Ten Tonne Plan: Education for sustainability from a whole systems thinking perspective

The Ten Tonne Plan is a greenhouse gas emissions reduction initiative that aimed to reduce school emissions by 10 tonnes (metric tons) in one year. A case study was conducted on the impact of this initiative at a primary school in Western Australia. Research investigated student, staff, parent, and community partner perceptions following participation. Results showed the school achieved its goal through the implementation of a variety of environmental and social actions undertaken by the whole school community. Findings identified strengths and weaknesses of the initiative. The Ten Tonne Plan provided a model that is applicable in a variety of school settings

360° of change: 360 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions reduction in a school

A greenhouse gas emissions reduction initiative, involving a progressive series of plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions has been successfully implemented for over five years at a primary school in Western Australia. A ten tonne greenhouse gas emissions reduction target was achieved in 2011, a fifty tonne plan implemented in 2012, and a one hundred tonne plan in 2013-2014. A two hundred tonne target was reached in 2016. To achieve these targets the emissions reduction plans involved undertaking a variety of biodiversity, waste, water, energy, air quality and social actions, within a whole school, whole systems thinking perspective. The effectiveness of this initiative is illustrated by three whole systems thinking sustainability projects conducted at the school. These projects involve local bushland, wetland and international settings and actions. Evidence relating to the depth of participant involvement, together with commitment to whole systems thinking and the overarching emissions reduction initiative is highlighted. Links to biodiversity, waste, water, air quality and social interconnections were documented in relation to emissions reductions, which were achieved through actions such as tree planting, litter collection and the purchase of solar lanterns. Overall, the initiative provided a successful example of systems thinking in action and demonstrated deep interconnections between different aspects of sustainability, both within the local setting and global sustainability contexts

Prompting transdisciplinary research: Promising futures for using the performance metaphor in research

Transdisciplinary research is increasingly recognised as important for investigating and addressing 'wicked' problems such as climate change, food insecurity and poverty, but is far from commonplace. There are structural impediments to transdisciplinarity such as university structures, publication requirements and funding preferences that perpetuate disciplinary differences and researchers often lack transdisciplinary experience and expertise. In this paper we present a heuristic that aims to encourage researchers to think about their current research as performance and then imagine different performances, with the view to encouraging reflection and creativity about the transdisciplinary potential and dilemmas. The heuristic is inspired by the metaphor of performance that Erving Goffman uses to understand everyday, face-to-face interactions. The heuristic includes scaffolding for imagining research as performance through a transdisciplinary lens, a suggested process for using the tool, and examples based on the every day research projects. The paper describes the application of the heuristic in a graduate masterclass, reflecting on whether it does indeed 'prompt' transdisciplinary research. Limitations and lessons learned for further refinement of the heuristic are also included. The authors conclude that the heuristic has a range of uses including for self-reflection, and as a practical learning tool that can also be used at the start of integrative research projects

Quenda; nature's gardeners

Like many of Australia’s digging mammals, the southern-brown bandicoot (known locally in the southwest of WA as the quenda) is considered an ecosystem engineer — their digging activities alter their physical surroundings, changing resource availability for other plants and animals. The ‘ecosystem services’ provided by quenda are likely to be crucial to maintaining a healthy ecosystem

Reducing wild dog impacts on livestock production industries

Wild dogs are a huge problem for Australian livestock producers, costing farmers an estimated $50 million annually in livestock losses and for their control. Here we describe outcomes of a recent project that has examined aspects of wild dog control in WA

Biosecurity and invasive animal research

Murdoch University prides itself on its fundamental and applied research, as demonstrated by our work in biosecurity and invasive animals. Our researchers work across terrestrial and aquatic systems directly with industry and community partners

Buses, cars, bicycles and walkers the influence of the type of human transport on the flight responses of waterbirds

One way to manage disturbance to waterbirds in natural areas where humans require access is to promote the occurrence of stimuli for which birds tolerate closer approaches, and so cause fewer responses. We conducted 730 experimental approaches to 39 species of waterbird, using five stimulus types (single walker, three walkers, bicycle, car and bus) selected to mimic different human management options available for a controlled access, Ramsar-listed wetland. Across species, where differences existed (56% of 25 cases), motor vehicles always evoked shorter flight-initiation distances (FID) than humans on foot. The influence of stimulus type on FID varied across four species for which enough data were available for complete cross-stimulus analysis. All four varied FID in relation to stimuli, differing in 4 to 7 of 10 possible comparisons. Where differences occurred, the effect size was generally modest, suggesting that managing stimulus type (e.g. by requiring people to use vehicles) may have species-specific, modest benefits, at least for the waterbirds we studied. However, different stimulus types have different capacities to reduce the frequency of disturbance (i.e. by carrying more people) and vary in their capacity to travel around important habita

Raining frogs: An education for sustainability project

Since 1995 the school education sector has been a dominant focus for education for sustainability (EfS) in Australia (Tilbury, Coleman, & Garlick, 2005, p. 1). The commencement of the Australian Sustainable Schools Initiative (AuSSI) in 2003, with its whole school approach, dramatically increased this focus (Department of Education and Training, 2005b). The pilot for the Western Australian Sustainable Schools Initiative (WA SSI) commenced in 2005 (Department of Education and Training, 2005b). A small independent school, located in the Perth metropolitan area, was one of the twenty schools that participated in the WA SSI pilot. This paper will report on one project that was conducted at this school as part of the WA SSI

Learning botany: Evaluation of a Web-supported unit on plant diversity

This document reports on a study of the effectiveness of a basic botany unit (N265 Plant Diversity), which has been enhanced by online support materials. A WebCT site was developed to provide digital access to materials studied in practical sessions. Whereas previously, students only saw practical material once, now they have access to high quality, colour images, to study at their leisure. The results reported in this report provide an insight into the conduct of a tertiary Biology unit and the use of online technology to improve student learning

Whole systems thinking: education for sustainability at a Montessori school

Whole systems thinking is a framework for seeing the whole picture, for establishing interrelationships and understanding phenomena as an integrated whole (Capra, 1996; Clayton, Clayton et al., 1996; Sterling, 2003b; Tilbury, Coleman et al., 2005). Systems thinking may be contrasted with fragmentary thinking, which is viewing phenomena in their separate parts and focusing only on narrow specializations. In an education for sustainability (EfS) context this means emphasizing relationships, relationships between all the systems on our planet, and at different systems levels, as they relate to the environment, economics, government, health, and so on. Values and goals are also important aspects of these relationships. Sterling (2003a, p. 2) argues that" ... we are educated by and large to 'compete and consume' rather than to 'care and conserve.... Furthermore, the same author maintains that because of the imposition of managerial and economic values on education we have lost touch with the social values and real life contexts of authentic education (Sterling, 2003a, p. 2). With these ideas in mind this paper briefly examines the application of whole systems thinking on an EfS program at a small Montessori primary school in the metropolitan area of Perth, Western Australia