Author Archives: Heleen
Post-Workshop News
Hi!
Thanks for a great session today, we hope you are as tired as we are... Two things to share:
1. Project groups
- Not all groups have handed in their names, problem and region. Please email us this information so we know that you are placed in a group.
- In case you missed today's workshop and are not placed in a group, but would like to continue with the course, contact us as soon as possible, because we will need to place you in a group.
- Last, in case you are still trying to figure out a specific region/problem - do so as soon as possible. This process can take forever, but eventually you will just have to make a decision. If you do it as soon as possible it means that you can move forward with the 'real' work for this project.
2. GCSF Lost & Found
We can offer a black fleece scarf and a black A5 notebook. We'll keep them in our office. Please send a message if this belongs to you, so we can bring it to class next time.
See you next week!
New Course Readers!
Hej!
Just a quick message to say that the extra course readers have arrived. If you have 'ordered' one last class, please bring 120 SEK so you can take your reader home.
See you tonight!
Feedback 30DC
Hi everyone!
Thanks for the many 30DC project plans we got to read :-). It seems like most of you have a clear idea about what you want to do and how you want to document it. If you don’t hear anything specific from us, it means that your ideas are good and you can go ahead with your 30DC as planned. You will receive individual feedback on the final submissions for the 30DC, but for now we would just like to remind you of the following issues to keep in mind:
- Always include your own name, the title of the assignment and the date on all documents you submit
- Please only submit PDF files
- Include your name in the title of the document
- Include references when you discuss basic facts (e.g. …water consumption will decrease by 20% if…, etc.)
- For this assignment it is good to be as specific as possible, this will make it easier for you to keep up with your 30DC. Be specific about your focus, what you will and won’t include in your challenge, when you will make exceptions, etc.
Last, it is important to keep in mind that this assignment is supposed to be a challenge it is OK if you are not succeeding on some days or if your plans don’t work out. Just try to keep up with the challenge and continue as intended.
We have noticed that many of you are interested in food issues due to environmental/animal welfare considerations. The bacon on a burger can be easy to identify and easy to avoid, but you might be surprised which other products contain animal parts. Have a look at the following talk if you are interested in these issues:
http://www.ted.com/talks/christien_meindertsma_on_pig_05049
Good luck with all your challenges! Don’t forget to scroll down to read more information about next week’s workshop and small preparation task.
Ben & Heleen
Ps. We have ordered the extra course readers and we will notify you here asap when they are delivered at the office.
Facebook, Studentportalen & other updates…
Hi again,
Thanks for an interesting session yesterday, we think it is going to be a great semester! We would like to inform you about the following:
Schedule
We have updated the schedule, which now includes more Cemus Open Lectures & Events. See if there is something interesting for you, or just go to all of them.
Facebook
One of your classmates has already created a Facebook group for everyone in class: https://www.facebook.com/groups/cgsf2014/. This group is mostly for you to share information, videos, organize class activities, etc. Since not everyone might check Facebook that regularly or have access to it at all, we will continue to post all updates regarding the course, assignments, lectures, etc. here on the course portal.
Studentportalen
In case you do not have access to Studentportalen, please go to https://konto.weblogin.uu.se/index-en.html. Most Swedish students will be able to activate the account using the 'UniversityAdmissions'-option. Other students will need to choose 'Onetime passcode.' Check in the information box where you can receive a code, this will be possible at various reception desks at university buildings, including Geocentrum and Blåsenhus. With the code you will be able to activate Studentportalen yourself.
Note that the course will not appear until you are registered, which could take a couple more days.
Again, please feel free to contact us at gcsf@csduppsala.uu.se if you have any questions about the course. And remember to submit your project plan for the 30DC before next week Tuesday at 17.00.
Good luck with your challenges!
Ben and Heleen
Course literature
Hej everyone,
We hope you are getting excited for the new semester and all the reading that comes with it! For GCSF 2014 we will use the following two course books:
o The Post Carbon Reader : Managing the 21st century’s sustainability crisis – edited by Richard Heinberg and Daniel Lerch
o Eaarth: Making a life on a tough new planet – Bill McKibben
You will be able to buy these books from the usual online bookshops. The books will be also available in Cemus’ library – but only for reading in the library, not for borrowing.
