White Paper - SEE

Parliament of Youth
on Sustainability
White Paper
June 2016
Acknowledgements
This White Paper is the final record of the
2016 SEE-Change Parliament of Youth on
Sustainability. It is a compilation of the
work of students from 28 schools across
the ACT and one school from Goulburn,
NSW.
Our heartfelt thanks go to:

the students from Kindergarten to Year
12 who researched issues, formulated
proposals, wrote Green Papers, and
developed presentations in preparation
for the Parliament;

the 293 students who participated in
the Parliament on 30 May 2016 where
they delivered their presentations,
discussed proposals and voted for the
top six final proposals;

the teachers in schools around the ACT
and in NSW who encouraged, supported
and inspired their students to think
about the challenge of our ecological
footprint and to develop their own
ideas for becoming more sustainable;
and

the 75 volunteers who helped bring the
Parliament of Youth on Sustainability
project to life.
It has been a pleasure to work with such a
great community of people helping to
bring about the changes we need to live
more sustainably on our fragile earth.
Em Professor Bob Douglas
Anne Quinn
Parliament of Youth Project Team
SEE-Change
June 2016
2
Full Parliament session
Photo: Katie Tabke, Trinity Christian School
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements ............................................................................................. 2
Table of Contents ............................................................................................... 3
Introduction ........................................................................................................ 4
Final six proposals and Ministers......................................................................... 7
Other proposals and Ministers in final 16 ............................................................ 8
Kindergarten to Year 3 ........................................................................................ 9
Issues identified............................................................................................... 9
Final proposal for action – Kindergarten to Year 3 .......................................... 10
Other proposal in final 16 – Kindergarten to Year 3 ........................................ 10
Year 4 to Year 6 ................................................................................................ 11
Issues identified............................................................................................. 11
Final proposals for action – Year 4 to Year 6 ................................................... 14
Other proposals in final 16 – Year 4 to Year 6 ................................................. 14
Year 7 to Year 9 ................................................................................................ 15
Issues identified............................................................................................. 15
Final proposals for action – Year 7 to Year 9 ................................................... 17
Other proposals in final 16 – Year 7 to Year 9 ................................................. 17
Year 10 to Year 12 ............................................................................................ 18
Issues identified............................................................................................. 18
Final proposal for action – Year 10 to Year 12 ................................................ 21
Other proposals in final 16 – Year 10 to Year12 .............................................. 21
Appendix 1: Proposals and Members of Parliament ............................................ 22
3
Introduction
The most recent calculations show the
average Canberra person has an ecological
footprint of 8.9 global hectares. If everyone
lived like the average one of us, using the
earth’s resources and creating waste at our
average rate, we would need around five
earths to meet our demands. That’s not
sustainable!
On 30 May 2016, 293 school students of
all ages from public, independent and
catholic schools across the Canberra region
gathered for the SEE-Change Parliament of
Youth on Sustainability at the Australian
National University (ANU). Grouped into 66
school based teams, each team submitted
a one page Green Paper addressing the
question ‘What is one action we should
take to reduce Canberra’s ecological
footprint?’.
On the morning of the Parliament, the
student teams met in year group
committees: kindergarten to year 3 (the
red committee), year 4 to year 6 (orange,
yellow and lime committees), year 7 to year
9 (green and light blue committees) and
year 10 to year 12 (blue/purple committee).
Cooper Elson, Year 4, Yarralumla Primary School
Kindergarten to Year 3 Red Committee in action with
facilitators Brooke Priestly and Maggie Gray
from St Mary MacKillop College
Photo: Katie Tabke, Trinity Christian School
Each school team presented their proposal
for action as outlined in their Green Paper,
listened to the proposals from other teams,
and talked about the advantages and
disadvantages of each proposal. At the end
of discussion, Parliamentarians voted for
the best two proposals in their committee
and a team representative for each chosen
proposal became a Minister.
From the 66 proposals considered in
committees, 16 progressed to the full
Parliament sessions in the afternoon.
The year group committees were assisted
in their work by year 11 and 12 student
facilitators from St Mary MacKillop College,
Canberra College and Canberra Grammar
School, with help from students from the
ANU Fenner School of Environment and
Society, and community volunteers.
4
MLAs Shane Rattenbury, Simon Corbell and
Nicole Lawder seated with student Ministers
Photo: Sam Ferguson, St Mary MacKillop College
In the afternoon, the student Ministers presented their proposals to all the members of
the 2016 Parliament of Youth on Sustainability as well as ACT politicians and a public
gallery of invited guests, parents and community members.
After discussion and a question and answer session with Members of the ACT
Legislative Assembly (MLAs) Simon Corbell, Shane Rattenbury and Nicole Lawder, the
Parliament voted for the best proposal from each year group and an additional two
proposals considered the best from the 16 presented to the full Parliament.
This White Paper presents the 16 proposals chosen by Parliamentary committees for
presentation to the full Parliament, and highlights the final six proposals chosen from
these as the best from the Parliament. For each of the four year groups, the paper draws
together key elements of the student Green Papers that justify the proposals for action
brought to the Parliament.
The Parliament of Youth on Sustainability Ministers will present the White Paper and the
final six proposals for action to reduce Canberra’s ecological footprint to Canberra’s
adult Parliament for further consideration.
