2022 Projects (Round 10)
Fireballs Aotearoa - A student-led night-sky quest for an Otago meteorite
Generating region-wide public interest in geology, earth, and space science
Setting up a network of sky-facing cameras to record meteor showers and fireballs that cross the Otago night sky
Retrieving an Otago meteorite, should a fireball event occur
Can we find New Zealand’s next meteorite in Otago? Of the nine meteorites to have been discovered in New Zealand, only one, the 1908 Mokoia meteorite in Taranaki, was seen to fall. Fireballs Aotearoa will install a network of up to 20 sky-facing cameras in schools and other community-based locations in the wider Otago region to observe any potential meteorite falls. Together with schools across Otago, the project will also attempt to recover any meteorites for community and scientific analysis.
The goal of Fireballs Aotearoa is to engage school students in geology, astronomy, and space science in an exciting and unique fashion. The network of sky-facing cameras will record meteors every clear night, with students able to log in at any time to see what has crossed “their” night sky and to incorporate this in their school work. Students, teachers, and other members of the community will be able to help determine where to best mount a camera in their area. Installation of the cameras will be accompanied by a demonstration of the camera and how to access the data. Students will be encouraged to gather and utilize the data themselves, coupled with teacher-led activities on Earth and Space Science and outreach delivered by the project coordinator.
It is hoped that the network will reveal the arrival, trajectory, pre-impact orbit, and likely region of origin of a meteorite, and then lead to a community-led effort to locate that meteorite.
To keep up-to-date with the project, check out Fireballs Aotearoa’s: website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Funding: $19,863
Contact: Dr James Scott
Under the wharf - Turning up the heat on marine communities
Exploring how benthic marine communities are impacted by a warming ocean
Developing simple ways for schools and communities to measure change in their local ocean environment
Capturing stories of marine species responses to warming oceans to give meaning to scientific data
Ocean temperatures in New Zealand have warmed by 1 to 2°C over the past 40 years due to global climate change. This has potentially devastating effects on the marine environment, but most studies to date have focused on the effects of temperature changes on individual species, not marine communities as a whole. A University of Otago research team is using heated settlement plates deployed under the wharf at Portobello, Dunedin, to experimentally assess the response of benthic marine communities to in situ warming at ambient, +1°C, +2°C, and heatwave temperatures.
For this project, school students will work with scientists and the New Zealand Marine Studies Centre to investigate the settlement, growth, and tolerance of benthic species under seasonal and future warming conditions. The students will help assess photographs of the marine community on the Portobello settlement plates taken at regular intervals, and compare those results to their own settlements deployed at their local wharf over winter and summer periods.
The ‘Under the Wharf’ project will help develop simple ways for schools and the community to measure change in the ocean environment at a local level. In doing so, the students and members of the community will have the chance to explore ocean warming data and capture stories of marine species to give meaning to scientific data. Participants will hopefully also develop a sense of responsibility to make active choices that minimise impacts on our environment.
For more information, check out Marine Science Otago on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.
Funding: $20,000
Contact: Sally Carson (NZ Marine Studies Centre)
Ngā Taonga ki te Ngāhere o Tāne: The Treasures of the Forest of Tāne
Researching plant communities and the services they provide to people and wildlife in the area around Orokonui Ecosanctuary
Encouraging the community to take an active role in the future of their local area and ensuring that plant communities meet the needs of people and wildlife
Plant communities provide many critical services for wildlife, as habitat, food sources, and ecosystem engineers, and for humans the right plant communities can mitigate the effects of climate change, prevent soil erosion, provide food, support mental and physical wellbeing, and can have important cultural values. For a long time, the public’s understanding of plant communities has been limited, often regarded as a mere tool to attract more charismatic wildlife to a garden. The aim of this project is to engage the community in learning about plants and plant communities, and the positive impacts these can have when managed appropriately.
This project will enable school students and residents of the areas surrounding Orokonui Ecosanctuary to develop meaningful and inclusive techniques to investigate indigenous plant communities in their local landscape. Students and members of the public will then use these methods to survey plant communities in the project areas and to develop a greater understanding of the plant communities in their rohe, including how they contribute to the living landscape and the array of benefits they can provide to the public and to wildlife. This will help community groups develop a plan to manage their local plant communities and take an active role in the future of their area.
Find out more about this project on Orokonui Ecosanctuary’s Facebook page, Twitter, and Instagram.
