TropEco News - Third Edition

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TropEco NEWS

Pedal Power

Better bike facilities and services are planned for JCU

Issue 3 January - March 2012

Editorial Letter from the Editor fertiliser for application on JCU grounds.

Staff and student sustainability related competitions such as the Green Office Program and Green Colleges Program.

Development of community garden sites on the Cairns and Townsville Campuses and assisting Rotary students with the existing Sunshine Edible Garden.

Issue 3 January - March 2012 Editor: Adam Connell Sub Editor: Suzy Keys

Contents 3.

What’s happening?

4.

Pedal Power by Craig McDonald

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Renewable Energy by 2020 by Sue-Ann Watson

7. The TropEco Awards 2011 by Adam Connell 10. ACTing Sustainably by Lania Lynch 11. How to use JCU’s Recycling System by Adam Connell

Contribute to TropEco News Do you have a sustainability related story or event you want to tell people about?

Please send it into tropeco@jcu.edu.au with any relevant pictures and we may put it up on the TropEco Facebook page or publish it in TropEco News.

JCU student and cyclist Sandy Perkins was a lucky winner of the TropEco $400 voucher on Ride to Work Day 2011. Photo: Suzy Keys.

Welcome to a new year at JCU and one that promises to be an exciting one for TropEco. There is a lot planned for 2012, with the sustainability agenda high on everyone's priority list.

Some of the projects and areas we will focus on this year include: Installing drinking water fountains in public areas and discouraging the purchasing of bottled water. TropEco will be providing stainless steel drink bottles to promote this program.

Installing six energy use displays in building foyers to highlight energy use, and promote energy conservation by staff and students.

Installing a free bike share program at the Townsville Campus colleges to promote use of sustainable transport on campus. This will be rolled out to all campus users later in the year if successful.

Revegetation of Goondaloo Creek upstream of Solander Rd, through funding provided by the Dahl Trust and TropEco. Installation of a Bio-Regen food digesting unit at Uni Halls kitchen, to recycle all food waste into a liquid bio-

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TropEco will continue to support the student Green Team in their sustainability and environmental campaigns and activities.

Building on our relationships with community groups to attract high profile guest speakers and hold events and workshops that promote sustainable behaviors within our community.

Working with organisations such as the JCU Bicycle Users Group (BUG) and Sunbus to promote sustainable transport options for staff and students.

To all the new students and staff at JCU this year, TropEco would like to extend a warm welcome and we hope to work with you in the coming year and beyond.

Adam Connell Manager, Environment Division of Finance and Resource Planning, James Cook University, Angus Smith Drive, Douglas, Qld 4811 P: +61 7 4781 5060 Mobile: 0459 097 253 E:adam.connell@jcu.edu.au

What’s Happening?

Adam Connell JCU named in “Top 10 Greenest Universities” In a recent article in The Australian, JCU was ranked 9th in Australia's 10 greenest universities. This is a great result and something we can improve on in future years with the roll out of sustainable initiatives through TropEco linked with our strength in environmental and sustainability related teaching, learning and research.: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher -education/australias-10-greenestuniversities/story-e6frgcjx1226215407489

Green Office Challenge Winners The TropEco Green Office Challenge saw JCU Schools and Offices competing to reduce their paper usage during November with the chance of winning some great prizes.

The major prize winners this year were: Corporate Planning & Performance for the greatest reduction in paper use compared to November 2010. They made an 80% reduction in their paper use and were the clear winners in this category.

Information & Technology Resources won the major prize for the lowest number of impressions per staff member, displaying their use of green technology to reduce paper use. ITR narrowly pipped Corporate Planning & Performance for the second major prize, with an average number of impressions per staff of just 150 for the month.

Overall paper use for November 2011 was 5% lower than in November 2010, resulting in over $5000 in savings for the month.

For the results of your Office or School and the various prizes allocated go to: Prizes will be distributed to winning http://www.jcu.edu.au/tropeco/sustaina tjcu/recyclingwaste/JCU_094804.html Offices or Schools in early 2012.

Well done to everyone who competed and all prize winners for reducing their paper consumption.

Bike Share Program Students living on campus in one of the JCU owned colleges now have a new, environmentally friendly way to get to lectures. TropEco is trialing a new bike share program that allows residents to hire a bike for free day use to get around campus.

With bike parking located outside all major buildings on campus, cycling to classes provides a fast, hassle-free way to get around campus.