Anne Quinn
Parliament of Youth on Sustainability Project Officer, SEE-Change
Elected student Ministers and MLAs
Back row (from left): Louise Smith (Garran Primary School), Trisha Rose (Merici
College), Chloe Boyd (St Mary MacKillop College), Kyan Rooney (Hawker Primary
School), Caitlin Treble (Merici College), Imogen McLean (Merici College),
Tiana Martiniello (Merici College), Laura Morgan (Lake Tuggeranong College),
Nicole Lawder MLA, Simon Corbell MLA, Bronte Froome (St John Paul II College),
Shane Rattenbury MLA
Front row: Mia Slater (Garran Primary School), Clarissa O’Keeffe (Burgmann
Anglican School Valley), Rose Teskey (Garran Primary School), Nathan Farme
(Trinity Christian School), Tara Millar (Trinity Christian School), Ethan Hollis (Farrer
Primary School), Edwina Dawson (Red Hill Primary School)
Photo: Katie Tabke, Trinity Christian School
5
Editor’s Note
The text in this paper is the work of the contributing students based on their research
and analysis. We have made occasional minor changes to the students’ text for
readability. Letter/number references in brackets refer to the school Green Paper and
proposal number for the Parliament. All propoals are listed at Appendix 1.
Illustrations in this paper are postcards created by student Parliamentarians on the day
of the Parliament in breaks between committee sessions.
6
Final six proposals and Ministers
Kindergarten – Year 3
Install sensor taps in all ACT public
places.
R8
Year 4 – Year 6
Minister
School
Clarissa O’Keeffe
Burgmann
Anglican School
(Valley)
Minister
School
Vending machine rubbish bins which
give charity tokens in exchange for
rubbish.
O7
Nathan Farmer
Trinity Christian
School
Install wind turbines in and around
Canberra on the open, unused land.
O5
Louisa Smith
Garran Primary
School
Minister
School
Year 7 – Year 9
Implement more appropriate timing for
street lights to be powered, change to
LED bulbs.
LB4
Trisha Rose
Merici College
Introduce public bikes with bike
racks/bike stops built as frequently as
bus stops.
LB1
Caitlin Treble
Merici College
Minister
School
Tiana Martiniello
Merici College
Year 10 – Year 12
Ban or put a levy (small fee) on
‘Boutique Bags’ (heavier, store-branded
plastic bags).
P5
7
Other proposals and Ministers in final 16
Kindergarten – Year 3
Make Garran Primary junior school
courtyard more sustainable (attract
birds and bees).
R9
Year 4 – Year 6
Minister
School
Rose Teskey
Garran Primary
School
Minister
School
‘Sprinkle, Sprinkle’ – Implement a
rooftop garden system on Canberra’s
buildings.
Y3
Ethan Hollis
Farrer Primary
School
Make bins more obvious with posters
about consequences of smoking, or raise
price.
Y2
Edwina Dawson
Red Hill Primary
School
Introduce a cash for containers scheme
in ACT.
L8
Kyan Rooney
Hawker Primary
School
The ACT must establish community fruit
and vegetable gardens in each suburb.
L9
Mia Slater
Garran Primary
School
Minister
School
Year 7 – Year 9
Implement a 'Fresh Schools Campaign'
– families bring fresh produce from
gardens to sell/give away.
G8
Tara Millar
Trinity Christian
School
ACT Government to elect an
Environmental Minister to represent the
environmental side of Canberra.
B4
Bronte Froome
St John Paul II
College
Minister
School
Year 10 – Year 12
Introduce a carbon footprint food
product rating system.
B3
Laura Morgan
Lake Tuggeranong
College
Each suburb in Canberra starts organic
community garden with a store, funded
by government.
P6
Imogen McLean
Merici College
Create a Canberra-based database/
virtual information centre to guide
Canberrans into reducing their
ecological footprint.
P1
Chloe Boyd
St Mary MacKillop
College
8
Kindergarten to Year 3
Issues identified
The ACT uses many more global hectares than
the global person. This is unacceptable! (R2,
R5, R9)
People are cutting down too many trees. (R7)
Planting trees will help reduce CO2 and global
warming. (R1)
Canberrans are wasting too much water
through grey water waste, which if recycled
could reduce our ecological footprint. (R6)
Charlie Knight, Year 2, Red Hill Primary School
In Canberra we also waste water because we
leave the tap running for too long or forget to
turn it off. We also get confused when we are
used to sensor taps but then there is a normal
one, we expect the water to stop and it doesn’t
and we waste water. (R8)
The problem is also sprinklers being left on
when it’s raining. Wasting our precious water
resources even when it’s raining. (R3)
Brodie Latimore,
Year 2, Burgmann
Anglican School
(Valley)
Diya Shah, Year 3,
Yarralumla Primary
School
At the moment in Canberra, most people put
all their soft plastic waste into the landfill bin
at school, at home or at work. This all goes
into the tip. So the problem is that that’s a lot
of soft plastic that could be recycled that isn’t
being recycled and it’s going into the Earth
after only being used once! (R4)
Our ecological footprint can be reduced if we
make our Junior School courtyard more
sustainable. (R2, R5, R9)
Winnie Herrring, Year 3, Yarralumla Primary School
If we are going to talk about problems and
solutions for our ecological footprint, then
everyone deserves to be heard, to contribute
equally with their knowledge and wisdom. The
Wisdom of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islanders through their connection to Country
will be lost to us forever if we don’t try to help
by making our voices equal, by respecting
their voice as wise and important. (R10)
9
Lyons Early Childhood School
Lola Galke-Jean, Year 1, Red Hill Primary School
Kestrel Munro, Year 2, Lyons Early Childhood School
Final proposal for action – Kindergarten to Year 3
Kindergarten – Year 3
Install sensor taps in all ACT public
places.
R8
Minister
School
Clarissa
O’Keeffe
Burgmann
Anglican School
(Valley)
Other proposal in final 16 – Kindergarten to Year 3
Kindergarten – Year 3
Make Garran Primary junior school
courtyard more sustainable (attract
birds and bees).
