer.
When: Sunday 19th February
Time: 1-3pm
Where: The Atrium, Federation Square, Melbourne
Speed Date a Sustainable Designer brings together Australia’s leading sustainable architects and building designers so that you can discuss your plans in a relaxed ‘no obligations’ environment.
What to Bring
Bring your sketches, plans and photographs on your tablet, laptop or good old hard copies! The designers will offer solutions, ideas and alternative viewpoints.
You can watch the short YouTube video from the last event here: http://bit.ly/gi1vnt
Supported by bankmecu
A free event. Limited spots available! Bookings are essential. Go to sdsd.ata.org.au
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Planning your 2012 Garden: What to consider
Posted in Models, Research by Kate Archdeacon on January 10th, 2012
Photo by abbybatchelder via flickr CC
Cityfood Growers have a checklist on their blog to help those of us who still don’t have the perfect veggie garden(!) reassess what we want and plan for a better year.
Author Peter Kearney says “January is a great time to get your thinking into planning your food garden for the coming year. In my experience, good planning makes a huge difference to your success. It helps to open your awareness to new knowledge, as you have more an idea of what’s coming, rather than stumbling along. [...] I know that is a lot of questions to work with, but they are all important when you do your plan. I work with these questions each year as I plan my own food gardens.”
The post includes a series of topic areas with several questions to answer in each area. Go through to the Cityfood Grower’s Organic Gardening blog for the full set of questions – not even half of them are included here:
Recap on last year – Be as objective as possible with yourself.
- What crops grew well and crops that did not grow so well?
- Were you being pragmatic enough with your time, i.e. did you hang onto to crops that didn’t produce much and took up a lot of your time and space?
Your garden space
- Can you now manage a bigger food garden, if so design the layout of your new garden and use the right principles for layout?
- Can you improve the design of your existing garden, for example more efficient use of space, better sun and drainage?
Soil fertility
- What is the state of your soil and is it appropriate for the crops you want to grow?
- Are you making compost and if so, are your methods producing enough and of good quality?
- Are you timing your compost making to fit your maximum planting time?
Planting plan
- For your vegetable/herb garden, have you developed a rotation plan for your beds, leave some space for perennials such as herbs?
- Have you chosen the predominant crops for each of your vegetable garden beds and worked out the month of planting using the ideal months?
- Have you chosen companion plants and space filler now that you have chosen your predominant crops for your beds?
Garden management
- Is your garden easy to manage in its current layout and design, if not think about how to make it easier to work with and at the same time generating higher quality soil?
- Are you overusing mulch and could you use more living crops for mulching such as green manure and edible companions?
Pests and diseases
- For your vegetable garden, are you using companion planting to reduce pests?
- Is soil quality your primary pest and disease reduction strategy, if not then make it so?
Your well being
- Have you developed an awareness of how you want to feel in your food garden, as your feelings have a big impact on how the garden grows?
- Will you create space in your busy day to sit in your garden to observe and contemplate?
cityfoodgrowers.com.au
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Maker Faire Melbourne: Inspire, inform, connect, entertain.
Posted in Movements by Kate Archdeacon on January 9th, 2012
A Maker Faire is about celebrating learning and doing – not the finished and perfect end product. It’s a place to share what we’re learning with others, and celebrate the fun and freedom of being an amateur. Featuring both established and emerging local “makers,” the Melbourne Mini Maker Faire is a family-friendly celebration coming to Australasia for the first time on Saturday, January 14th, 2012. It will feature rockets and robots, DIY science and technology, urban farming and sustainability, alternative energy, bicycles, unique hand-made crafts, and educational workshops and installations. Access to the Faire is limited so get in touch before you show up to make sure you can get in!
Want to get involved? Apply to be a Maker on Saturday through the website.
Mini Maker Faires such as this have started to sprout up around the United States, Canada, Europe and now Australia. Maker Faire started back in 2005 as a spin-off of Make Magazine. The Melbourne Mini Maker Faire will follow the big Maker Faire model of celebrating do-it-yourself creativity and tinkering, but will be smaller in scale and – although predominantly showcasing the wonders of the local Melbourne Maker community – will include exhibitors from around Australia and beyond.