There are four bikes located at Rotary International House, University Halls and George Roberts Halls and these can be hired by residents through the relevant office. All students need to bring is a helmet and a $20 deposit, which will be refunded on safe return of the bike.

A bike lock and key are supplied with each bike so students can secure the bike at their destination.

Promoting Beyond Zero Emissions Matthew Wright, Executive Director of Zero Carbon Australia and 2010 Young Environmentalist of the Year, will be visiting JCUs Townsville and Cairns Campuses in mid April.

Matthew will be doing a series of presentations and guest lectures while here and will work with the participants of the recent workshop to further promote the Beyond Zero Emissions program.

To be kept up to date with this and other TropEco News, sign up to the TropEco mailing list by emailing tropeco@jcu.edu.au or find us on Facebook - TropEco James Cook Uni

Green Links Ethical Consumer Guide Will help you make everyday choices to help you change your world.

There is a supermarket shopping guide and if you like seafood you can buy a guide to sustainable seafood to help you make the right choices. http://www.ethical.org.au/shop/ Local Harvest Local Harvest is a website being launched at the Sustainable Living Festival on February 17-19 in Melbourne. the aim of the site is to assist people to find sources of local food and how to grow their own. http://www.localharvest.org.au/

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Pedal Power

As part of the Ride to Work Day festivities in October 2011, TropEco gave away a $400 bike voucher to one lucky cyclist on each campus to encourage them to continue their daily cycling commute.

The winner for the Townsville Campus was Margaret Smith, from the Faculty of Arts and Social Science. The Cairns Campus winner was Sandy Perkins, a JCU student who donated her voucher to a friend. Sandy rides to JCU regulalry and is an experienced rider who has cycled across Europe on her bike.

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Sandy (pictured ) decided to use her $400 voucher to get another rider on the road.

Craig McDonald Reports on the Ride to Work Day Day in Townsville

Townsville put pedal power on the agenda for Ride To Work Day reports Craig McDonald from http://townsvillenewsonline.com/) Townsville commuters put the pedal to a different type of metal today as Ride To Work day pushed off and pedalled its way around the 'Ville.

The day saw over 200 registered cyclists from James Cook University and the Townsville General Hospital hit the streets to promote sustainable commuting in Townsville. Meanwhile, over 20 riders made the commute to the JCU Cairns Campus in hot, humid conditions.

A healthy and much deserved breakfast was provided to those that made the effort on both campuses, with the hospital putting on an impressive array of food in Townsville, while in Cairns TropEco and the JCU BUG helped feed the hungry commuters.

In Townsville it was an unusually foggy start to the day, making the ride quite eerie for those that got up early. It made for cool, damp conditions, and meant bike lights were a must until the sun burnt away the clouds, uncovering a spectacular morning.

Over 150 staff and students from JCU registered for the day with over 80 from the hospital, showing that there is a big supporter base for cycling in Townsville and Cairns

At the breakfast there was plenty of socialising, comparing of bikes and sharing of stories - from nearly being run over to how far people had come everyone was in good spirits.

One JCU cyclist rode all the way from Jensen for the first time, going on an off-road adventure and encountering barbed wire fences and other challenging obstacles on the way.

However she made it through unscathed and her experience raised some relevant questions about the provision of adequate bicycle access to the northern beaches. This applies to Cairns as well as Townsville.

For many others they were just following their normal routine of riding to work or uni, although today they were rewarded for their efforts.

Several groups were involved in organising the day including the JCU BUG, Townsville General Hospital and TropEco. Senior Deputy ViceChancellor, Professor Andy Vann was also a key contributor, providing funds toward the day and also attending the breakfast in support of cycling.

Video interview: http://vzaar.tv/848289

Lania Lynch and Eric Wilson (far right) welcomed riders with breakfast after the Ride to Work at Cairns Campus. Photo: Belinda Parkes

Better Bike Facilities and Services at JCU With a flat landscape, great weather and abundant bike paths, JCU is a great place for riding your bike to Uni. PLUS you don't have to worry about finding a car park or paying for a parking permit as you can park right outside your lecture theatre for free.

This year TropEco is teaming up with the JCU BUG to bring even better services to JCU's bicycle users. In 2012 the JCU BUG will be utilising its workshop located at the Library's Secure Bike Facility. The BUG plans to help bike users maintain their bikes and will also fix up abandoned bikes to be resold to students.