R9
10
Minister
School
Rose Teskey
Garran Primary
School
Year 4 to Year 6
Issues identified
The average ACT resident’s ecological footprint in 2008-2009 was 9.2 global hectares.
[The latest figures show our ecological footprint is now 8.9 global hectares per person.]
One global hectare is the productivity of all of the biologically productive areas on earth
in any given year. The ACT footprint has increased by nearly 25% from ten years before,
and is nearly 3.5 times the global average. (O3)
Scientists have researched and concluded that [to live within the earth’s capacity to
provide resources and deal with our waste] everyone in the world must have a 1.7 global
hectares ecological footprint. (Y1)
A large contributor to the problem of our
ecological footprint is that the ACT receives a
large amount of transported food from
interstate and overseas. Transporting food
makes more food miles therefore using more
global hectares. (L9) We consume too much
interstate produce that uses gas and fuel to
transport to Canberra (O8) and transporting
food from far distances creates CO2 which is
bad for the environment. (Y6)
Ruby Stanilewicz, Year 5, Majura Primary School
Lavanya Singh, Year 5, Garran Primary School
There are not enough markets or shops that
sell local foods from local farmers in Canberra.
Imported food uses too many resources such
as the fuel for transport (cars, planes, boats
and trucks) to get the food from the farms in
other countries or other states to a shop or
supermarket in Canberra. This increases
Canberra’s ecological footprint. (Y8)
Too much greenhouse gas is produced when
we import food from long distances and even
overseas. By growing our own vegetables we
are encouraging people to buy locally, and
develop an awareness of healthy eating habits.
This may encourage children to grow their own
vegetables. (O2)
People don’t know enough about how to care
for nature. They throw food waste in the
landfill bins instead of composting it. (O6)
Emma Loaney, Year 6, Duffy Primary School
The problem is supermarkets are separating
the odd bunch of less perfect from the perfect
food and discarding it even though it’s just as
good as the perfect food. The waste of an
amazing 1.3 billion tonnes of food per year is
not only causing major economic losses but
11
also making a significant difference to the natural resources that humanity relies upon
to feed itself. Far too much of this food is discarded just because of its appearance.
Aussies throw out $8 billion of edible food every year! (O3)
Every minute, Australians litter or throw into
landfill 15,000 bottles or cans. 48% of all
litter is beverage containers. (L8) People are
damaging our environment and not taking
responsibility for the recycling of plastic
bottles and aluminium cans. By stopping
waste dumping and recycling more, we can
save huge amounts of resources. For example
by recycling only one bottle you save enough
energy to power a television for 90 minutes.
The worst thing about this is that people
don’t take the small effort to put recyclables
where they belong. (Y5)
Riya Burmi, Shri Sumanaweera, Chloe Gunton,
Year 6, Trinity Christian School
People have too much plastic and aren’t re-using it. This grows our ecological footprint.
Plastic waste ends up in the ocean which kills our endangered marine life. (L1) The
problem is littering and the cost of cleaning it up. (O7) The problem is people littering
cigarettes. Cigarettes are dangerous for the human body and the environment. A
cigarette contains over 7000 chemicals and leaks lead and arsenic into the air. (Y2)
Canberrans as a whole are not using enough
renewable energy to combat the negative
impact of our massive ecological footprint.
There is land in and around Canberra that
people cannot farm and is left unused. There
are not enough entry level jobs in Canberra
for graduating university and Year 12
students. Building wind farms could help.
(O5)
Schools are using too much paper which in
most situations is unnecessary. This includes
sending out too much communication via
paper. For example, for our recent school
fete, notes were sent out almost every day for
more than two weeks and the information
being sent was the same every time. Not
enough members of the community are
recycling the paper which makes the
ecological footprint even larger. (L4)
Canberra’s household consumption of excess
electricity needs to be reduced. (Y4) A lot of
energy and money is spent on air
conditioning and heating in buildings in
Canberra and this creates too much carbon
pollution. (O4)
12
Geethika Choudary Vemura, Year 5,
Garran Primary School
Bethany Wright, Year 6, Hawker Primary School
ACT public schools are leaving appliances on, and are using appliances when they are
possibly not needed, thus wasting lots of energy. Over the whole of 2015, our school
used a massive 107200 Kwh! Traditional methods of teaching and learning have been
underutilised [and overtaken] by devices, which has led to some students forgetting
basic skills such as handwriting, spelling and grammar. (L2)
At schools in the ACT, kids spend a great deal of time inside on their devices which is a
bad habit for them and our environment. Most schools in the ACT use their devices on a
day to day basis, and in each school there are roughly 26 classes, and in each class
there are roughly 25 students in each class. That is a great deal of electricity being
used. (L6)
Fifteen billion trees are being cut down each
year across the world at a rate of two thousand
trees per second. In Australia, two American
sized football fields of forest are still being cut
down every ten minutes even though the tree
cutting rate has dropped by 40%. We have
already cut down half the trees in the world
which is approximately three trillion. Each
person requires approximately four hundred
trees to counteract their ecological footprint.
(L3)
Lucy Boyer, Year 4, Yarralumla Primary School
The problem is that Canberra wastes too much
water through simple actions that need to
change. (L7) As Canberrans we waste too much
water in our bathroom and this needs to
change. (O1) Too many people are using a
whole lot of water and not saving it. We may
not have enough water for future generations.
(Y7)
Vehicles emit pollution that contributes to
climate change and increases our ecological
footprint. Every time that we drive in a vehicle
we are contributing to Canberra’s ecological
footprint. (L5)
Anica Kraljevic, Year 5, St Benedict’s Primary School
The problem is there were trees in places
where there are now buildings; it looks
depressing – grey, black and concrete; animals
like birds, bees and butterflies have lost their
homes; cities make lots of pollution; Canberra
is in a valley and the air doesn’t blow away
easily, the smog stays; and food miles – going
too far to get food is wasteful. (Y3)
Tilly Rowe, Year 5, Farrer Primary School
13
Final proposals for action – Year 4 to Year 6
Year 4 – Year 6
Minister
School
Vending machine rubbish bins which
give charity tokens in exchange for
rubbish.