Saturday, January 14th, 2012, 10 am to 4pm, Hawthorn
See the Maker Faire Melbourne website for additional information and to register your interest in attending.
Photo from Robots and Dinosaurs (Makers).
Keep Cup Co-Creator: Melbourne Sustainability Drinks
Posted in Events by Kate Archdeacon on December 6th, 2011
| 7 December , 2011 | ||
| 6:00 pm | to | 8:00 pm |
Sustainability Drinks Melbourne is pleased to have Abigail Forsyth as guest speaker for Sustainability Drinks on the 7th of December.
Entrepreneur and mother of two, co-creator and founder of KeepCup, Abigail Forsyth has always been a passionate problem solver. Abigail’s leadership and devotion to finding creative solutions to overcome our impact on the environment has changed the way even the most discerning coffee drinkers enjoy their daily dose and she has since been commended in several globally renowned awards. She was a finalist in the City of London’s Sustainable City Awards (2010), Premier’s Design Awards (2010) and Melbourne Day awards (2010), as well as being shortlisted for the Australian International Design Awards (2010) and the Red Dot Industrial Design Awards Hamburg (2010).
Please note that it is essential to RSVP every month. Due to the ever increasing popularity of the event, it may not be possible to accommodate people who do not RSVP. This is not-for-profit event; i.e. you buy your own drinks, as we choose to come together in the spirit of a shared interest.
6 – 8pm Wednesday 7th December 2011.
Location: Slate Bar & Restaurant Mezzanine, 9 Goldsbrough Lane Melbourne VIC 3000
http://www.melbournesustainabilitydrinks.com/rsvp
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Vision Sunshine 2032: VEIL Exhibition
Posted in Events, Visions by Kate Archdeacon on December 2nd, 2011
| 6 December , 2011 10:00 am | to | 11 December , 2011 5:00 pm |
This exhibition is being hosted by the Victorian Eco Innovation Lab (VEIL). It includes work from University of Melbourne Architecture and Landscape Architecture studios envisioning a sustainable future for Sunshine, as well as a selection of student works from previous studios as part of VEIL’s Eco-Acupuncture studio program 2009-2011.
The exhibition will be launched by Professor Thomas Kvan, Dean, Faculty of Architecture Building and Planning, University of Melbourne.
6 – 11 December
Shop 51, Sunshine Plaza Shopping Centre
324-328 Hampshire Rd
Sunshine
The exhibition is easy to get to via public transport. Download a map.
Open Tuesday-Sunday 10am-5pm.
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Sustainable Melbourne is a VEIL project.
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Green Energy Future Day 2011
Posted in Events by Kate Archdeacon on November 24th, 2011
| 3 December , 2011 | ||
| 10:30 am | to | 3:30 pm |
http://www.ceres.org.au/gefd
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FORUM: Climate Change, Culture + Cuisine
Posted in Events by Kate Archdeacon on November 21st, 2011
| 28 November , 2011 | ||
| 6:00 pm | to | 7:30 pm |
Can we eat our way to a biodiverse future? The future of sustainable food lies in a complete rethink of how humans relate to the natural environment through collective engagement.
Carbon Arts and Arena Project Space invite you to join the Cross(x)Species Adventure Club and engage with New York based artist / engineer /activist Prof Natalie Jeremijenko, chef Mihir Desai and guest speakers to explore how we can use the creative potential of science , modernist cuisine and the imagination to connect food production to healthy ecologies.
Monday 28 November 2011 6.00 – 7.30 PM
Arena Project Space I 2 Kerr St Fitzroy, VIC, 3065
$10 Pay at the door, Concession rate available
Drinks by donation www.arena.org.au/project-space
Cross(x)Species Adventure Club challenges us to expand the idea of the food web, in order to imagine edible interventions that go beyond sustainability to actually augment ecological health. Like the web 2.0 of the food systems, the Cross(x)Species Adventure Club guides us towards participatory, DIY and multi-platform foodsystems. Become an u-farmer, sample edible cocktails with other creatures at the Melbourne Museum, learn how to make buffalo ice-cream from nano-crystals. Come re-imagine, re-incorporate and re-contextualise our collective food future through the course of a tasty communal adventure. Join us and invest in a biodiverse future!
