User:L.Gardner: Difference between revisions

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Who Am I?

I am above all else, a sailor- next and more relevant to this website I am a Chemical Engineering Graduate from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario (Sci'10). I was born and raised in Toronto, Canada but with today's globalization I consider myself a citizen of earth. I am currently working in Mexico for a sail loft, to develop the skill sets needed to sail around the world. Lastly, I am a true believer Web 2.0 - and it's ability to support collaboration for continuous improvement.

My Interests

My interests are quite simple, I want to leave the world in a better state then I found it. I'm interested in solutions - solutions to what? General environmental destruction, the pollution of natural water and air, and foods that indirectly/directly damages the environment (pesticides and fertilizers, hormone contaminated meats, GM foods,etc...). Other obvious problems that I would like to solve are: Species extinction and decreased ecological biodiversity, overpopulation and mass resource consumption.

My vision is a regenerated world, where humanity has a positive environmental impact.

Why Appropedia?

I have been inspired to sign onto Appropedia through the 4th Year Mechanical Engineering course "Engineering for Sustainable Development", a course taught by Dr. Joshua Pearce at Queen's University, I took this during the Winter of 2010. To see our schedule and/or the course layout, CLICK mech425 or Mech425 schedule.

My Appropedia Contributions/Mech 425 Course Projects

1. Local Responses to Global Problems: A Key to Meeting Basic Human Needs

Summarized Local Responses to Global Problems: A Key to Meeting Basic Human Needs - by Bruce Stokes, 1978 .Attained Copyright of the AT Sourcebook and post PDF for the 'Local Self Reliance' section.

Completed by our team: Jerome Arthur, Graeme Armster, Landon Gardner & Bryn Sexton.

2. Energy monitoring

Created a Green Information Technology Green IT spreadsheet on the effects of implementing energy monitoring technology in a business. Evaluated the financial feasibility using the following metrics: expected payback time, Internal Rate of Return, carbon dioxide impact amongst other environmental impact metrics. The project description page can be found here: Category:Mech425 GreenIT Project

Completed by our team: Jerome Arthur, Graeme Armster, Landon Gardner & Bryn Sexton.

3. Industry Green IT Feasibility Analysis (Proprietary, no link available)

Our third team project was to develop a Green IT evaluation for a business client- the evaluation is not available online as the information is confidential to the client. We investigated the financial payback and other financial measures for: the installation of photovoltaics with the Ontario Feed-In Tariff, how Energy monitoring and Phantom power reducing power bars.

Completed by myself and my teammates: Jerome Arthur, Graeme Armster, Landon Gardner, Bryn Sexton & Chris Ruest.

3. Construction of an Affordable Greenhouse

This was my individual Appropriate technology project and contains a matlab file calculating the theoretical watts required per hour per day to maintain the greenhouse at a minimum temperature of 13 C for Kingston, ON. The page also includes instructions for how to install (and when) an Affordable Greenhouse on your property.

Please Check them out!

• Other Capstone Appropriate Technology Projects from the Mech 425 group can be found here: Mech425 AT Project

Other Engineering Projects and Green Interests Completed in 4th Year

Completed the following Projects at Queen's University in 4th year - however, they are not available online:

• Technology, Engineering and Management APSC 400 - Partnered with Canadian Wollastonite and Lafarge Canada in a Multidisciplinary Engineering project evaluating the economic feasibility of sequestering carbon dioxide in Wollastonite rock. Involved problem description, design of experiment, 20 bench scale experiments, statistical evaluation of results, problem solving errors, the creation of a process model using HYSIS process modeling software for reaction optimization, costing for both operating and capital, and an economic feasibility analysis using an expected market price of carbon. Results are confidential to the client; multidisciplinary engineering project in group of 3.
• The Management of New Enterprise (Entrepreneurship) (COMM 405) - Created a Business Plan for the PV Marketplace in Ontario. Groups of 4, commerce students only.
• Transport Phenomena (CHEE 412) - Mathematical Modeling of a Solar Thermal panel(using Matlab), final results include the energy transfer from the sun to the water per day per time of day for an average year in Kingston. Chemical Engineering students only, group of 3.
• Life Cycle Engineering (MECH 424) - Life Cycle Assessment of the energy requirement of mining the Canadian Oil Sands VS 'Sweet' Saudi Arabia Oil where CO2 is the functional unit. Mechanical Engineering students, group of 4.
• Design of Manufacturing Process: Biodiesel Plant simulation and optimization (using HYSIS) (CHEE 470) - Final year Chemical Engineering project involving: process research of the safety, side reactions, main reactions, plant optimization specs, etc...; using plantation modeling software (HYSIS) to optimize Biodiesel production. Other examinations include: environmental impact, economic feasibility and recommendations for future work (to build, re-optimize or cancel project). Groups of 4, Chemical Engineering students only.
• Sustainable Strategies and Practices for Commerce (COMM 408) - Evaluation of the effects of climate change in 50 years, the movement of Climate Refugees and resulting effects on the Canadian Economy. Created 'blue sky' ideas for how to solve climate change. Multidisciplanry teams, mostly commerce students.
• Fuel Cell Technology (MDEP 437) - Reviewed fuel cell theory and completed a capstone project evaluating the financial feasibility of a fuel cell in a subdivision. Recommendation, not economically feasible at this time - fuel cell capital costs are too high, however operating costs are competitive. Group of 5, multidisciplinary engineering project.

My Company: GreenTownes

Myself and my 2 partners, an MBA Candidate and a Software Engineer started Green Town Energy Systems, a solar panel installation company for the Ontario marketplace. After a successful summer, the business is on hold as the partners attend to their education.

A Campaign for Sustainability - Traversing the globe by sailboat, living off grid

I am campaigning to sail around the world - A Campaign for Sustainable Living. I will stop in major ports all over the world and untouched regions, to demonstrate the technology and learn how others live happily with their surroundings. I want to help others realize their potential and satisfy real needs all over the world. I want to help connect people, with great ideas and endless possibilities - that inspire real action. I want to improve how we live, and help connect my actions - and those of the people from the first world - with the results felt by other people and the long term consequences of those actions to the environment (both good and bad). This is the campaign, this is a better world.

How will I do this?

1. Set up a the 'Sustainability Campaign' website.
2. Acquire and retrofit green Catamaran (sailboat).
3. Practice sustainable living (using science).
4. Hold conferences in places I go sharing new ideas, like a TED talk, but face to face.
5. Set up a renewable energy power system on the cat, live solely off this. Next: farm algae cultures, catch fish and purify water.
6. Go from port to port, sharing what I have learned and learning how others live sustainably. Through the internet, I am actively promoting a new lifestyle. I am connecting long term solutions to the people who are interested, inspiring interest in others and empowering action.

Care to hop on board? -Watch your step!

The team is still seeking sponsorship, researchers, industry partners with new technology, logistics coordinators to strengthen the team!

Lastly, I believe that our large human population on earth is of benefit; I use this TED Talk on'Crowd Accelerated Innovation' to support my view.

SUPPORT

Some helpful links that I have found when using appropedia:

PDF Maker: http://www.cutepdf.com/

Uploading difficult files: http://www.appropedia.org/Special:Upload

"Lost Adventures - Lost Solutions" "Reef ON"