O7
Nathan Farmer
Trinity Christian
School
Install wind turbines in and around
Canberra on the open, unused land.
O5
Louisa Smith
Garran Primary
School
Other proposals in final 16 – Year 4 to Year 6
Year 4 – Year 6
Minister
School
‘Sprinkle, Sprinkle’ – Implement a
rooftop garden system on Canberra’s
buildings.
Y3
Ethan Hollis
Farrer Primary
School
Make bins more obvious with posters
about consequences of smoking, or raise
price.
Y2
Edwina Dawson
Red Hill Primary
School
Introduce a cash for containers scheme
in ACT.
L8
Kyan Rooney
Hawker Primary
School
The ACT must establish community fruit
and vegetable gardens in each suburb.
L9
Mia Slater
Garran Primary
School
14
Year 7 to Year 9
Issues identified
ACT's ecological footprint is almost three times the global average, and it is increasing
by 8% every five years. (G8) Canberra's carbon/ecological footprint is very large
and needs to be reduced. (LB2)
The problem is global warming caused by green house gases from the carbon in fossil
fuels. (LB6) If we do not act now we will be in the middle of an ecological crisis. One of
the major problems is energy efficiency. (G4)
Canberra relies heavily on transport and this is
a major contributing factor to its ecological
footprint. With this city becoming more
populated each year, the level of pollution
emitted from transport is rising. This is
damaging the environment, ecosystem and
although Canberra is small, is still contributing
to global warming and climate change. (LB1)
Kya Lamarra, Christina Pace, Zara Writer, Year 8/9,
Trinity Catholic College, Goulburn
One of the biggest problems we face today
around the world is pollution. Transportation
is one of the main causes of pollution with cars
producing up to anywhere between 50 and
90% of the pollution we breathe and buses
producing an extremely high amount of waste.
(G3)
We need to reduce the number of cars on the
road. (G9)
Caitlin Treble, Year 9, Merici College
Currently electric cars are posing as more ‘ecofriendly’ than petrol cars when in reality the
amount of coal burned to give them power is
just as bad; by putting more money into
renewable energy we can make them truly ecofriendly. (LB7)
Canberrans are using too many materials and using our cars too much, which is causing
high carbon emissions and this is adding to our ecological footprint. One way to reduce
this is to reduce our consumption of materials. People are using too many plastic
bottles and one of the biggest uses is for soft drinks. They are also wasting money
buying these carbonated drinks. (G5)
28% of our ecological footprint is made up of the food we eat. 95% of our fruit and 50%
of our vegetables are imported. Transporting food releases greenhouse gas emissions,
which damage the environment and eventually lead to global warming. Processed food
not only requires more energy and water in the production process, but also eliminates
minerals, vitamins and fibre. (G8)
15
Many Australian students’ diets consist of
high amounts of meat and they are
accustomed to eat it as they are influenced by
others in their family and community.
Students choose not to switch to a vegetarian
diet as they believe that there are no
appetising foods without meat as it is main
part of a meal and do not understand healthy
alternatives. The meat industry affects several
aspects of the environment including water
and air.
An
average
Australian's
diet
uses
approximately 3,500 litres of water a day.
The food mileage in Australia is tremendous
with a typical shopping basket in Victoria
having travelled a total of 70,803 km. Not
only does the delivery of food release many
greenhouse gases but raising the animals
creates more greenhouse gases than all
transportation worldwide combined. More
than 50% of global human-caused greenhouse
gases can be affiliated with livestock and
their by-products. (LB3)
Every week a lettuce plant needs 3 cubic
inches of water. With hydroponics 20-25 litres
of water is used which waters 10 lettuce
plants for 2 months without change. This
equates to about 49 litres of water without
hydroponics. If we use hydroponics in every
home we will nearly halve the water we use
on plants and use it just as effectively. (G2)
Tara Millar, Olivia Gill, Taisia Apelt, Year 8,
Trinity Christian School
Gabby Cox, Year 9, Merici College
In the Australian Capital Territory, there are 72,000 street lights in use each day and
night. These lights burn a great amount of electricity and release a large amount of
greenhouse gases to the earth. This is extremely harmful to the environment as it
contributes to global warming and climate change. On average in the ACT, street lights
produce 4, 669 tons of greenhouse gases per year, due to the burning of fossil fuels to
produce electricity.
The main problem regarding street lights in the ACT is the timing of when they are
activated. Street lights in the ACT are used when it’s still bright and there is good
visibility. Street lights are also in use during non-active hours which wastes electricity.
(LB4) Too much electricity is being used and wasted, therefore increasing Canberra’s
ecological footprint unnecessarily. (G1)
Gas and wood burning heaters produce harmful gases, such as carbon dioxide, carbon
monoxide, and sediments. We need to get rid of all gas and wood burners because they
are dangerous and unhealthy and damage the environment. (G7)
16
Minerals and harmful chemicals are building
up to unacceptable levels in our waterways,
creating adverse effects on flora and fauna.
(G6)
The problem is that primary school aged
children don’t understand the importance of
reducing Canberra’s ecological footprint. (LB8)
Bronte Froome, Year 9, St John Paul II College
The problem is there is no current, existing
Environmental Minister. Canberra’s environment
for future generations isn't a priority. Current
portfolios to do with the environment are wide
spread and not a priority. (B4)
Final proposals for action – Year 7 to Year 9
Year 7 – Year 9
Minister
School
Implement more appropriate timing for
street lights to be powered, change to
LED bulbs.
