By Brendan Rees
A team of students from Haileybury College have presented their winning ideas to Casey Council on strategies to reduce the City of Casey’s ecological footprint.
The team took top honours in the 2019 FedUni Casey Project with their ideas for improvement in waste measurement and reward systems, reducing CO2 emissions in the home, and innovative solutions to Casey’s rapidly expanding population.
The annual FedUni Casey Project is a collaboration between Federation University Australia and the City of Casey that aims to enhance students’ knowledge and skills in applying critical thinking and ethics, problem-solving, developing interpersonal relationships, and communicating effectively as a team.
This year, students from 22 high schools were asked, “What makes a SMART city?” The groups explored new and emerging technologies in the Casey community, looking at the impact it has on education, health, business and the environment.
Throughout the project, students experience life on campus by spending time at Federation University, meeting academics, and attending mini lectures, before completing an essay component addressing the project theme.
Haileybury was announced the 2019 winner at a presentation evening on Wednesday, 30 October.
Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Helen Bartlett said: “The program is designed to challenge students to come up with creative solutions to real-life problems, specifically for the City of Casey.”
“Federation University Australia is delighted to partner with the City of Casey for such an innovative program.”
Casey mayor Susan Serey said the project tackles the big questions of today and of the future and “it is wonderful to see young people turning their minds to possible solutions and really thinking globally.”
“Innovation and technology are where the jobs of the future will be and it is great to see young people taking the lead now to secure a better future,” she said.
