Sustainability Projects
Projects that explain and promote sustainability have been a recurring and important theme for me over the years. Often the budgets for such work can be limited but creative solutions can always be found. Below are some example projects that I have either built or managed.
Islington Recycling Centre - Islington Bourough Council. I designed and built a set of simple interactive games, quizzes and puzzles as well as some computer games for this education centre whilst working at the Science Museum.
Suitcase Exhibits / 'Carbon Scales' - Global Action Plan. Whilst at KCA London I was asked to design and build some very low budget education aids that could be packed away into a suitcase and taken to schools and festivals to teach people about sustainability issues. This photo is of the 'Carbon Scales' which allows users to compare the carbon embodied in different meat types to discover which meats tip the carbon scales the most.
Suitcase Exhibits / 'Wind Up Scalextric' - Global Action Plan. This exhibit was part of a suite of exhibits that I made that highlight the environmental impact of our lifestyle choices. Users select a car (large, small or one where the windows are open and there's a roof rack with luggage on it) and then they wind up a generator to power the track. They can see and even feel the difference when they make an efficient choice.
Recycling Puzzles - Various Clients. These simple puzzles challenge school children, in a recycling centre setting or a school classroom session, to match up the waste materials with the recycled products and to place them on the background that depicts the primary source material. Whilst at the Science Museum I created several sets of these.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Display - Western Riverside. This was a low budget touring exhibition that I built in the Science Museums workshops at Blythe House. It went around festivals and other events showing the life-cycle of materials, material samples and teaching about sustainability.
Teenager's Game - East Sussex Council. This was a teaching resource that I made several versions of whilst at the Science Museum. A class of children were split into groups and using the resources they had to solve puzzles and sort rubbish before role playing being in charge of a council. and making policy decisions about waste management and sustainability.
Classrooms of the Future Outdoor Interactive - Burgoyne Middle School, Bedfordshire. In this Science Museum project we developed ideas for a set of outdoor interactives in schools. We involved the children in the development process and tested prototypes of a number of ideas. I was responsible for developing renewable energy solutions to power them as well as the hardware and software involved and was part of the installation team.
Classrooms of the Future Outdoor Interactive - Maple Tree Lower School, Bedfordshire. This was one of a set of school outdoor interactives created whilst I was at the Science Museum. We involved the children in the development process and tested prototypes of a number of ideas. I was responsible for developing renewable energy solutions to power them, specifying the hardware and software involved and helping to install them on-site.
Classrooms of the Future Outdoor Interactive - Sandy Upper School, Bedfordshire. At this upper school we created an outdoor common room with a solar powered jukebox and seating structure. Children could download songs whilst in class and wirelessly send them to the jukebox to play at lunch and break times.
'Material Detectives' exhibit - Recycling Discovery Centre, Veolia, Southwark. School groups visit this learning centre within a materials recycling facility in Southwark. This exhibit has them investigate the properties of different materials and work out where the materials came from and just how precious they are.
'Recycle or Not' exhibit - Recycling Discovery Centre, Veolia, Southwark. Visitors watch different items of waste travelling along an on-screen conveyor belt and must stamp on one of the three floor pad to select whether to recycle it, compost it or send it to landfill. As the game progresses it gets faster and faster and it is a very popular game.
'Mini MRF' exhibit - Recycling Discovery Centre, Veolia, Southwark. Set within a real MRF (materials recycling facility) visitors control this mini version that highlights how the process of separating materials works. They start with a mix of glass beads, metals, plastics and use a trummel, magnetic sorters, air sorters and hand separating to sort them. A video player shows videos of the real on-site machinery within the MRF.
The Green Living Centre (in Upper Street, London) - Islington Borough Council. This project was aimed at adult visitors as a place where they could go to find out about sustainable practices they could incorporate into their lives. All of the materials used were reclaimed, recycled or low energy, ensuring that the messages of the centre were reflected in the design and build process. The centre included a number of simple interactive exhibits, a computer database and an interactive map. We worked with Blustin Heath Design and the graphics were designed by Studio HB.
Woodland Composting Centre - East Sussex. The challenge in this simple computer game was to make learning about composting exciting. I worked with Joe Cutting to develop this exhibit. Visitors have to drive the composting truck to collect the composting waste and take it to the various parts of a composting plant and in the process they learn how composting works.
'What's In Your Lunch' Exhibit - East Sussex Composting Centre. This is a prototype of an exhibit I made that used RFID and Arduino. The exhibit showed how reducing the amount of packaging in your lunch box can dramatically reduce the amount of waste going to landfill