LB4
Trisha Rose
Merici College
Introduce public bikes with bike
racks/bike stops built as frequently as
bus stops.
LB1
Caitlin Treble
Merici College
Other proposals in final 16 – Year 7 to Year 9
Year 7 – Year 9
Minister
School
Implement a 'Fresh Schools Campaign'
– families bring fresh produce from
gardens to sell/give away.
G8
Tara Millar
Trinity Christian
School
ACT Government to elect an
Environmental Minister to represent the
environmental side of Canberra.
B4
Bronte Froome
St John Paul II
College
17
Year 10 to Year 12
Issues identified
An ‘ecological footprint’ is defined as the area
of land required to provide the quantity of
resources necessary to sustain the lifestyle of
a given individual. The per-capita ecological
footprint of the ACT, and of most developed
regions in Australia and abroad, greatly
exceeds the land area at our disposal. (P9)
ACT’s ecological footprint is five times higher
than the biocapacity available per resident.
(B7) Of all the states and territories of
Australia, Canberra has the largest ecological
footprint. On average, Australians need 8.2
hectares of land to sustain their lifestyles –
Canberrans require 8.9 hectares of land for
the same purpose. (P1)
A reduction in the total ecological footprint of
the ACT, Australia and other developed
nations is necessary in order to sustain the
existence of society given a finite level of
natural resources. (P9)
Year 10-Year 12 Committee
Photos: Sam Ferguson, St Mary MacKillop College
The increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are causing an increase in the
temperature of the earth’s atmosphere, this is due to the greenhouse effect. Carbon
dioxide is released through natural processes such as breathing or human activities like
deforestation and burning fossil fuels. The NASA website shows that humans have
increased carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere by a third since the Industrial
Revolution began. (B6)
Climate change has a very wide reach around the globe and its detrimental effects on
nature, society and economy are expected to get worse. Increased greenhouse gas
emissions have led to an increased global temperature, more frequent extreme events,
melting ice cover and subsequent sea level rising. (B3) Climate change is likely to
threaten the water supply of the ACT through reduced rainfall and runoff leading to
further stress being placed on water resources. Canberra is more likely to experience
what scientists call ‘extreme events’, an example being bushfires that would only
damage our great city and its infrastructure. (B1)
In 2014-15, every person living in the ACT emitted 9.97 tonnes of CO2, therefore the
ACT government has set a reduction target of 40% below the 1990 levels of 11.0 tonnes
by 2020. The ACT government environment website shows that electricity makes up
56% of ACT emissions, followed by transport (26%) and natural gas (10%). The reasons
for Canberra’s emissions being very high are due to the reliance on greenhouse gasemitting modes of transport, the use of coal to produce most electricity and the size of
the population. (B6)
18
ACT has an electricity consumption higher than the Australian average. Electricity makes
up 56% of ACT emissions. 81.4% of energy came from non-renewable sources in the
ACT in 2013/14. A majority of electricity usage in the ACT occurs during winter as a
result of heating of buildings. (B7)
Not enough Australians are using solar power. We believe that with the large amount of
sunlight easily available to Australians, that if communities used solar panels both
energy and money would be saved. Australia’s yearly average is about 7.6 hours of
sunlight daily and to not use this would be wasteful of Australia’s natural resources. (B5)
Canberra, as one of the smaller capital cities, relies heavily on interstate trading and
freight transport for much of its goods and services. Rail has proven to be faster, and
more sustainably efficient than trucks, however it is still not utilised enough across the
country … and there is no direct line from Canberra to other major cities. Over the
years, with a higher demand on products and resources, 95% of goods are transported
by truck from Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne (2016). This increased number of trucks
on the road adds to road fatalities, congestion and almost three times the carbon
emissions. Approximately 1000 semi-trailers travel from Brisbane to Melbourne every
single day, passing Canberra on the way. (B2)
Canberra’s current forms of transportation are
not feasible for the predicted population
increase. In 2014 the national average carbon
emissions
from
passenger
and
light
commercial vehicles was 188 g/km. In 2015,
283,572 vehicles were registered in the ACT
with an average annual growth in registrations
of 2.3% between 2010 and 2015. (P3)
Typically in Canberra, we tend to use cars as
the easy alternative for travel. To reduce
Canberra’s ecological footprint, an effective
way would be to introduce share cars to
Canberra, which will not only save money, but
will save resources, water quality, air quality,
and greenhouse gases. (B8)
The problem is that people are using their cars
more than required and a way to fix that is
urban infill. (P4)
Year 10-Year 12 Committee
Photos: Sam Ferguson, St Mary MacKillop College
We need to reduce Canberra’s ecological
footprint by reducing the amount of cars on
roads (travelling to buy groceries, shipping of
food), reducing the amount of pesticides on
plants, reducing the amount of chemicals used
to grow plants, and reducing the amount of
industrialised farming providing to Canberra.
(P6)
19
Currently there is no minimum standard
across all public and commercial buildings for
energy efficiency (although new builds have
to have an energy efficiency rating of 6.0).
