Friday 30 November 2018

Critical Reflection

Reflection part 1
At the start of the course in my blogpost 1, I mentioned that my goal by the end of the module is to be a confident speaker, I believed that by this time I have already achieved what I initially mentioned. Throughout the trimester I have worked on many projects with different groups of people. There were many discussions involved in order to get the work done. Often, to get my idea across to my project mates, I have to speak out and express my idea clearly across to the whole group. Over a period of time I have learned that I need to craft my ideas properly and to express it in the most efficient and clear manner as much as possible. This is to make sure my project mates understand the concept I am trying to make to the team. 

Reflection part 2 
Throughout my research project I personally feel that the highlight of the would be the presentation itself. Before the module started, I was not a very confident speaker and I have no idea what is the proper way to present my work in front of a crowd. After the module I have learned that in order to present my slides and content effectively to the crowd, have to prepare not just the slides but also the way I am going to be present. For instance, nonverbal language is extremely important, the way we stand during a presentation and the pace that we deliver our content will directly affect the attention given to the audienceto have an effective presentation we have to capture the audience attention throughout the whole presentation. The presentation has allowed me understand that to do a good presentation, many factors that I never thought were important are actually being taken into consideration.

Monday 29 October 2018

Report draft #1

Problem statement 

The ideal electricity usage in institutes of higher learning would be only what is needed, as it would reduce electricity usage and contribute less to climate change. The Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA) Green Mark rating criteria on building energy performance could be used as a guide for ways to reduce electricity usage in institutes of higher learning. 

Electricity is wasted in Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) due to inefficient electrical equipment, and air-conditioning and lighting systems in classrooms that are switched on even when they are empty. 

Automating electrical supply to rooms and changing to best in class energy efficient equipment could be a way for SIT to reduce its electricity usage. 

Proposal statement

The purpose of this proposal is to give suggestions to the estates division in SIT@Dover to reduce the electricity usage in SIT@Dover. 

Introduction 

Climate change is not a looming threat, it is already happening. 

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), recently released a special report summarising the steps that need to be taken to limit global warming to 1.5°C, and the consequences of going beyond that. However, the world is on track to go beyond the 3°C of warming (United Nations Environment Programme, 2016), a disaster that would adversely affect millions around the world, including the 5.6 million that are currently in Singapore (NCCS, 2018). 

The world has warmed by one degree Celsius (IPCC, 2018), and Singapore is already feeling the effects of climate change in the form of changing weather patterns, droughts and floods, and higher annual mean temperatures(NCCS, 2018). The effects will only worsen as the world warms further (IPCC, 2018), and Singapore needs to take action to mitigate climate change. 

According to the National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) (2018), Singapore contributes to 0.11% of global carbon emissions, which seems like a negligible amount. However, Singapore’s per capita carbon emission is at least twice that of the global average (NCCS, 2018), which means that we are emitting far more than we should – at the expense of our future. 

As youths, we will bear the brunt of the effects of climate change in the coming years, and the burden of limiting the devastation that will be caused by climate change falls to us. 

2018 was designated the year of climate action by the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR), to galvanise ground-up actions to mitigate climate change (MEWR, 2018). As an autonomous university that aims to nurture graduates that are grounded in the community and catalysts for transformation (SIT, 2018), SIT has the potential and responsibility to reduce its carbon emissions. 

The most direct way SIT can contribute to climate action is through reducing its electricity use. Universities in Singapore each consumed an average of 358 kilowatt hours per metre square (kWh/m2.yr) in 2017 (BCA, 2018), emitting 150kg of carbon per metre square every year (Energy Market Authority, 2018). 

Air conditioners typically contribute to 60% of a building’s electricity use, with lights contributing 15% and fans contributing 10% (NCCS, 2013). Combined, they consume 85% of electricity in a building, and there are huge potential savings to be had in these three areas. 

The current system in SIT@Dover is not well managed. Lecture rooms and classrooms have electrical systems like lights and air conditioners switched on all day, and turned off only at midnight, with no way for users to turn air conditioners off in the USC block. Open air areas also have lights and fans that are left on after users have left the area. 

Retrofitting SIT@Dover to replace inefficient electrical equipment, and automating the air conditioning and mechanical ventilation systems in SIT@Dover would reduce SIT’s use of electricity, leading to lower carbon emissions. 
      

References  

Building and Construction Authority. (2018). BCA building energy benchmarking report. Retrieved from https://www.bca.gov.sg/GreenMark/others/BCA_BEBR_Abridged_FA_2018.pdf 

Energy Market Authority. (2018). Singapore energy statistics. Retrieved from 
Europa.eu. (2016). The emissions gap report 2016: a UNEP synthesis report. Retrieved from  
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (2018). Technical summary coordinating lead authors. Retrieved from http://report.ipcc.ch/sr15/pdf/sr15_ts.pdf 

Ministry of the environment and water resources. (2018). Climate actionRetrieved from https://www.mewr.gov.sg/about-climate-action-sg 

National Climate Change Secretariat. (2013). Building energy efficiency R&D roadmap. Retrieved from 
National Climate Change Secretariat. (2018). Impact of climate change on Singapore. 
National Climate Change Secretariat. (2018). Singapore’s emissions profile. 
Singapore Institute of Technology. (2018). The SIT-DNA. Retrieved from https://www.singaporetech.edu.sg/about/sit-dna 

Critical Reflection

Reflection part 1 At the start of the course in my  blogpost 1, I mentioned that my goal by the end of the module is  to be a confident ...