In January this year the JCU colleges donated over 50 abandoned bicycles to the BUG. Bikes that are in good condition will be repaired by BUG volunteers and re-sold to students during O-week and bikes in poor condition will be used for parts.

There are also plans to hold regular bike maintenance training workshops out of the BUG workshop during the year to teach staff and students how to keep their bikes in top shape.

The secure bike facility at the library was installed last year and provides staff and students with undercover, swipe card access controlled bike parking and lockers and also includes a chilled drinking water fountain, clothes line and tyre pump.

To gain access to the facility, fill out a form from the BUG website and take it to JCU security along with your staff or student card.

Check out the BUG website for more information on cycling at JCU www.jcu.edu.au/soc/bug/ Link to form http://www.jcu.edu.au/tropeco/public/gr oups/everyone/documents/information _about/jcuprd1_071583.pdf

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Renewable energy by 2020 Australia can run entirely on renewable energy by 2020 Beyond Zero Emission’s presenter training showed how it work, writes Sue-Ann Watson.

Last November, JCU Townsville hosted a Beyond Zero Emissions (BZE) presenter training course thanks to the support of TropEco. Beyond Zero Emissions Inc. is a not-for-profit research and education organisation working in partnership with the University of Melbourne Energy Research Institute.

The primary outcome of this collaboration is the award-winning Zero Carbon Australia (ZCA) 2020 Project, which provides fully-costed transition plans to transform Australia from a 19th century fossil fuel based economy to a 21st century renewable powered clean tech economy in just ten years. The good news is: it can be done and we were there to find out how.

North Queenslanders from as far as Ingham and Cairns attended the training course. The first course of its kind in North Queens-land, several members of JCU were fortunate enough to attend thanks again to the funds and training space provided by TropEco. During the course we learnt 6

the role of BZE and how to present the ZCA plan. Developed methodically by scientists and engineers, this plan sets out real solutions to power Australia entirely with renewable energy sources and, best of all, the technology is already available commercially.

feasibility of the ZCA. At the end of the course, after being unable to pick any holes in the well-researched ZCA plan, the 16 excited, newly-trained presenters formed a North Queensland branch of BZE in Townsville to coordinate talks about the ZCA plan.

Each stage of the ZCA plan tackles one component of Australia's energy needs. Presenters learned about the 'Stationary Energy Plan', which describes how all the energy generated by power stations in Australia can be completely replaced by renewable sources, primarily solar thermal, within ten years.

We were pleased to learn that Australia is one of the best-placed countries in the world to convert entirely to renewable energy, thanks to low population densities and a reliably sunny climate.

The plan also factors in population growth and changes in energy usage.

Future plans, again based on existing technology, will cover the other 5 sectors: buildings, transport, land use, industrial processes and coal exports.

There was a lot to learn and participants eagerly grilled BZE trainers James Bramwell and Emma Carton with a multitude of questions about the

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To find out how to get Australia to zero emissions and beyond or to book a BZE ZCA talk, please contact the addresses below. http://beyondzeroemissions.org to download free copies of the ZCA plan or email the QLD talks coordinator emma@beyondzeroemissions.org or the NQ/Townsville coordinator gail@beyondzeroemissions.org to get involved or to answer any questions not covered in the FAQ section on the website.

The TropEco Excellence Award Janet Dearden University Services Division Janet was instrumental in developing the Environmental Sustainability Action Plan 2012-2014 for the University Services Division, which has also been used as the template for the Division of Finance and Resource Planning Environmental Sustainability Action Plan 2012-2014.

This plan maps out actions to be taken over the next three years to reduce JCU's environmental footprint for its two operational divisions.

As part of her studies, completing a Graduate Certificate in Sustainability at Swinburne, Janet and her study group developed a comprehensive change management plan for the implementation of the Bio-Regen unit, soon to be installed in Uni Hall's kitchen.

This unit will divert up to half a tonne of food waste from landfill each week, which will then be converted to a biofertiliser to be used on JCU grounds to improve soil and plant health and waterholding capacity.

Janet also worked on implementing a scheme for staff to be able to donate through salary sacrifice to charity organisations, specifically the Cassowary Fund through the Rainforest Foundation.

Janet has been influential in asking JCU to move to recycled content paper and has provided information on how we could go about implementing this..