This means that historical, public and
commercial buildings can use as much energy
as they please; these large-scale buildings
with high energy usage have a significant
impact on the ACT’s energy usage. The ACT
Government has just announced it will be
giving schools $2.3 million to improve the
energy efficiency in schools but we believe
this should be extended to all large nonresidential buildings. (P7)
Year 10-Year 12 Committee
Photo: Sam Ferguson, St Mary MacKillop College
Our large ecological footprint is reportedly due to the ‘luxury living’ of many
Canberrans, who are willing to buy more expensive items, rather than cheaper, local
produce. It is important too for people to understand that ‘luxury living’ does not have
to change as such; it is simply that people can change from whom and where, they buy
items. In recent years, the ecological footprint of Canberrans has dropped – from 9.2
hectares to 8.9 hectares. There is not a lack of will in the community to reduce their
ecological footprint, there is simply a lack of information provided to them about how to
achieve this. Information is essential in creating change, especially when the change is
directly linked to an individual’s lifestyle. (P1)
Education is integral for consumers will not actively make a change to their food
purchasing habits without understanding the emissions of the product and how these
products’ emissions (and thus the customers themselves) are contributing to the global
greenhouse effect. (B3)
In November 2013, plastic bags made from
polyethylene polymer with a thickness of less
than 35 microns were banned in the ACT,
which reduced the amount of plastic bags
that went to landfill. However there was an
increased purchase of ‘boutique bags/bin
liners’; almost 4 million boutique bags were
purchased which are often store-branded and
made from heavier plastic. This a major issue
as the thicker plastic bags or ‘boutique bags’
remain in pollution for thousands for years.
(P5)
20
Year 10-Year 12 Committee
Photo: Sam Ferguson, St Mary MacKillop College
Final proposal for action – Year 10 to Year 12
Year 10 – Year 12
Ban or put a levy (small fee) on
‘Boutique Bags’ (heavier, store-branded
plastic bags).
P5
Minister
School
Tiana Martiniello
Merici College
Other proposals in final 16 – Year 10 to Year12
Year 10 – Year 12
Minister
School
Introduce a carbon footprint food
product rating system.
B3
Laura Morgan
Lake Tuggeranong
College
Each suburb in Canberra starts organic
community garden with a store, funded
by government.
P6
Imogen McLean
Merici College
Create a Canberra-based database/
virtual information centre to guide
Canberrans into reducing their
ecological footprint.
P1
Chloe Boyd
St Mary MacKillop
College
21
Appendix 1: Proposals and Members of
Parliament
The sixty-six proposals presented and the members of the 2016 Parliament of Youth on
Sustainability are listed on the following pages by committee.
22
RED COMMITTEE: Kindergarten – Year 3 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
R1
Planning to plant fruit,
vegetables and trees
(community gardens).
Red Hill Primary School 1
Make Garran Primary junior
school courtyard more
sustainable (compost bins,
water bubbler motion sensor).
Garran Primary School 1
Compulsory sensors on taps
and website showing people
who aren’t doing the right
thing.
Burgmann Anglican School (Forde)
Build a recycle centre in
Canberra that can sort soft
plastic.
Lyons Early Childhood School 2
Make Garran Primary junior
school courtyard more
sustainable (replace weeds,
save electricity).
Garran Primary School 2
All Canberran homes should
be fitted with grey water
recycling from their washing
machine.
Yarralumla Primary School 1
Everyone in primary schools
should plant a tree seed every
year to stop CO2.
Red Hill Primary School 2
Install sensor taps in all ACT
public places.
Burgmann Anglican School (Valley)
Make Garran Primary junior
school courtyard more
sustainable (attract birds and
bees).
Garran Primary School 3
Make sure that everyone is
being respected equally in
Canberra and Australia.
Lyons Early Childhood School 1
R2
R3
R4
R5
R6
R7
R8
R9
R10
Shonali Banerjee, Damiru Perera, Elijah Crosbey,
Tejaswinii Mouli, Ella Vannan, Wangari Wahome
Hannah Boyce, Colin Lim, Irine Suraj, Affan Atif,
Eloise Blake, Harriet Moore-Foster
Mackayla Penfold, Lewis Wright, Lucy Tanner,
Jackson Thew, Noah Lennard, Udara Manage
Finn Kite, Kestrel Munro, Shiza Imran,
Rebecca Elphicke, Bodhi Richardson
Beth Jankowski, Simon Wu, Angus Mackay,
Yassie Tidimane, Majd Alrishan, Sachin Nanda
Olivia Hicks, Charlotte Scoltock, Dev/Diya Shah,
Jacinta Monteleone, Winnie Herring,
Julia Trinca Talalin
Lola Galke-Jean, Sena Whiley, Will Goch, Charlie
Knight, Iris Rangiah, Audrey Frawley
Brodie Latimore, Imogen Bathgate, Clarissa
O’Keeffe, Caelan Riches, Charles McBaron,
Aanya Anand
Miles Regner, Brendon Goldsmid, Lola HamlynHarris, Rose Teskey, Sidhe Tyagi, Carter Hyam
Antonio Martins, Lucy Bailey, Arwen Baker,
Tessa Gray, Eman Abdine
23
ORANGE COMMITTEE: Year 4 – Year 6 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
O1
Nationwide competition to
design a shower head with an
automatic 4 minute cut off.
Yarralumla Primary School 2
Develop a school vegetable
garden, compost heap and
keep chickens.
Trinity Christian School 2
Get supermarkets in Canberra
to support the Odd Bunch
approach (selling imperfect
fruit).
Duffy Primary School 1
The ACT government should
encourage businesses to build
roof top gardens.
Palmerston Primary School 2
Install wind turbines in and
around Canberra on the open,
unused land.
Garran Primary School 1
‘Music, Compost, Grow!’ – Use
jingles to teach one ‘waste
wise’ skill at a time.
North Ainslie Primary School
Vending machine rubbish bins
which give charity tokens in
exchange for rubbish.
Trinity Christian School 1
Government will provide
funding for all schools and
universities to have a
vegetable patch.
