Practical Ways To Save The World

School buildings, houses, mines - even the Olympics - can all be developed in ways which minimise their impact on the world.

That’s the theme of the 2nd International Conference on Sustainability Engineering and Science, which is being held at Auckland University from February 20 to 23.

Featuring a host of global and New Zealand experts, the conference will outline recent achievements in sustainable development and debate how they can be applied in “the real world”.

“From green weddings to carbon credits, everyone is talking about the concept of sustainability but putting it into action is a different matter,” says Dr Carol Boyle, the chair of the NZ Society for Sustainability Engineering and Science, which is hosting the event.

“This conference provides a rare opportunity for business leaders, world-class engineers and scientists and government agencies to get together and assess what practical action we can all take to make a measurable difference.”

New technology and tools, better systems and governance and the latest scientific and engineering advances will be showcased during the conference.

International speakers include:
• Professor Peter Guthrie from Cambridge University’s Centre for Sustainable Development. Having worked on the Channel Tunnel, airport, railway, road and mining schemes around the world, he’ll address how to include sustainability in large-scale infrastructure projects. His current projects include the London Olympics, a renewable energy scheme across a tidal estuary in northern England and development of 10,000 new homes near London.

• Professor Tim O’Riordan, University of East Anglia and Commissioner with the UK’s Sustainable Development Commission. He’ll show how schools and universities can implement sustainability and help develop “ecological democracy” for future generations.
• Professor Jorge Vanegas, Director of the Centre for Housing and Urban Development at Texas University. He works with rural communities along the US/Mexico border to help them start small businesses and learn ways to build more affordable homes.
• Professor Paul Jowitt, Executive Director of the Scottish Institute of Sustainable Technology. His work includes developing better methods for estimating reservoir yield, managing drought and use of water resources.
• Professor Chris Hendrickson, director of the Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. His focus is on environmental design, project management and financial and computer applications.

New Zealand speakers at the conference include:
• Dr Jim Salinger, National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
• Jim Bradley, leading environmental engineer
• Dr Steve Thompson, chief executive of the Royal Society
• Dr Carol Boyle, director of the International Centre of Sustainability Engineering and Research, as well as the conference host
• Dr Morgan Williams, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment
• Simon Upton, former Cabinet minister and now chair of the OECD Roundtable for Sustainable Development

“While politicians can legislate to promote sustainability, it’s the engineers and scientists who develop the practical ways to achieve it and that’s what this conference is all about,” says Dr Boyle.

ENDS

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