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TropEco Awards 2011 Members of the James Cook University Community who contributed to the success of TropEco in 2011 were recognised at ceremonies in Cairns and Townsville writes Adam Connell TropEco held its first Awards and Recognition night recently to recognise those who have contributed toward a more sustainable JCU through the TropEco program.

TropEco would like to congratulate all award winners and thank those who have contributed this year to its successes.

The awards winners are listed below:

Staff and students on the Townsville and Cairns Campuses were thanked for their efforts this year with several taking out awards for their outstanding contributions in 2011.

There were several awards presented with the major award being the TropEco Excellence Award. This award is presented to the staff member or student who has made the most outstanding contribution to JCU's sustainability for 2011.

The TropEco Excellence Award Janet Dearden – University Services Division- See previous page.

Townsville Awards Outstanding Contribution Award – Staff Troy Morris – (pictured below) Facilities Management Office - for his work with reducing energy consumption through the Building Management System.

Outstanding Contribution Award – Student Mathew Townsend (Uni Halls) - for his volunteer efforts as a green rep in educating residents in sustainable behaviours at Uni Halls Best Initiative – Staff or student Adella Edwards – Bicycle Users Group President - for Ride to Work Day TropEco Shield – College sustainability competition 1st semester – Western Courts for the Low Carbon Diet Challenge 2nd semester – St Mark College for the Recycling Challenge and Suitcase Rummage Market

Photos pp.7-8: Adam Connell

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Awards made by artist Sue Tilley from recycled materials.

Above: Award winners Eric Wilson left, and Emma Baker (second from the right) received their awards in Cairns from JCU Vice Chancellor, Professor Sandra Harding (far right, while Lania Lynch, Cairns Environment Officer( second from left) was MC.

Cairns Awards Outstanding Contribution Award Janet Millington – Student and President of the Cairns Permaculture Club for her success in hosting international lawyer, Polly Higgins in Cairns and partnering in Polly's public lecture at JCU Cairns.

Outstanding Contribution Award – Student Emma Baker (Cairns Student Association) - for promotion of the Envirobank and troubleshooting and giving general advice on operation.

Best Initiative – Staff or student Eric Wilson – Cairns Bicycle Users Group President - for Ride to Work Day and support of TropEco at Cairns campus.

Top Right: Environmental lawyer, Polly Higgins with Janet Millington who was recognised for her outstanding contributions. Photos by Suzy Keys

Tokens of appreciation were also awarded to several people who have contributed to TropEco this year. These include: Nola Alloway for developing a formal partnership between FAESS and TropEco Deborah Cavanagh for her significant efforts as a Sustainability Champion for SASS ·Lorna Hempstead for her involvement in promoting sustainability and securing funding for the Trees After Yasi project Russell Rankin for linking SOCA's curriculum with TropEco Damien Watson & Maria Edmondstone for developing the Entertainment Book program and putting the proceeds toward building Energy Management Displays Laura Dunstan from NQ Dry Tropics for linking TropEco with community volunteers Jayne Chugg for getting the JCU Green Team started and her ongoing

efforts toward promoting sustainability to the JCU student community.

Leon Van Wyk for running the Rotary Community Garden event and assisting with permaculture and community garden design advice Dilki Wannairachchi for her work in mapping the significant trees on campus Tricia Brand for her support of TropEco and embedding sustainability in Senior Management thinking.

Ross Honniball, Manger Cairns Bookshop for his support of TropEco throughout the year, particularly in sellingPolly Higgins “Eradicating Ecocide” book at her JCU public lecture.

Suzy Keys, Communications Officer TropEco for her professionalism, quick response to deadlines and great editing style.

Jonathon Lemon, Manager Cairns Student Association for support of TropEco events throughout the year.

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ACTing Sustainably The 11th ACTS International Conference in Adelaide was a big hit with attendees and sponsors. Lania Lynch was also inspired.

Hosted by the University of Adelaide, the 11th ACTS annual conference took place at the National Wine Centre in Adelaide, 28-30 September 2011.

The event was a huge success with record numbers of attendees and sponsors from across Australia, New Zealand and internationally.

The theme for the conference: “Sustainability as Core Business Building the Case for Change”, aptly addressed this challenge faced by the tertiary education sector.

The conference explored how sustainability fits into core business and provided tools and techniques to enable the required change.