Canberra Girls Grammar School
(Junior) 1
O2
O3
O4
O5
O6
O7
O8
Lila Gough, Allegra Senti, Rocco Theodorakis,
Owen Eastley, Clare Bradbery, Cooper Elson,
Lucy Boyer
Chloe Ahyong, Dakira Alsemgees, Kaitlyn Lucas,
Anne-Louise Douglas, Cayley O’Neil,
Molly Goldsby-Brinkley
Olivia Bourne, Emma Loaney, Keira King,
Heather Gellatly, Zander Penglis, Natasha Tilley,
Brianna Dunn
Dylan Patterson, Tijaana Houvinen, Talha Sohail,
Rebecca Phillips, Natasha Wells
Xavi Wienke, Geethika Choudary Vemura,
Serena Shi, Aditya Grama, Louisa Smith,
Elektra Tsarpalias
Adele Loughhead, Sofia Hingston,
Methu Elaahabada Gedara, Campbell Milne,
Stella Macfadyen, Alyson Jones, Monet Hall
Connor McKenzie, Corey Thompson,
Shri Sumanaweera, Nathan Farmer, Riya Burmi,
Chloe Gunton
Sophia Champion De-Crispigny, Tamika Pillay,
Charlotte Young, Lily Bilston, Emma Moloney,
Sienna Page
24
YELLOW COMMITTEE: Year 4 – Year 6 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
Y1
The ACT’s Government will
enforce a sustainable building
code.
Garran Primary School 2
Make bins more obvious with
posters about consequences
of smoking, or raise price.
Red Hill Primary School 3
‘Sprinkle, Sprinkle’ –
Implement a rooftop garden
system on Canberra’s
buildings.
Farrer Primary School
Create a Canberra-wide ad
campaign based around
electricity reduction.
Yarralumla Primary School 3
Introduce a recycling payment
of ten cents for plastic bottles
and cans.
Duffy Primary School 2
Make community gardens in
Canberra, in the suburbs.
Red Hill Primary School 4
The ACT government should
provide every Canberra
primary school with Water
Saving Tips book.
Palmerston Primary School 1
Advertise to encourage buying
fresh produce from local
farmers markets and create
community gardens.
Majura Primary School
Y2
Y3
Y4
Y5
Y6
Y7
Y8
Max Saunder, Joji Hamlyn-Harris, June Fang,
Sebaga Newman, Sowmya Ramanathan,
Saswat Pati
Charlotte O’Sullivan, Aboodi Kassim, Edwina
Dawson, Bethan Pitt, Jazmine Lee, Taegan White
Amanda Chek, Luke Willson, Ethan Hollis,
Hadi Saleh, Elleri Mills, Tilly Rowe
Callum Hicks, Ennio D’Agostino, Scarlett Fittler,
Iman Moharam, Georgia Roughley, Isabella Piani
Ronan Carr, Harry Broadhead, Jack Parr,
Sam Chaseling, William Schmid
Isabelle Oh, Annabel Petersen, Iris Bian,
Wambui Taylor, Dylan Pitt, Phoebe Weigall
Deveraux Tapelu, Julia Villaflor, Billy Bungate,
Shae Flatt, Tanisha Morol
Grace Guthrie, Louis Serfontein, Hadia Bizhan,
Mia O’Sullivan, Ruby Stanilewicz, Mika Kadivuka
25
LIME COMMITTEE: Year 4 – Year 6 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
L1
Provide every school in the
ACT with money to build a
Precious Plastic machine.
Canberra Girls Grammar School
(Junior) 2
Once every term, all ACT
government schools
participate in ‘Switch It Off
Day’.
Hughes Primary School 1
Every tree cut down should
have a tax and replace system
on it.
Torrens Primary School
Reduce paper use in schools –
use online communication,
use less paper, plant more
trees.
Kaleen Primary School
Canberra Government starts
an initiative called ‘Free-BusFriday’.
St Benedict’s Primary School
Move the common classroom
outside on 5th of March and
November, like Earth Hour.
Hughes Primary School 2
Turn it off, don’t let it drip
water awareness campaign.
Yarralumla Primary School 4
Introduce a cash for
containers scheme in ACT.
Hawker Primary School
The ACT must establish
community fruit and vegetable
gardens in each suburb.
Garran Primary School 3
L2
L3
L4
L5
L6
L7
L8
L9
Holly Irvine, Reshmi Senanayake, Sophie Domazet,
Lana Sault, Audrey Kuan, Jade Dale
Hanser Yoon, Keira Turnbull, Paris Ellis,
Keziah Hazell, Molly Reichstein, Amelia Huynh
Harry T, Aran S, Jared S, Bryce VE, Max R, Ryan B
Edward Renner, Claire Finkle, Alyssa Hua,
Samar Singh, Max Steele, Jude Barry
Mia Channing, Sophie Buckland,
Alexander Magers, Nandan Thomas,
Alyssa Taylor
Oliver Geoghegan, Etta Sakora, Elena Aigner,
Kate Bell, Mackenzie Pike, Lotte Beenan
Thomas Fahey, Jake Dawes,
Taina Quadra Portes Rocha, Carl Vitolovich,
Ellen Mihaljevic, Heleen Othman
Bethany Wright, Charlotte Craig, Owen Fearns,
Oscar Hennessy, Toby Reeves, Kyan Rooney
Mia Slater, Lavanya Singh, Christina Stewart,
Geo Sebastian, Alex Lee, Jeff Zhang
26
GREEN COMMITTEE: Year 7 – Year 9 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
G1
Citizens of Canberra can wear
a small solar power band
around their wrists.
Daramalan College 2
Encourage hydroponics in
schools around Canberra.
Trinity Christian School 1
Introduce an electric water
bus/taxi service on Lake
Burley Griffin and Molonglo
river.
Merici College 1
Convince ACT Government to
create an app that turns
home/work appliances off
completely.
Daramalan College 1
The government should
distribute soda making
machines such as
‘sodastream’ with a gas
canister.
