Office of Environmental Sustainability
Happenings in Year 2012
Up to 1 million marine species, with most yet to be discoveredThe Straits Times, 20 Nov 2012Crab expert Professor Peter Ng from National University of Singapore together with other researchers have estimated that the oceans may harbor up to a million marine species, ranging from the crustaceans to the largest whales.  Building profits with eco-friendly wallsThe Business Times, p18, 13 Nov 2012GC ecoWall is a hollow core, non-weight bearing wall that is made from recycled aggregates. This environmentally friendly product was developed by a research team from the Department of Civil Engineering at NUS Faculty of Engineering, which was led by Professor Wee Tiong Huan. Marine study centre aims to swim with the bestThe Straits Times, pB6, 2 October 2012Some 200 visitors thronged St John's Island on 30 September to be up close with marine life at a laboratory set up by NUS' Tropical Marine Science Institute (TMSI). This was part of an Open Day event to mark the facility's 10th anniversary. Evolution theorist Alfred Russel WallaceBBC News (Online,) 27 September 2012Wallace Online gathers together in one place for the first time all of the naturalist's writings and illustrations. This project was led by historian Dr John van Wyhe, who had also produced Darwin Online from Cambridge University, UK. Dr van Wyhe is a Senior Lecturer at the NUS Department of Biological Sciences and the Department of History. 2nd of 3 dinosaurs for museum arrivesThe Straits Times, Top of the News, pA8, 29 August 2012The 24m-long Appollonia, packed into 14 crates, arrived in Singapore after a month-long journey from a laboratory in Utah. Kampung innovators protect the EarthThe Straits Times, Life!, pC6-C7, 27 July 2012The “Sustainable Living Lab" project founded by NUS graduates Muhammad Ibnur Rashad Zainal Abidin, Veerappan Swaminathan and Tan Huei Ming, allows individuals to make products for personal use or create products for sale which benefit humanity and the environment. NUS staff testing mini electric carsThe Straits Times, p B14, 20 July 2012Mini electric vehicles have begun trundling around NUS campus. These mini seaters will tested on campus for a year, under an agreement between NUS Faculty of Engineering and Toyota Tsusho Asia Pacific. 10 doctoral students receive World Future Foundation PhD awardsThe StraitsTimes (Online) Wednesday, 11 July 201210 doctoral students - five each from NUS and NTU - have been awarded US$10,000 (S$12,658) each for their outstanding work in sustainability and environment research. The award was presented by the World Future Foundation (WFF). Five solar energy research projects receive $11m in grantsThe Business Times Wednesday, June 28 2012, Page 11Three research proposals by the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) at NUS have been awarded grants by the Energy Innovation Programme Office (EIPO). Individually, these three SERIS projects look at the development of hybrid heterojunction silicon wafer solar cells (H2 Cells), integrating a framing system for crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules and ultrafast atomic layer deposition for cost-efficient high-efficiency silicon wafer solar cells. NUS students’ project: Nalanda master planThe Straits Times Saturday, January 28 2012, Page D814 architecture students from the NUS School of Design and Environment will outline an urban-rural model for the design of a new university in India to foster the concept of sustainable living. NUS running electric vehicle trialThe Straits Times Saturday, January 14 2012, Page B12NUS’ Faculty of Engineering uses NUS campus as a “living test-bed” to test out new technology in sustainable transportation. |
