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= [[Sustainable Computers]] =
= [[Sustainable Computers]] =
= Transition Engineering =
* Can Transition Engineering keep global temperature rise to 1.5degC?
* Introduction to the Raspberry Pi and Linux
** Why is this small computer good for the environment?
** How can installing Linux on an old laptop help the planet?
** Have you ever pulled apart a laptop? We’ll show you how.
** Stop e-waste. Build your own computer from spare parts
** How to install Linux software, navigate and more.
** What is a sustainable, low carbon computer?
* Build a temperature sensor for a rabbit hutch or chicken coop
** Why chickens and rabbits are a smart choice for managing food waste.
** Chicken and rabbits don’t like the heat or extreme cold. Build a temperature sensor to monitor their environment.
** To keep cool - add some thermal mass.
** Light coloured roofs and insulation keep buildings cooler for longer
** Build a solar powered fan. Batteries not included.
* Composting and worm farming
** How to eliminate food waste and stop GHG emissions coming from landfill.
** To compost or worm farm? What is best for me?
** How to build a DIY worm farm using foam boxes
** How to build a DIY composting bin using wire mesh and string
** Build a temperature sensor to monitor you hot compost
** Why are some composts hot and others cold?
* Smart tanks, flooding and droughts
** Climate change will bring more extreme weather such as intense rain and droughts.
** Convert your raintank into a smart tank using a pressure sensor
** Learn how to collect weather data using a Raspberry Pi and predict rain events
** Animals such as the Australian platypus are threatened by climate change. You can help.
* Solar hot water
** How does a solar hot water system work?
** How much electric power does a solar hot water system use in comparison to a heat pump or gas?
** Build a temperature sensor and monitor the temperature gain of a portable camping shower.
** How low can you go? Try showering in cooler water. Its better for you.
* Local food production
** Growing food at school and at home lowers GHG emissions. Why?
** Learn to plant fruit and nut trees.
** Build a soil moisture sensor for a veggie garden
** Soil moisture sensors show us that deep watering is better than shallow watering.
* Bees, native bees and other pollinators
** Bees and other pollinators are vital for food production.
** Build sensors to monitor the temperature and mass of a bee hive.
** How do bees regulate the temperature in their hive? When are bees most active?
** Build a sensor to monitor bee hive activity.
** Learn how to choose plant specties for a pollinator garden to attract birds and insects
* Solar Photo Voltaic (PV) systems with battery storage
** How does solar PV systems work?
** How does it compare to other forms non-renewable and renewable energy sources (EROI)? What are the pros and cons?
** How to build a solar PV system with battery storage for a Tiny House.
** How much energy can a battery hold?
** How much energy do electrical appliances use?
* Solar PV systems without battery storage
** what can run just on a solar PV system? pumps, fridges?
** Why is it better to use a PV system without batteries
** Build a solar monitoring system using a Raspberry Pi.
* Household energy usage
** How much energy do houses use?
** How to read meters, utility bills and monitor energy usage?
** Installing smart meters and using mobile apps to monitor energy usage.
** Simple ways to reduce energy consumption in homes.
* Passive House
** what is a passive house and how does it work?
** How to calculate the energy efficiency of your house. What are R and U values?
** Use a temperature sensor to measure the heat gain and loss of a model house
** Energy efficiency is sometimes better than energy production
* Energy efficient lighting
** How much energy does lighting use in a house?
** What type of lighting should I choose?
** Are their any health effects from exposure to blue light and flickering. What is warm lighting?
** How can we screen blue light?
** Are personal headlamps the future for energy efficient lighting?
* Batteries
** how do batteries work and what types exist?
** Are rechargable batteries better than single use batteries?
** How do you check batteries and how to charge them?
** Batteries also contribute to e-waste. How to care for and dispose of batteries.
* Mechanical Ventillation and Heat Recover (MVHR)
** How do heat exchangers work?
** Air tightness and the need for ventillation in houses.
** Build a sensor to measure the performance of MVHR systems
* Aquarium water quality monitor
** Fish and other aquatic animals need good quality water to live
** Build sensors to measure temperature, pH, conductivity and dissolved oxygen in a fish tank
** Learn how to build a Dashboard using a Raspberry pi to monitor your aquarium
** Learn how to calibrate sensors
** Stormwater and intense rain events can be devestating for aquatic animals. How can we fix this?
* Water pumps
** You need a water pump to grow your own food. Why?
** Rainwater tanks help improve our waterways and enviornment. Find out why.
** How do pumps work and how much energy do they use?
** What is a header tank and how can I make one?
** How to install a water pump for your garden.


