Cities and the built environment

Building design for extreme weather

Project size (& length): 25 or 50

Contemporary residential building design in Australia commonly employs strategies seeking to reduce the potential impacts of long-term climate change, with regular reference to increased temperatures and sea level rise. However, extreme weather events are occurring now, and we should be proactively addressing these critical issues. This project seeks to explore practical design outcomes to address a range of solutions for new and existing buildings to address extreme weather.

Dr Chris Jensen, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning
cjensen@unimelb.edu.au

Urban cycling and sustainability

Project size (& length): 25 (Note this project is not available in Semester 1, 2024)

In my spare time I direct WeCycle, a project in Northcote that refurbishes bikes for those in need of them in Melbourne. http://www.wecycle-melbourne.com/ Community-run Bike workshops are an urban phenomenon, and all about re-use, repair, and empowerment. We have identified a need to trace what happens to  the 100-200 bikes we give out each year to refugees, asylum seekers and others. There is potentially a project here, focussing on urban transport sustainability, and interviewing some of the men and women who have received bikes, with a thesis also feeding back in to refining the project. We particularly lack an Arabic speaker to conduct research in this area.  I am applying for a small grant to cover costs. Research so far, including masters theses done on the topic https://bikeworkshopsresearch.wordpress.com/

A/Prof Simon Batterbury, School of Geography, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences and Melbourne Climate Futures Academy
simonpjb@unimelb.edu.au

Urban cycling issues

Project size (& length): 25 or 50 (Note this project is not available in Semester 1, 2024)

Three masters projects already supervised on Melbourne, Vancouver, and Paris/Strasbourg, on progressive bike movements, women in cycling, and satisfaction with the bike streetscape. Bikes are flourishing and potentially part of degrowth – although more and more are now electric. Can planners do more to aid a ‘transportation transition’? Or are ground-up projects doing it for them? https://bikeworkshopsresearch.wordpress.com/

A/Prof Simon Batterbury, School of Geography, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences and Melbourne Climate Futures Academy
simonpjb@unimelb.edu.au

Human-centred design for the built environment

Project size (& length): 25 or 50 (Note this project is not available in Semester 1, 2024)

The COVID-19 outbreak has made us realize how important human experiences are within built environments. The associated lockdowns led many individuals and families to mental stress and depressive conditions while developing new norms of human activities and values. The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report published originally on 9th August 2021 indicates human activity influence on climate change. Global warming affected by CO2 emissions derived from human attitudes and activities is a prolonging issue that cannot be neglected. There may be a positive and negative interrelation between human wellness and energy usage patterns. In parallel to studies on technological advancement, human-centered environmental experience design should be researched to ensure the delivery of socially, economically, environmentally, and humanly sustainable built environments that can be applied to privileged and unprivileged families, communities, and nations that are sharing our common future. This project aims to explore “human experiences” in built environments in developed or developing nations. It embraces the “environmental experience design” research that aligns with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.

A/Prof Masa Noguchi, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning
masa.noguchi@unimelb.edu.au

Retrofitting Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Systems for Better Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)

Project size (& length): 12.5, 25 or 50

Aim: To develop retrofitting strategies which provide better Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) with optimal financial and environmental performances without compromising thermal comfort.

Proposed methods (scope depends on the size of the project): The research method initially involves literature review of various retrofitting scenarios. The study of retrofitting scenarios will focus on various system modifications and control measures adopted in various building typologies (for example residential, commercial buildings) to ensure better Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). Based on the literature we try to identify potential retrofit strategies (single/combination) of Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system design and operation. Their feasibility in terms of initial cost, operation cost, life cycle cost, levelised and average cost of clean air delivery, greenhouse gas emissions will be considered. Risk analysis is conducted by identifying potential issues with the HVAC system that could possibly impact buildings’ environmental performance and financial feasibility. Mitigation methods are suggested based on the degree of risk. This process is to be achieved by a decision-making matrix.

Expected deliverables:

1. Recommended system retrofit strategies
2. Capital cost for each system retrofit
3. Levelized and average cost of clean air delivery
4. Greenhouse gas emissions

Professor Lu Aye, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology (FEIT)
lua@unimelb.edu.au

Determining the community (amenity, social and recreational) benefits of environmental flows

Project size (& length): 25 or 50

Environmental flows deliver water to waterways across Melbourne to ensure the right environmental conditions are provided to support in-stream ecological values (fish, platypus, macroinvertebrates, etc). However, we currently do not understand the value that the community place on environmental flows. This project will start to answer this question.

Advantages: experience working with industry (Melbourne Water) and Traditional Owners on real-world projects.

Dr Ryan Burrows,Waterways Ecosystem Research Group (School of Agricultural, Food and Ecosystem Sciences) & Melbourne Water (Waterways, Biodiversity and Environment Team)
ryan.burrows@unimelb.edu.au

Storm water retention under differing nature-based solution scenarios – A Melbourne case study

Project size (& length): 50

Melbourne is facing a number of sustainability challenges. To help mitigate these challenges and improve the liveability and sustainability of Melbourne, it has been proposed that we increase tree cover across the city. Increasing tree cover will provide a number of benefits that improve human wellbeing, known as ecosystem services (e.g., they help cool people down, they provide spaces for recreation etc.), which in turn improve the liveability and sustainability of the city. However, while we know increasing tree cover will increase ecosystem services, it remains unclear if where we increase tree cover across the city affects the amount that different ecosystem services are increased by.

Aim: This project will involve applying a stormwater retention model across Melbourne under different scenarios (where tree cover has been increased in different locations across Melbourne) to determine if stormwater retention (an ecosystem service) changes depending on where increasing tree cover is implemented across Melbourne.

Approach: The student will use a pre-developed stormwater retention model to assess stormwater retention levels under different (pre-developed) scenarios. This project will predominantly involve sourcing and collating spatial data and information to input into the model and analysing the results of the model. This project will involve GIS and spatial analysis work and would be ideal for a student who has experience in GIS and spatial analysis (or would like to improve these skills).

Dr. Marie Dade, School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences
marie.dade@unimelb.edu.au