Student success in the 2022 Professor Ron Johnston Humanitarian Awards Innovation Pitch competition

Congratulations to Department of Civil Engineering, Team Cloudburst for their success in the Professor Ron Johnston Humanitarian Awards Innovation Pitch Competition. The team finished 2nd place presenting their First Flush System to help remove contamination from rainwater in the disadvantaged communities of Jakarta, Indonesia. They win a four-week internship with Cardno Engineering Services that they plan to undertake later this year.

Team Cloudburst: Maya Weston (Civil Engineering/Arts), Sineka Kalutotage (Aerospace Engineering/Minoring in Sustainable Engineering), Alistair Wastlhuber (Environmental Engineering/Commerce)

The Humanitarian Innovation Awards is a National contest run annually by The University of Sydney, designed to encourage students to engineer cutting-edge solutions that positively impact people around the world.

The Innovation Pitch Competition requires groups of 2-4 students to select a real-world humanitarian problem and develop a technology-driven solution. Submissions are comprised of a short video encapsulating the essence of the student's idea, accompanied by a poster showing evidence of how each solution could be achieved.

Inspired by the desire to use their engineering skills to the make an impact, students Maya Weston, Sineka Kalutotage and Alistair Wastlhuber devised a solution to help remove contamination from rainwater in the disadvantaged communities of Jakarta, Indonesia. The proposed solution utilises already effective technology to create a more accessible and inexpensive first flush system. Comprised of a buoyant ball inside of a watertight plastic bottle, this system is attached to the pre-existing gutter or water catchment systems. Most of the undesirable particles are washed off in the first few millimetres of rainfall separating it from the rest of the water supply. This innovative device enables wider implementation through a more DIY approach, resulting in cleaner, safer, and a much more easily treated water supply.

“We were able to consider humanitarian problems and their potential solutions in a very in-depth way.” said team member Maya Weston, Civil Engineering/Arts. “I believe that sustainable, humanitarian engineering is the way of the future, and am glad to have begun to explore the world in that way. I’m also excited at the potential of further exploring other humanitarian solutions, and again working in such a fantastic team.”

This is the first time that a student team from the Faculty of Engineering has submitted an entry to this competition. “I was excited to work with a team of students enthusiastic about developing solutions in the context of humanitarian engineering.” said Team Supervisor Dr Brandon Winfrey, Department of Civil Engineering. “It was great to see the team's hard work and innovative solution recognised at this level. I am looking forward to more students getting involved in future competitions.”

For further information visit the Humanitarian Innovation Awards website - https://www.sydney.edu.au/engineering/industry-and-community/the-warren-centre/humanitarian-innovation-awards.html

To find out more about joining an Engineering student team please visit https://www.monash.edu/engineering/student-experience/teams-and-clubs