= Simplicity =
= Simplicity =

Revision as of 20:22, 21 April 2022

This web site is an experiment with local students, residents and public agencies to see if participative governance and more open information sharing between agencies can promote healthier waterways in the Whittlesea municipality. In a low carbon and resource constrained future we will all need to explore better methods of engagement and knowledge sharing to protect our communities and the natural environment.

Waterways and Waterbodies in Whittlesea

The main waterways in the Whittlesea municipality include the Plenty river, Darebin creek, Edgars creek and the Merri creek. In addition there are waterbodies (lakes and wetlands) that provide habitat for plants and animals.

Link to Melbourne Water Wetland and Lake Assets. Database helps to identify if a waterbody is managed by Melbourne Water. The database has some errors. Blue shading indicates Melbourne Water asset. Other assets not shaded may be Council assets or private assets.

Smart Cities 2021

The Smart Cities course was offered to students in 2021 at the Whittlesea Tech School. Click on individual lessons below.

Smart Cities 2022

Term 1


Term 2

  • Smart Cities - Data Visualisation using the Node-RED dashboard
  • Smart Cities - Create a Web page in HTML
  • Smart Cities - Add Cascading Style Sheets to your web page
  • Smart Cities - Creating Dynamic web pages using Python
  • Smart Cities - Use Tinkercad to design components for an Environmental sensor
  • Smart Cities - Laser cutting and 3D printing using Tinkercad
  • Smart Cities - Collecting sensor data from Janefield wetlands
  • Smart Cities - Creating a web page for Janefield wetlands
  • Smart Cities - Making your web page live on GitHub Pages
  • Smart Cities - Solar PV power with battery storage

Term 3

  • Smart Cities - Wetland excursion to Janefield wetlands
  • Smart Cities - Exploring analog sensors - turbidity sensor
  • Smart Cities - Getting weather data from the Bureau of Meteorology
  • Smart Cities - Learn to build and use a Soil moisture sensor
  • Smart Cities - Learn to use a distance sensor to measure rainwater tank levels
  • Smart Cities - Using Plotly and Python to graph data
  • Smart Cities - Customising web sites for mobile devices
  • Smart Cities - Adding a Drop Down Menu to a web site

Term 4

  • Smart Cities - Discussion about other Smart City Solutions
  • Smart Cities - Using data to bring about Change
  • Smart Cities - Build a Smart Bee Hive using load sensors
  • Smart Cities - Build a Smart Bee Hive using Infra-Red beam sensors
  • Smart Cities - Build a Solar hot water shower with a LoRa temperature sensor
  • Smart Cities - Build a tiny energy efficient house with a LoRa temperature sensor
  • Smart Cities - Grow tomato plants in pots using a LoRa soil moisture sensor
  • Smart Cities - Build a hot greenhouse to raise seedlings
  • Smart Cities - Build a LoRa GPS litter picker

Sensors

Instructions on how to build individual sensors that can be used in school environmental monitoring projects.

