Author(s): Emmanuel Vargas, Stephen Fanning, Lily Bromberger, Eric Schuman
Advisor(s): Aarti Madan, Ryan Madan
Category: Undergraduate
Abstract: Extreme heat—which includes temperatures of 40°C (104°F) or higher—is becoming increasingly frequent in Australia, and the effects on wildlife are clear as we enter the sixth mass extinction. Not only does climate change affect biodiversity, it also creates additional hardship for economically disadvantaged municipalities that lack the resources to deal with these issues. Yet, functional greenspaces and shaded areas are crucial to deal with extreme temperatures, allowing spaces for people and wildlife to escape the heat. In Melbourne, Victoria, Banksia Gardens Community Services is one of the few organizations attending to climate justice through their community-based work. Their Climate Adaptation Garden Initiative seeks to minimize the effects of extreme heat on people and wildlife, as well as to foster community engagement, pride and wellbeing. Our team was tasked with developing a process to automatically measure the impacts of their efforts to enhance biodiversity and decrease temperatures across six property gardens. To accomplish this goal, we created a network of custom-built heat sensors around the property to track temperature, a database that collects information on biodiversity and local temperatures , and multiple citizen science activities to ensure continued biodiversity data collection. The increased participation in citizen science and development of functional greenspaces will result in both a stronger environment and community in Broadmeadows.
UN SDGs: SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities, SDG 13 – Climate Action
Video Presentation:
Poster Presentation:
To find our videos and supplementary materials visit our website here: https://sites.google.com/banksiagardens.org.au/heatbiodiversityaudit/home