Oluchukwu Okonkwo visited our year 12 Built Environment learners for a masterclass exploring the sustainable material Sugarcrete.
“Having industry trailblazer like Oluchukwu come into to the college to showcase key curriculum areas like the environmental, social and economic impact of sustainable solutions really brings the content on the Built Environment course to life! What better way to learn about sustainable materials then with the real-life case study of Sugarcrete®,” Yetunde, teacher of Built Environment.
Oluchukwu is a researcher for the innovative, sustainable and eco-friendly material: Sugarcrete®, construction material made from sugarcane waste. She is a part of the project bringing together experts from the University of East London (UEL) which seek to offer viable construction solutions for real world applications.
During the session, our visitor discussed the damaging effects of the construction industry on our environment. She shared revealing statistics such as ‘The building & construction sector accounts for about 50% of all extracted material globally.’ Oluchukwu went onto to share how crucial it is to develop negative emissions technologies (such as building with biomass materials) in order to contribute towards the solution of protecting our environment and tackling global warming.
Learners also discussed the fruitfulness of using sugarcane waste as an upcycled material. Sugarcane is the world’s largest crop by volume. After processing, 1/3 of the plant’s mass is left over as bagasse the largest biowaste supply chain globally. By using sugarcane as a building material, we can store the carbon absorbed during sugarcane’s growing cycle in materials that can last for decades. As well as being beneficial to the environment, using sugarcane also has the potential to facilitate employment and export opportunities to plantation communities in the global south.
To conclude the session, Oluchukwu shared case studies of Sugarcrete® being used in the construction industry. She also gave the learners the opportunity to ask questions about this sustainable material, the wider built environment and her career journey.
“Oluchukwu’s visit was very inspiring because homes have to be long lasting, built for the community and for the environment. Our visitor showcased how we can be on the cutting edge of the architecture industry and offer sustainable solutions to improve our world,” Maahi, year 12 learner.