Student projects

The Things Network

Sustainable Computers

Transition Engineering

  • Can Transition Engineering keep global temperature rise to 1.5degC?
  • Introduction to the Raspberry Pi and Linux
    • Why is this small computer good for the environment?
    • How can installing Linux on an old laptop help the planet?
    • Have you ever pulled apart a laptop? We’ll show you how.
    • Stop e-waste. Build your own computer from spare parts
    • How to install Linux software, navigate and more.
    • What is a sustainable, low carbon computer?
  • Build a temperature sensor for a rabbit hutch or chicken coop
    • Why chickens and rabbits are a smart choice for managing food waste.
    • Chicken and rabbits don’t like the heat or extreme cold. Build a temperature sensor to monitor their environment.
    • To keep cool - add some thermal mass.
    • Light coloured roofs and insulation keep buildings cooler for longer
    • Build a solar powered fan. Batteries not included.
  • Composting and worm farming
    • How to eliminate food waste and stop GHG emissions coming from landfill.
    • To compost or worm farm? What is best for me?
    • How to build a DIY worm farm using foam boxes
    • How to build a DIY composting bin using wire mesh and string
    • Build a temperature sensor to monitor you hot compost
    • Why are some composts hot and others cold?
  • Smart tanks, flooding and droughts
    • Climate change will bring more extreme weather such as intense rain and droughts.
    • Convert your raintank into a smart tank using a pressure sensor
    • Learn how to collect weather data using a Raspberry Pi and predict rain events
    • Animals such as the Australian platypus are threatened by climate change. You can help.
  • Solar hot water
    • How does a solar hot water system work?
    • How much electric power does a solar hot water system use in comparison to a heat pump or gas?
    • Build a temperature sensor and monitor the temperature gain of a portable camping shower.
    • How low can you go? Try showering in cooler water. Its better for you.
  • Local food production
    • Growing food at school and at home lowers GHG emissions. Why?
    • Learn to plant fruit and nut trees.
    • Build a soil moisture sensor for a veggie garden
    • Soil moisture sensors show us that deep watering is better than shallow watering.
  • Bees, native bees and other pollinators
    • Bees and other pollinators are vital for food production.
    • Build sensors to monitor the temperature and mass of a bee hive.
    • How do bees regulate the temperature in their hive? When are bees most active?
    • Build a sensor to monitor bee hive activity.
    • Learn how to choose plant specties for a pollinator garden to attract birds and insects
  • Solar Photo Voltaic (PV) systems with battery storage
    • How does solar PV systems work?
    • How does it compare to other forms non-renewable and renewable energy sources (EROI)? What are the pros and cons?
    • How to build a solar PV system with battery storage for a Tiny House.
    • How much energy can a battery hold?
    • How much energy do electrical appliances use?
  • Solar PV systems without battery storage
    • what can run just on a solar PV system? pumps, fridges?
    • Why is it better to use a PV system without batteries
    • Build a solar monitoring system using a Raspberry Pi.
  • Household energy usage
    • How much energy do houses use?
    • How to read meters, utility bills and monitor energy usage?
    • Installing smart meters and using mobile apps to monitor energy usage.
    • Simple ways to reduce energy consumption in homes.
  • Passive House
    • what is a passive house and how does it work?
    • How to calculate the energy efficiency of your house. What are R and U values?
    • Use a temperature sensor to measure the heat gain and loss of a model house
    • Energy efficiency is sometimes better than energy production
  • Energy efficient lighting
    • How much energy does lighting use in a house?
    • What type of lighting should I choose?
    • Are their any health effects from exposure to blue light and flickering. What is warm lighting?
    • How can we screen blue light?
    • Are personal headlamps the future for energy efficient lighting?
  • Batteries
    • how do batteries work and what types exist?
    • Are rechargable batteries better than single use batteries?
    • How do you check batteries and how to charge them?
    • Batteries also contribute to e-waste. How to care for and dispose of batteries.
  • Mechanical Ventillation and Heat Recover (MVHR)
    • How do heat exchangers work?
    • Air tightness and the need for ventillation in houses.
    • Build a sensor to measure the performance of MVHR systems
  • Aquarium water quality monitor
    • Fish and other aquatic animals need good quality water to live
    • Build sensors to measure temperature, pH, conductivity and dissolved oxygen in a fish tank
    • Learn how to build a Dashboard using a Raspberry pi to monitor your aquarium
    • Learn how to calibrate sensors
    • Stormwater and intense rain events can be devestating for aquatic animals. How can we fix this?
  • Water pumps
    • You need a water pump to grow your own food. Why?
    • Rainwater tanks help improve our waterways and enviornment. Find out why.
    • How do pumps work and how much energy do they use?
    • What is a header tank and how can I make one?
    • How to install a water pump for your garden.

Simplicity

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