The Revitalising Informal Settlements and their Environments (RISE) program, from the Monash Art, Design and Architecture’s (MADA) Informal Cities Lab, was recognised at the recent 2022 Engagement Australia Excellence Awards , held in Sydney on 21 November.
The RISE program won the award for Excellence in International Engagement during a gala presentation, focussed on initiatives that showcase outstanding nation-building with innovation and far-reaching impact in the Australian community and economy.
RISE Directors Professor Diego Ramírez-Lovering and Professor Karin Leder accepted the award on behalf of Monash Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) and RISE Program Director Professor Rebekah Brown.
“Receiving the award is truly humbling, and serves as a type of validation and recognition that university research can no longer pursue only knowledge production, but must actively get involved in translation of this knowledge into accelerating impact in the communities that so desperately need it,” says Professor Ramirez-Lovering.
“In order to do this, we must actively partner with industry, governments and communities directly to accelerate and maximise this impact. This award recognises the importance and value of such partnerships.”
Informal Cities Lab is leading the co-design process and engagement of the community in the endeavour to implement water sensitive revitalisation of informal settlements by introducing sanitation through green infrastructure such as constructed wetlands.
Globally, the lack of sanitation results in gastrointestinal disease that kills over 500,000 children every year.
“The decade-long RISE project, looks at transforming the way in which informal settlement revitalisation is addressed with a focus on sanitation and water management. We are striving to produce a body of evidence that will transform the way in which sanitation and water management is delivered in these vulnerable contexts,” says Professor Ramirez-Lovering.
RISE is a collaboration of a diverse interdisciplinary team led by the Monash Sustainable Development Institute (MSDI) and incorporates diverse expertise from across the University, including six faculties: the Informal Cities Lab at Monash Art, Design and Architecture (MADA); Science; Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (MNHS); Engineering; Business and Economics; and Law.
RISE is made up of researchers, communities, governments, local leaders and partner institutions, and includes experts in landscape architecture, engineering, architecture, community development, hydrology, ecology, and more.
It is made up of researchers, communities, governments, local leaders and partner institutions, and includes experts in landscape architecture, engineering, architecture, community development, hydrology and ecology.
The RISE program’s five objectives aim to deliver improvements in health and environment in a sustainable manner to empower communities locally and globally.
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