Natalie Jeremijenko (born 1966) is an artist and engineer whose background includes studies in biochemistry, physics, neuroscience and precision engineering. She is an active member of the net.art movement, and her work primarily explores the interface between society, the environment and technology. She is currently an Associate Professor at NYU in the Visual Art Department, and has affiliated faculty appointments in Computer Science and Environmental Studies.
Based in Melbourne, Carbon Arts is a new platform for projects and ideas experimentation in the arts and sustainability. We generate collaborative and creative solutions for a changing climate by working across the arts, science, technology and economics. At the heart of our practice is the belief that creativity is essential in making the transition to a sustainable future, and that the journey should be playful, fun and rewarding.
For more information on all events visit: www.carbonarts.org Or phone Arena: 416 0232
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Cultivating Green Art: Ideas & Solutions For Environmental Sustainability
Posted in Events by Kate Archdeacon on November 18th, 2011
| 24 November , 2011 | ||
| 5:20 pm | to | 7:30 pm |
City of Melbourne, TippingPoint Australia and the Danish Arts Agency have combined to bring you some of Melbourne and Copenhagen’s most exciting cultural innovators as they discuss how they see the artists in their cities respond to the challenge of environmental sustainability. Contribute to the Café Conversations style evening and have interactive creative conversations on the issues they raise.
Speakers
- Karen Blincoe – Graphic Designer, Environmentalist and Director International Centre for Creativity Innovation and Sustainability, Denmark
- Miyuki Jokiranta – Journalist and Managing Director, Seven Thousand Oaks, Melbourne
- Martin Mulligan – Director RMIT Globalism Research Centre, Melbourne
- Katrine Vejby – Journalist and Radio Producer, Founding Festival Director of co2penhagen, Denmark
Facilitator: Angharad Wynne-Jones – Director of TippingPoint Australia, Melbourne
Date: Thursday 24 November 2011
Time: 5.00pm for 5.20 start to 7.30pm. NOTE EARLY TIME
Venue: Melbourne Town Hall, Supper Room, Swanston Street, Melbourne
FREE ENTRY BOOKINGS ARE ESSENTAIL. Call 0421 642012 and leave a message or visit http://www.trybooking.com/ZNO to register.
A joint presentation by TippingPoint Australia and Melbourne Conversations. Supported by the Danish Arts Agency and ³State of Green. Join the Future. Think Denmark, Sydney and Melbourne 20-24 November 2011.
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Retrofittable Window Insulation
Posted in Models, Research by Kate Archdeacon on November 14th, 2011
Source: EcoVoice
Photo by sanbeiji via flickr CC
In October 2011 MEP Films launched Enerlogic® Window Film, a retrofit window film designed to give single-glazed windows the thermal performance of triple-glazed windows. Adding up to 92% more insulation to windows, it can deliver year-round results in cold, warm or mixed climates, with two types of film available. Enerlogic®35 has been designed to deflect 99% UV rays and 76% solar heat, and is suited to warmer climates. Enerlogic® 70 allows the winter sun’s natural light and warmth to enter the building while shielding the heat from the summer sun, for cooler climates.
Read more about this product on Eco-Voice.
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NB: We try not to promote specific products here on Sustainable Melbourne, and we can’t endorse a brand, but this seemed like a product that would be of interest. KA
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10,000 Raingardens Program: Add yours to the list
Posted in Movements, Research by Kate Archdeacon on September 20th, 2011
Melbourne Water’s 10,000 Raingardens Program promotes a new, responsible way of gardening so everybody can create their own water sensitive garden and do their bit to help the environment and protect our rivers and creeks.
The aim of the program is to show you how easy it is to create a water efficient garden in your own backyard. By building a raingarden you will enjoy the benefits of a self watering, low maintenance garden while also contributing to healthier waterways by reducing the amount of pollutants that would otherwise wash into our rivers and creeks. Until now we have been working with local councils and the community to create raingardens in public spaces such as streets, parks and schools. The program has recently expanded and we are now providing easy, step by step instructions so people can design, build and maintain raingardens in their own homes. Our target is to see 10,000 raingardens built across Melbourne by 2013. To achieve this we need your help.
>>Find out what a raingarden is, why you should build a raingarden and how to build one. (And then add yours to the Map!)
http://raingardens.melbournewater.com.au/
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