Five leading NZ minds for Eco-Minds

Five leading university students have been selected to represent NZ at the prestigious Asia-Pacific regional Eco-Minds sustainable development forum, being hosted by The University of Auckland on 25th-29th May in Auckland and Rotorua.

The five students are: Daniel Scott, Melissa Wong (Auckland University), Fiona Southall (Massey University), Elana Hawke (Canterbury University) and Rebecca Williamson (Waikato University).

They will be joining 20 other top Eco-Minds students from eight countries throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Held every two years, Eco-Minds is a sustainable development forum that brings tertiary-level students together to learn more about sustainability and to work on a case study.

 The forum is the result of a global partnership between Bayer and the United Nations Environment Programme. In NZ, Bayer has also formed a partnership with the NZ National Commission for UNESCO and The University of Auckland, which will deliver the academic programme.

The theme for Eco-Minds 2009 is Sustainable Energy Systems: Challenges and Opportunities.

Over the course of the five-day forum, the student delegates will participate in group work, lectures from local energy experts and site visits to NZ power generation sites, including the Huntly power station, Lake Karapiro hydro dam and the geothermal fields at Wairakei.

Students will also work on creating innovative and practical solutions to address the challenge of sustainable development and ensure sustainable energy supply.