Funding: $20,000
Contact: Taylor Davies-Colley (Orokonui Ecosanctuary)
Backyard biodiversity - Strong voices to empower actives choices
Fostering mutual ownership of backyard biodiversity issues and actions
Holding science and art workshops to inspire and empower marginalised groups to build their agency in managing biodiversity issues
One of the goals within ‘Te Ao Tūroa – Dunedin’s Environmental Strategy’ is for Dunedin people to care for the natural world. The Backyard Biodiversity project seeks to determine what, in practice, it will take for all Dunedinites to own this goal and make it a reality.
Manaaki Whenua (Landcare Research) will use an inclusive approach to conservation to generate a shared and enriched understanding of local (and national) ‘backyard biodiversity’ priorities to bring about community-level change in conservation policies and practices. Experts and key community representatives will work together to understand the diverse biodiversity values, interests, and needs that people have in urban landscapes. Individuals, families, and community groups will also be able to share their own perspectives via online surveys and a ‘future green spaces’ art competition.
The emergent priorities will inform the design of a future online calculator that allows users to rapidly self-assess ‘how nature-friendly is my own backyard?’. The project will culminate with a multi-media exhibit at the 2023 NZ International Science Festival. The exhibit will give project participants a strong voice by using their images and narratives to highlight their journey in exploring backyard biodiversity, and hopefully inspire others to join the conversation and make active choices to care for nature.
To find out more, visit the Manaaki Whenua (Landcare Research) website and Facebook page.
Funding: $20,000
Contact: Catriona MacLeod (Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research)
Lindsay Creek River Restoration
Lindsay Creek is an important part of community lives in the North East Valley; the community is strongly connected with its stories and its role in bringing nature closer to their urban lives. Lindsay Creek was once also a source of mahinga kai, but urban settlement and infrastructure have seen the creek change from a valued source of food to an urban stream with storm water outflows and flood-protection infrastructures. The North East Valley community is developing a long-term vision for the regeneration of the Lindsay, so it can once again be a source of mahinga kai, a place to connect with nature, and a place to better understand waterways as a living entity and improve wellbeing.
The aim of this project is to understand the influences of natural or human-built features within Lindsay Creek in relation to its ecological health. Surveys will be carried out to identify sites of human-built and natural features, and schools and community members will participate in education and field days to collect data and assess ecological values, guided by mātauraka Māori values.
The outcomes of this project will help the North East Valley community develop a longer-term framework for improving the biodiversity of Lindsay Creek. If it is evident that there is a difference in ecological values of human-built structures compared with natural features, this will pave the way for collective planning with local Councils to improve the biodiversity associated with the human-built structures. For the North East Valley community, this is the next step in the process of river regeneration.
Check out the Valley Project to find out more, or visit their Facebook page.
Funding: $19,969.50
Contact: Clare Cross (Open Valley Urban Ecosanctuary - The Valley Project)
Designing an implementation plan for concussion management in Dunedin based secondary schools
Evaluating and refining the FRAmework for managing Concussions in NZ Secondary schools (FRANCS)
Gaining consensus from key stakeholders on wide-scale implementation of FRANCS in Otago secondary schools
In their 2021 PSP project, New Zealand Rugby used a community-based approach to work with students with concussions and their parents/whānau, teachers, school administration, and healthcare professionals to co-develop concussion management guidelines for high schools in Dunedin. In phase 2 of this project they will set the groundwork to embed these guidelines within region-wide policy/practice and ultimately improve students’ concussion journey, regardless of how the concussion was sustained.
This project will use focus groups and semi-structured interviews to seek input from relevant stakeholders to develop a high-level strategy informed by public policy and endorsed by key governing organizations to support wide-scale implementation of the concussion management framework.
To find out more about concussions, and to learn more about the research New Zealand Rugby is doing in this space, go to their website.
Funding: $19,680
Contact: Dr Maria Bentley (New Zealand Rugby)
Healthy air is no pleasure cruise?
Producing a comprehensive map of particulate air pollution for Port Chalmers before and after the return of cruise ships to Port Otago
Educating about the importance and dangers of air pollution
Providing evidence for change to improve air quality for the community
Cruise ships are a significant source of air pollution around the docks where they berth. They use low cost fuel which emits excessive quantities of sulphur and particulates, while running their engines or other generators continuously in port. In Port Chalmers there is no facility to provide power to the ships from land, ensuring the continuous output of pollutants while the ships are docked. With the return of cruise ships on the horizon, now is an unprecedented opportunity to quantify the impact of cruise liners on air quality in Dunedin.
This project will develop and install a network of low-cost air quality monitors around Port Chalmers. The sensors will measure and provide live air quality data, both before and after the return of cruise liners, which can be accessed publicly.
For more information, visit the Dodd-Walls Centre website or follow them on Twitter.
Funding: $20,000
Contact: Professor David Hutchinson (Dodd-Walls Centre, University of Otago)