In January I took on the role as Project Coordinator for Climate Wave Enterprises and have since been crafting a project in conjunction with the internship program at Griffith University. This projects involves two final year students who are building and designing a solar-powered sound system, equipped with LED lights, charging station, and a video projection system. This system, SunStation, is made predominately using recycled and donated materials and will be used at a variety of events and festivals to showcase new trends in production practices and collaborative endeavors.
Substation33 has been our key partner on this project as the internship is run through their collaborative workspace based in Kingston, a suburb just outside of Brisbane. Substation33 is a Youth and Family Services (YFS) organization which responsibly recycles E-waste material and turns the vast majority of it into innovative, and renewably-powered products. They provide occupational training to volunteers helping them to transition into the workforce, and offer a collaborative workshop space that welcomes in diverse individuals to develop new skill sets in a positive environment. Substation33 emphasizes not only technical skills, but prioritizes personal empowerment as an equally important outcome goal, which resonates highly with the ethos of the SunStation project.
Members of Substation33 have been the key mentors for the mechanical designs, as well as providing most of our recycled materials and tools.
We are also excited to be supported by local businesses including Acoustic Technologies , Plywood and Panel Supplies, and Underwood Demolition Market all of which are based in the Brisbane area. Each of these companies have gone above and beyond to support our project, not only with resources, but also by offering their time and expertise. They have helped us source Australian Grown FSC wood, extremely high-quality refurbished sound equipment, and re-claimed timber, all of which have helped launch this project beyond its originally projected outcomes.
Even when we speak of collaboration I find we still underestimate the power it wields. The continuous exchange of knowledge, symbiotic skill development, and team focused support has been fueling the fire of this project from day one, and has revealed to me even more about the power of perspective. When contending with what does not yet exist, adjusting ones perspective to the certainty of it’s eventual existence can build bridges through doubt and hesitation and can enable us to develop more solution oriented mindsets. Then it is simply working backwards. Knowing the components that will need to exist for a successful outcome, we work one step at a time at transitioning those essential components into place.
Throughout the sparks of the ideation phase, to the connecting to sponsors and building those relationships, to the marketing and engagement of the students, it has been a lively process, and one that has invited me to act with the same innovative mindset required to design and build this system. The purpose of this project is to shift the way we relate to our resources, be they natural, material, relational or personal. I am continuously amazed by the limitless potential of what can be created when symbiotic relationships are at work, and humbled by the way this project has demanded my whole person to be developing along side it.
As we all have heard, “teamwork does make the dream work”, and putting this into practice is my personal and professional passion. There is a large domino effect that occurs when we change the patterning of what and how we create, and I am proud to be experiencing those cascading dominos as I continue coordinating with this amazing group of people. I appreciate having a role in helping to develop and empower networks of exceptional people and projects that support the transition of our cultures to more benevolent ways of living on this incredible planet.
Nichelle Lyster, Project Coordinator
nlyster21@gmail.com
