Impact Stories
Making change happen across Australia and Asia Pacific.
That’s a wrap for the 2024 EWB Challenge Showcase!
Each year, the EWB Challenge Showcase brings together top university student teams from across Australia and New Zealand, EWB staff, our community partner representatives, and industry. Students present the most innovative, community-centred design ideas developed in response to the EWB Challenge Design Brief, and all event participants celebrate a year of learning, focused work, and collaboration. This year’s EWB Challenge Showcase saw students, academics, judges, and EWB staff from across Australia, New Zealand and Cambodia travel to James Cook University’s Nguma-bada campus in far north Queensland to battle it out for the top spot.
That’s a wrap for the 2024 EWB Challenge Showcase!
Each year, the EWB Challenge Showcase brings together top university student teams from across Australia and New Zealand, EWB staff, our community partner representatives, and industry. Students present the most innovative, community-centred design ideas developed in response to the EWB Challenge Design Brief, and all event participants celebrate a year of learning, focused work, and collaboration. This year’s EWB Challenge Showcase saw students, academics, judges, and EWB staff from across Australia, New Zealand and Cambodia travel to James Cook University’s Nguma-bada campus in far north Queensland to battle it out for the top spot.
That’s a wrap for the 2024 EWB Challenge Showcase!
Each year, the EWB Challenge Showcase brings together top university student teams from across Australia and New Zealand, EWB staff, our community partner representatives, and industry. Students present the most innovative, community-centred design ideas developed in response to the EWB Challenge Design Brief, and all event participants celebrate a year of learning, focused work, and collaboration. This year’s EWB Challenge Showcase saw students, academics, judges, and EWB staff from across Australia, New Zealand and Cambodia travel to James Cook University’s Nguma-bada campus in far north Queensland to battle it out for the top spot.
‘Impactful Futures’ Immersives return on Lama Lama Country
‘Look, listen, learn’ was the mantra of Traditional Owners on Lama Lama Country during EWB’s Impactful Futures Immersive in July, which took participants on a journey through the tropical landscapes and cultural sites of Cape York for a week. By observing and attuning themselves to the sights, sounds and voices around them, participants were able to experience a deep immersion in the culture and history of Lama Lama Country.
Inaugural Indigenous-led Youth Outreach program kicks off in Far North Queensland
A new place-based Outreach program – designed by Indigenous people for Indigenous young people – was recently piloted in a small community in Far North Queensland in collaboration with Engineers Australia’s Indigenous Engineers Group and Yintjingga Aboriginal Corporation, with the goal to inspire and support the next generation of Indigenous Engineers.
Engineering partnerships critical for progress: the case at Rawa
Over the past four years, Rawa Community School - one of Australia’s most remote Aboriginal Independent Schools, located on the edge of Great Sandy Desert in the Pilbara Region of WA on Warnman and Manyjilyjarra Country - has been working on improving the decline of...
Piloting handwashing stations in rural Cambodian schools
Many school children in Cambodia do not have access to appropriate sanitation facilities, particularly in rural areas where a third of schools lack adequate hygiene facilities with soap and water. The link between sanitation and education became especially apparent...
Exploring opportunities for native plants at the ‘Nguluway’ Local Design Summit
The cultivation of native grains through careful land management was once central to Aboriginal life. However, following colonisation, the shift to European foods and farming methods damaged native grasslands and reduced biodiversity.
At Nguurruu farm, 40 minutes north of Canberra, Murray Prior is working with Ngambri custodians to implement regenerative farming practices and revive native foods and land management. Farming practices at Nguurruu are informed by Indigenous knowledges and seek to restore biodiversity and reverse ecological damage.
The second iteration of the EWB ACT Chapter’s ‘Nguluway’ Local Design Summit, held earlier this year in collaboration with Nguurruu farm, gave university students and industry professionals a firsthand insight into regenerative farming practices on Country.
Drones, disasters and design – new STEM outreach for regional classrooms
It’s a sad reality: regional students all too often miss out on important educational opportunities that their peers in the city get to enjoy. When it comes to STEM outreach, many programs are run out of capital cities, which means regional school students can easily...
A climate resilient and community-led solution to sanitation challenges in Vanuatu
For environmental activist David Kalsal, fishing and swimming in the Emten Lagoon on Vanuatu’s Efate Island has always been a part of local life for him and his family. In recent years however, the lagoon has also become an indicator of how climate change and sanitation challenges are impacting his community.
The Erakor Bridge community lies on the edge of the Emten Lagoon and is home to approximately 200 residents. The community consists of low-lying areas with a high groundwater table, meaning the area is especially vulnerable to cyclones and frequent flooding during periods of heavy rainfall. As a result of flooding and inadequate household sanitation systems, swimming and fishing is no longer safe for the community due to high levels of e.coli bacteria detected in the lagoon.
Meet our Futur-neers: Eve Visser
As a high school student, Eve Visser was told by a career advisor that she shouldn’t consider university. However, Eve was determined not to let this dissuade her. She took it as added motivation, going on to receive a scholarship to study at the Australian National University (ANU). Currently in her third year studying Engineering and Science with a major in Climate Science, Eve is passionate about sharing her experiences and knowledge with prospective students. This interest in outreach inspired her to start volunteering with EWB’s ACT Chapter, running workshops to encourage students to pursue a path in engineering.