Mount Stromlo High School 1
Mandate a requirement that all
new homes be fitted with gray
water systems.
Campbell High School
Installing electric panel
heating across the whole of
Canberra and then Australia
wide.
Canberra Grammar School 3
Implement a 'Fresh Schools
Campaign' – families bring
fresh produce from gardens to
sell/give away.
Trinity Christian School 3
ACT Government to elect an
Enviromental Minister to
represent the enviromental
side of Canberra.
St John Paul II College 1
Reduce the number of cars on
the road by introducing a
carpooling service for journeys
to and from work.
Trinity Catholic College, Goulburn
G2
G3
G4
G5
G6
G7
G8
B4
G9
James Taloni, Aimee Massa-Stevens
Tristan Cupit, Ben Holland, Khaled El Hassan
Olivia Miles, Sophie Foley, Tandia Edwards
Sophie Armitage, Boyd Kelly
Tindal Randall, Delaney Green, Brooke Bellwood
Lulu Horciu, Christina Pilgrim, Wil Griffiths,
Isaac Martin, Prithvi Saxena
Thomas Gedye, Ryan Neilsen, Jack Kefford
Tara Millar, Olivia Gill, Taisia Apelt
Bronte Froome, Joel Bartlett, Andrew Cantlie
Kya Lamarra, Christina Pace, Zara Writer
27
LIGHT BLUE COMMITTEE: Year 7 – Year 9 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
LB1
Introduce public bikes with
bike racks/bike stops built as
frequently as bus stops.
Merici College 2
Make handbook for Canberra,
with information on how
individuals can reduce their
ecological footprint.
Mount Stromlo High School 2
ACT school canteens to
introduce more vegetarian
centred food.
Telopea Park School 2
Implement more appropriate
timing for street lights to be
powered, change to LED bulbs.
Merici College 3
Reduce the use of fossil fuels
in Canberra.
Namadgi School
More money towards
renewable energy sources and
research into cheaper, more
eco-friendly electric cars.
St Francis Xavier College 1
‘Superhero’ to visit Canberra
primary schools, tell them how
to reduce their ecological
footprint.
Daramalan College 3
LB2
LB3
LB4
LB6
LB7
LB8
Mia Woolford, Malia Harrison, Caitlin Treble,
Clare Austin
Mana Kilby, Amber Howard, Clare Severs
Ivan Barouline, Zoe Clarke, Philippa Graham,
Ralph Nueangrit
Trisha Rose, Gabrielle Cox, Olivia Horvat,
Ameilia Polsen
Dylan Nagy, Logan Cerda, Shaun Payne,
Ben Nguyen, Brianna Cather, Haley Stewart
Olivia Lukunic, Charlotte Drury, Sedrina Choo,
Sharae Greenway
Jock Phillips, Marvin Boone
28
BLUE/PURPLE COMMITTEE: Year 10 – Year 12 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
B1
Move Canberra to completely
renewable energy through
government investment,
emissions trading scheme.
Canberra Grammar School 1
Construct new high speed
railway to carry
products/people from
Brisbane to Melbourne via
Canberra.
Daramalan College 4
Introduce a carbon footprint
food product rating system.
Lake Tuggeranong College
Bring back the National Solar
Schools Program and adapt it
for the wider community.
St Francis Xavier College 2
Mandate public/government
buildings in ACT have a solar
panel, more energy efficient
light bulbs.
St Mary MacKillop College 2
ACT government to fund
ANU/CSIRO to conduct
research/pilot studies on
geothermal direct heating
systems.
Daramalan College 6
Launch car sharing companies
in Canberra.
Merici College 2
B2
B3
B5
B6
B7
B8
Elliott Merchant, Christian Flynn
Katarina Bonatakis, Eryn Murphy, Alicia Webb
Laura Morgan, Ana Salipur
Gaby Karov, Kate Dimech
Harleen Kaur, Kate Solari
Nathan Kennedy, Zach Powell
Clare Moloney, Imogen McLean
29
BLUE/PURPLE COMMITTEE: Year 10 – Year 12 PROPOSALS
No.
Proposal
School and Members of Parliament
P1
Create a Canberra-based
database/virtual information
centre to guide Canberrans
into reducing their ecological
footprint.
St Mary MacKillop College 1
Improve bike paths and
cycling infrastructure.
St Francis Xavier College 3
Increase urban infill – make
more attractive to live in
centre of satellite town
centres.
Daramalan College 5
Ban or put a levy (small fee) on
‘Boutique Bags’ (heavier, storebranded plastic bags).
Merici College 1
Each suburb in Canberra starts
organic community garden
with a store, funded by
government.
Merici College 3
Government mandates energy
update to all
public/commercial buildings
(EER < 3.0), subsidise
implementation program.
Telopea Park School 1
ACT government sets aside
$500 million over 10 years for
clean energy innovation fund.
Canberra Grammar School 2
P3
P4
P5
P6
P7
P9
Chloe Boyd, Cameron Prowse
Georgia McGuire, Emma Ryan-Baker
Richard Brady, Annabelle Philip
Tiana Martiniello, Emily Pantaleo
Hannah Harvey, Grace Swan
Olivia Baldwin, Maddalena Coopman, Ann Wang
Michael Nguyen- Kim, Christopher Seidl
30
Some of the Parliament volunteers
Photos: Katie Tabke, Trinity Christian School; Sam Ferguson, St Mary MacKillop College; Anne Quinn, SEE-Change
31
SEE-Change would like to thank
the sponsors and supporters of the
Parliament of Youth project.
Supported with grant funding by:
Venue support:
Other supporters:
Erindale
Cakery Bakery
Wanniassa Hills
Primary School
www.see-change.org.au
32