2024

The 2024 Planet Hack topic was Biophilic Design for Sustainable Cities. Large cities often struggle with air pollution, urban heat island effects, and a disconnection from nature in dense urban areas. Many cities also struggle to balance modernisation with protection of cultural heritage in their design. Biophilic design offers an opportunity to address modern environmental issues while honouring and preserving China's cultural heritage. While biophilic design can be applied just to particular buildings, it can also be used to design whole neighbourhoods or cities. The idea is to create an urban environment with green and natural elements, in order to connect and actively engage residents and the public with nature.

The task was to design a biophilic retrofit plan for a Hutong in a Chinese city of your choice. Integrating traditional Chinese design principles with modern sustainability technologies to address environmental challenges while honouring cultural heritage. 

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2023

The 2023 Planet Hack topic was Recipe for a Food Secure World focused on addressing global food security, defined by the FAO as ensuring that all people have access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food for a healthy life. With 2.3 billion people facing food insecurity in 2021 and 3.1 billion unable to afford a healthy diet in 2020, the challenge highlighted the urgent need to tackle issues like climate change, population growth, and resource competition.

Participants in the Junior Task were tasked with studying a specific food (e.g., wheat or sugar) and examining its supply chain—from production to consumption. They researched global and local challenges impacting food quality and quantity, such as climate conditions, pests, and wastage. Groups were then required to identify five key issues affecting food production and propose a solution to one of these challenges. The goal was to encourage creative thinking and problem-solving, using STEM skills to address real-world issues and improve global food security.

For the Senior Task, participants were required to study the supply chain of a specific food (e.g., wheat or sugar) and analyse the factors affecting food production and distribution. They investigated issues impacting food quality and quantity, such as climate, inefficiencies, pests, and wastage, and were asked to propose solutions to at least three identified challenges. Additionally, they considered how social factors influence food production and consumption, incorporating these elements into their solutions. The goal was to foster creative problem-solving through STEM skills, encouraging students to design innovative, practical solutions that enhance global food security.

2022

The 2024 Planet Hack topic was Response to Flood Events. Participants selected a city with a history of flooding and researched flood impacts, warning systems, and recovery efforts. They examined the effectiveness of existing warning systems, population and economic impacts, rescue efforts, and post-flood recovery timelines. Students then assessed the overall effectiveness of flood management, identifying what worked well and what could be improved, including community preparedness and faster recovery strategies. An optional extension challenged students to consider how multiple disasters (e.g., an earthquake causing dam damage and subsequent flooding) could further complicate flood management.

For junior students it focused on understanding and improving flood event management. Using the devastating February 2022 flood in Lismore, NSW, as a case study, students examined how flood events impact communities and businesses, often leading to significant personal and economic losses. They analyzed the underestimation of the flood peak, caused by inaccurate rainfall and streamflow gauges, and explored how post-event analysis can improve future responses.

For senior students, the focus shifted to Preventative Planning. They researched flood mitigation methods such as engineering solutions (dams, levees, flood gates), nature-based solutions (using paleochannels or trees to reduce flood magnitudes), and urban planning approaches (moving infrastructure out of flood plains). Students considered costs, social acceptance, and the effectiveness of these methods to propose viable flood prevention strategies for cities or regions prone to flooding.

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