With a panel of distinguished keynote speakers, the conference was attended by over 120 delegates, who engaged with presentations on a wide variety of topics which addressed campus sustainability and education for sustainability.

The conference brought together leaders, academics, sustainabilityfocused decision makers, environmental managers, engineering and technical staff, as well as students from the tertiary education sector, business and government throughout Australia and New Zealand.

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As part of the new international collaboration efforts, Leanne Denby (ACTS President) facilitated an open session to draw input into the national and international tertiary education response for Rio + 20.

Management Tool overview. Some delegates chose to kick off the long weekend by attending one of two conference field trips ‚ a sustainability tour of Adelaide or a biodynamic winery tour in Norton Summit.

Jimmy Brannigan, a representative from ACTS international sister organisation Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC) hosted a productive session on how to create Net Positive Leadership in your organisation.

All in all it was a successful, fun-filled and inspiring conference through which delegates created and strengthened networks, and gained insights, motivation, and ideas to further embed sustainability into the core business of their respective institutions.

From tips on using social media to create change for sustainability right through to practical ideas on how to build sustainability into the core business of Learning and Teaching, the 11th International ACTS conference was as diverse as it was inspiring.

The next ACTS Conference which will be in Brisbane, Queensland 26-28 September 2012, so save the date and check out the conference scholarships on the ACTS website.

A highlight of the conference was the Conference Dinner, where delegates enjoyed a hard-earned night of celebration. The food and wines were a delicious accompaniment to celebrating the achievements of the Green Gown Awards Australasia Award winners.

The Retro Photo Booth was a hit and delegates danced the night away at the beautiful National Wine Centre.

The conference wrapped up with a sector update and a LiFE Performance

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ACTS Membership Free for all JCU staff and students.

Did you know that ACTS membership is free for all JCU staff and students?

Why not join today and access the member benefits?

Find out the latest in sustainability across the Australasian tertiary sector by subscribing to the bimonthly enACT, ACTivate and member spotlights.

Why not ‘like’ ACTS on facebook to keep up to date?

How to use JCU’s recycling system TropEco has implemented an easy to use recycling system at the Townsville Campus and a similar system will be rolled out in 2012 in Cairns.

The system is colour coordinated and uses the Queensland Government’s public place recycling signage for ease of use writes Adam Connell.

However, there are a few things you need to remember to ensure your waste ends up in the right place.

Before you throw it away, first remember to Avoid, Reduce and Reuse before you Recycle, and try to always avoid landfill waste.

General Recycling Bin

This bin can be used for anything that is not recyclable, such as: Food scraps (try to compost them or use a Bokashi bin if you can) Plastic bags and wrapping (avoid single use plastic bags where possible) Coffee cups (they cant be recycled as they have a plastic lining to stop them leaking - get a TropEco KeepCup instead) Polystyrene Broken glass

Boxes must be flattened and any plastic wrap or polystyrene removed.

Packaging tape can be left on the boxes.

Confidential Waste

Office Paper Confidential waste can be disposed of in the orange Shred-X bins. Please be aware that this waste will not be recycled and ends up in landfill. If its not confidential, please use the blue office paper bins.

This is just like your household recycle bin and is identified by the yellow lid and Recycle Here sticker.

Items that can be recycled here include: Aluminium and steel cans Hard plastic bottles and containers with the recycle symbol, numbers 1 -6.

Glass bottles and jars Paper, newspapers and magazines, Cardboard

General Waste Bin

Office Eco Bins This is a blue bin with a paper recycling sticker on the front. Only office paper should be recycled in these bins.

Cardboard, magazines, newspapers, books and phone books should go in the yellow general recycle bins.

TropEco has handed out 700 red desktop waste and blue desk side paper recycle bins. These have become very popular and help staff to minimize the waste they send to landfill and separate their paper waste.

Cardboard

Cardboard skips are located outside major buildings on campus. These are for recycling of large cardboard boxes.

Photos: Adam Connell

There are currently none in stock but if you would like these bins for your office please contact tropeco@jcu.edu.au and we will let you know when some are available.

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Be part of the positive change happening at JCU

Join the ‘Student

Green Team’

Social meetings every fortnight Share and discuss ideas Movie nights every month Link with other green groups Get involved with volunteering Campus clean - up days Contacts to get involved Kate Nairn kate.nairn@jcu.edu.au Recycled markets days or Jane Chugg Meet like-minded people jane.chugg@my.jcu.edu.au