Project Clearinghouse

Aquaponics Pilot

Sustainability Problem and Proposed Solution: 

Aquaponics is not something many people know about, which is especially surprising because at UCSC there are so many people interested in environmentally friendly farming and gardening. We want to counteract that lack of knowledge and support by designing, building and maintaining an experimental system in the Thimann greenhouse and developing an internship/experiential learning program that teaches students about this exciting method of water conservation in gardening.

Jump to: Contact | Project Description | How to Join | Metrics for Success | Results
Project Categories: 
Buildings & Facilities
Energy & Climate
Food
Awareness, Education & Engagement
Waste & Recycling
Water
Project Status: 
In Progress
Project Location: 
On campus

Thimann Greenhouse


Stakeholder Contacts: 
Contact NameEmail AddressDepartment
Rebecca Hoskins
rhoskins@ucsc.edu
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Mike MacDonald
mcmacdon@ucsc.edu
ENVS
Jim Velzy
jhvelzy@ucsc.edu
Thimann Greenhouse Director
How to Join: 
Please contact either Rebecca or Mike if you are interested in getting involved. We are looking for people to continue our efforts after we graduate, and this is a fun project that could go a lot of different directions. ENVS/science major is NOT a requirement!

Project Description: 

We aim to design and construct an experimental/educational aquaponic system in the Thimann greenhouse and devolop a network of interns and sustainability groups that will use the system as an educational tool. We will use mostly found materials and campus resources to construct the system, and we have begun outreach by creating an ENVS internship (available under NEW internships on the ENVS available innternships site) and will continue to work to gain interest in this project by flyering, tabling, meeting with campus sustainability groups, and presenting in lectures.

Metrics for Success: 

The physical structure of the system in the Thimann greenhouse will be our most tangible metric of success. Whether there is a network of people interested in aquaponics next year will be our biggest challenge to measure. Attendance at meetings, keeping a sign-in sheet next to our system and student reviews of the internships we provide will be kept as records to demonstrate the success of our project.

Result Categories: 
Education/Outreach
Results: 

We hope to be done with construction by the end of Spring quarter, 2015. This will be a functional system with crayfish and plants growing in it, with instructional materials and test kits available for students to use. When it is done we will have a celebration/outreach day on science hill to direct students' attention to the project. The outreach and education portion of our project will live on after we graduate in the form of an internship program and aquaponic work group club that meets bi-monthly for field trips and fun in the greenhouses, gardens and farms around campus.

Resources
AttachmentSize
PDF icon Aquaponics (1).pdf68.31 KB
PDF icon aquaponics_factsheet.pdf371.79 KB
Related Websites: 
Wikipedia article about aquaponics