<aside> ℹ️ OUR INTRODUCTION VIDEO :

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Get in touch with us !

<aside> ✉️ Laurie-Anne Leblanc : First year student in software engineering at École de technologie supérieure. Has completed a preparatory year prior to it following diverse classes on different engineering subject with a hands on philosophy. I will be changing to chemical engineering next year to learn more about sustainable development. I hope that my career will be oriented towards making significant and sustainable change, with a particular focus on urban agriculture. My Linkedin

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<aside> ✉️ Riwa Itani: first year Bioengineering student at McGill. Motivated to get involved in any project or activity involving environment focused and innovative ideas. I would love to connect via my Linkedin (link).

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<aside> ✉️ Hassan Saleem is a 2nd year Electrical Engineering student at Sheridan College. A member of the Sheridan Mechatronics team and research assistant in IoT Applications, he loves all things related to renewable energy and sustainable planning. He can be reached through LinkedIn where he is active searching for a summer co-op: https://www.linkedin.com/in/h-saleem/

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Summary

Problem Summary

<aside> ⚙ Buildings account for the largest percentage of community emissions of GHG, at 46% (City of Ottawa, 2023a). Heating and cooling are the biggest reasons for this high energy use, with poor insulation being a contributing factor, both in summer and winter (City of Ottawa, 2023b). At the same time, the average annual temperature of Ottawa will increase by 3.2°C (National Capital Commission, 2023), requiring more energy to be spent regulating temperature.

Climate models suggest heat waves are expected to occur more frequently, which disproportionately affects the elderly, amongst others (Direction régionale de santé publique, n.d.). In Ottawa, the proportion of this vulnerable population of citizens over 70 years old is expected to grow to 17.1% by 2035 [Table 1].

The minimum standards of care set by the Ministry of Health and Long Term care doesn’t encourage the access to air conditioning in rooms within long-term care homes (LTCH) (Payne, 2020). Providing LTCH the tools and the incentives to tackle this growing problem will improve senior citizens’ health, promote sustainable energy usage, as well as reduce expenses.

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🌿 The Greener Side 🌿

<aside> ℹ️ We have found a potential solution…

Green wall at Covent Garden, London

What are green walls?

Green walls are systems in which wall panels with pre-planted plants are directly installed onto the wall of a building using a support structure (Green Walls, 2019).

Why do we need them?

In 2021, Ottawa was granted funds for improvement in LTCH such as added air conditioning and improved ventilation, identifying these issues as priorities (Government of Canada, 2021)

🌱A healthier space and residents🌱

• Reduction of temperature at a wall’s surface from 10-60°C to one of 5-30°C. This will decrease heat related illnesses and deaths of the most vulnerable that do not have access to / cannot afford ACs.*
• Reduction of noise providing a calmer space.*
• Increase in job satisfaction and productivity with visual access to nature and recovery rates in medical facilities. *

🌱Our environment’s health🌱

• Promotion of natural cooling processes, reducing the urban heat island effect.*
• Provides thermal insulation for buildings which results in lower power usage and fewer polluting by-products released into the air.*
• Improved air quality with the elimination of airborne pollutants.*

💰 Immediate funding solutions such as a Public-Private Partnership or government programs can be considered to kickstart the project. In the long run, this program can lower electricity costs which guarantees a return of investment.

*(About Green Walls — Green Roofs for Healthy Cities).

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🧠 Practical Humility Clause 🧠

<aside> ℹ️ Some research is still required…

➡️ Due to the time and budget constraints, we have suggested types of plants that could be used for the Green Walls, but not the exact species. The installation costs, additional water usage, and savings associated with energy consumption are therefore approximations as they depend on the plant used.

➡️ Furthermore, plants increase humidity in the surrounding air. While it is not significant enough to have any adverse health effects, it could still affect seniors that are more vulnerable to such changes. The increased humidity could also promote mold growth in older buildings.

➡️ In spite of the best selection of plants and design, it is still possible for an extreme cold event to kill the plants, which would be an out-of-pocket expense.

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Further Explanation

<aside> ℹ️ More to know…

Some similar projects applied in other cities 🗺️

Solutions that support green walls

Communities that could use this project as a blueprint

Important technical details 🔧

Who would fund it? 💵

What would success of The Greener Side look like?

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Bibliography

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References

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Appendix

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Appendix

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<aside> ℹ️ This template and its content is copyright of **How to Change the World** © How to Change the World (HtCtW Global Limited), 2023. All rights reserved.

This notice should be deleted from your submitted Proposed Solution Portfolio, because that will contain all of your work, with all the original template instructions being removed!

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