Carlingford, Normanhurst students bid to save the world
CARLINGFORD High School and Normanhurst Boys High School are among the five schools leading the way in planning a cleaner and sustainable future.
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â– Five North Shore schools will begin initiatives linked to global Sustainable Development
Goals
■ Each school’s local climate initiative aligns to one of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.
CARLINGFORD High School and Normanhurst Boys High School are among the five schools leading the way in planning a cleaner and sustainable future.
They are all are linked to the Global Sustainable Development Goals to make a positive impact on climate change in their local area.
The schools are involved through the Bright Sparks Program which is run by Macquarie University Law School in partnership with Ku-ring-gai Council.
The schools in the project, including Brigidine College, Chatswood High School and Masada College and Normanhurst Boys High School, have each created an initiative aligned to a global sustainable development goal of their choosing to help shape the way their local environment will look like by 2030.
“Bright Sparks aims to ignite learning and teaching across secondary and tertiary education, project co-ordinator and Macquarie Law School’s Dr. Kirsten Davies said.
At Carlingford High, students are developing an information pack that could be used to inform other schools on how to access and implement the use of solar panels within their school.
Student Charlie Kipping said he is keen on doing something about climate change because every summer, the temperature reaches a new high.
“The heat is extremely uncomfortable for me ... if you think of all the poor animals on the land and in the sea that have to endure the heat that they were not adapted for might kill them,” Charlie said.
“That is very concerning for me.
“I think that using more renewable resources such as solar panels, wind farms, and making biodegradable packaging would drastically change the current system and definitely make the planet greener.”
The school is focusing on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 7 regarding affordable and clean energy.
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE
“In Carlingford High School, we have a devoted science extension team in which we are in the process of creating an information package for other schools to help buy and install solar panels, in which they can use as an alternate from the energy grid,” Charlie said.
“On our website, there will be an interactive section where students and teachers can watch a video that progresses through time without sustainability actions, and another with them.
His colleague Jamaie Barnacoat said: “I believe that climate change is one of the biggest environmental issues facing the world today, and needs to be addressed soon to prevent further irreversible damage to the world’s ecosystems.
“I am especially keen to do my part about climate change as it is a dream of mine to be able to see that pristine, untouched environments would still exist in my lifetime.”
Another Carlingford High student, Alban Aziz, admitted that climate change is a problem that many people dismiss as being a hoax.
“We don’t want to hear that our planet is dying, especially if it is by our own hand,” Alban said.
“We need to stop ignoring the problem and work together to stop it before the chances become slimmer than they already are.
“The reason we are keen to do something about climate change is because this will affect not only present events, but will affect our world for years to come.”
Normanhurst Boys High School is focusing on sustainable development goal 11 based on sustainable cities and communities.
Project team leader and school vice-captain Brandon Velleley said climate change is a massive problem because it creates more extreme weather events.
CARBON POSITIVE
“We, as the future generation will experience its longer term effects and we need to be proactive about how we can make a difference now and into the future,” Brandon said.
“Through combining our interests as geography and economics students, we devised a plan for future Sydney housing that addressed the ecological footprint of humans.
“We have approached sustainability in three ways: by reducing waste, reusing useful demolition waste and increasing our use of renewable energy sources.
“Our design included a state of the art in-home system which made our house carbon positive, in which the panels collected net energy.
“By assessing various strategies to achieve our goals, a design was formulated that we believe could improve sustainability outcomes by 2030. Focusing on sustainability measures is our way to help make the planet greener.
“We chose to research sustainable housing, as due to Sydney’s growing population, and increase in houses being built, this particular topic is of great importance.”
Brandon said that Normanhurst Boys High School reduces waste through recycling programs and the environmental committee is currently trying to raise money to install solar panels to reduce their energy impact.
“We felt that the Bright Sparks project provided us with a platform to voice our opinion and propose some solutions to promoting sustainable housing,” he said.
“The presentations by the five schools involved are to be uploaded onto YouTube and on the Macquarie University website.
■ In collaboration with Ku-ring-gai Council, Bright Sparks was developed by Macquarie Law School Centre for Environmental Law, the Future Students team and a multi-disciplinary team of experts across Macquarie University.