In addition to these books we will also use a course reader with various article. The reader can be bought from us at the first lecture (we will inform you about the exact price as soon as possible).
Enjoy the last days of summer holidays 🙂
Ben and Heleen
Warm Welcome!
Hej everyone,
We are looking forward to 'Global Challenges and Sustainable Futures 2014'! At the moment we are working hard with the last details before we start the course in September. Please keep checking this course portal for the latest updates, soon we will post the preliminary schedule and additional information regarding course literature.
Mandatory roll call for this course will be on Tuesday, the 2nd of September in Hambergsalen in Geocentrum, Villavägen 16 from 17.15 to 19.30.
If you already have any questions, feel free to contact us at gcsf@csduppsala.uu.se.
Looking forward to meeting you,
Ben Owen & Heleen de Goey
Course coordinators GCSF 2014
No Workshop Tonight
Hej everyone,
As posted earlier, there will be no workshop tonight! Sorry for any confusion caused, this was a mistake in the schedule.
Looking forward to seeing you all tomorrow!
Heleen and Lakin
Schedule Final Presentations at Ce/muse festival
Hej everyone,
The schedule for the final presentations at the project fair is now available above under 'Schedule & Info.' You will find more information about the Ce/muse festival here. There are a lot of interesting activities going on that day, so check it out and figure out with your group members who wants to visit what. Just make sure the group is complete when the examiner visits. We will end the festival with a BBQ in the botanical garden, you are all welcome to join! (it's a 'bring your own everything').
Important note: the schedule stated that there is a mandatory meeting this Wednesday, however this is not correct. There is no mandatory meeting coming Wednesday, but of course you are welcome in the Cemus library to finish your prototype, etc. We will be around if you have any questions 🙂
Good luck with the final days of this group project!
Heleen and Lakin
IMPORTANT – New location for Workshop II
Hi!
This is just a quick message to inform you that tomorrow's workshop will take place in Blasenhus again, room 12:004 (where we were before). The workshop will be from 17.15 - 19.30. We will focus on next week's final presentation, but we will also spend some time on portfolios and any other questions you might have.
See you tomorrow!
Heleen and Lakin
General feedback Update Meeting I
Hej everyone,
Thanks for all your contributions yesterday! We think that you gave each other some valuable feedback and we hope that this will help you to move forward with your project. Keep in mind that the types of questions you received yesterday will be very close to the questions can expect, and need to be able to answer, during the final presentation (e.g. what did you focus on? How big is this problem?).
Second, we would like to remind you that in the end you will need to gather all your work in a portfolio. You should already be thinking now how you can show both your process and your results in this portfolio. Document everything! Otherwise you will find out in May that you are missing important pictures, sketches, etc. you would like to include.
Also, yesterday we heard a lot of talking, but unfortunately there was not a lot of visual work. Even though many of you are still doing research, there is a lot to show. For example looking at how IDEO did their research on the shopping cart (again, because we have already spoken about it), you see that they use pictures, graphs, they even had the real shopping cart there! Where are the pictures of the schools, food, homes, supermarkets, etc.? This will help a lot of you to make your problem concrete and to move away from abstract thinking and discussions.
Now that you are doing research, think about interesting ways to discuss and present it in your portfolio. Is it graphs, mind-maps, pictures, quotes, very long paragraphs, etc.? In your research try to find a balance between facts and inspiration – make sure your reader understands the problems as well as you do and becomes interested in hearing your solution.
Last night we did not have that much time to discuss your second book choice, but make sure you use this book for your project and include in clearly, whether it is as a source of information, to help you understand a method, etc… Also we learned that not all groups have started reading their second book yet – start as soon as possible!
Last, we would like to suggest that you start prototyping as soon as possible. Do not get stuck in analyzing the problem, if necessary, you can always return to this later. Simple prototypes will allow you to discuss issues more in depth with potential users or other stakeholders and they will guide you towards your final solution. We would like each group to bring at least one prototype to the next work group meeting, for example the physical object, pictures, videos, etc. This will allow you to show what you have been doing so far and it will provide a good base for discussions with the other group and the examiner.
We discovered yesterday that we were a bit short on time; therefore the next update meeting will be from 17.00 (no academic quarter) to 20.00. Like yesterday, you only have to be present for your own meeting. We will post the schedule some time next week.
For now, good luck designing awesome things!
Heleen and Lakin