Open Access Journals at Aalborg University
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Material discard reasons: Categorising and characterising industrial waste materials
Get PDFThis paper investigates industrial waste and its characteristics from a design perspective with the objective of assessing why so many materials are discarded. Industrial waste emerges pre-consumer and poses potential as material resources for new product designs on an industrial scale. Most research assesses post-consumer waste, but more than 230 million tons of waste emerge from manufacturing, hence pre-consumer. Current research on industrial waste divides it into scraps and rejects with varying characteristics of predictability and seriality. We add to the research through a two-year research project on designing with industrial waste from Danish manufacturing companies. Through observations, registrations, and semi-structured interviews, we study 24 discarded material cases and assess the challenges for industrial design. From a designer's perspective, we investigate where and why materials are discarded, the categories, and how they can be further characterised. The result is a division of industrial waste into five types: 1) offcuts, 2) rejected materials, 3) rejected objects, 4) process waste, and 5) excess material. They vary in predictability, uniformity, presence of flaws, and data availability. These are characteristics that designers must consider when extending the material lifetime and keeping the material at its integrity level in new product designs
Sustainable energy planning with storage, photo voltaics, biomass co-firing forecasting and heat planning
Get PDFThis 47th volume of the International Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management presents the most recent work on energy planning with a focus on storage in energy systems, cofiring of biomass in coal-fired power stations forecasting of electricity demand for better planning practise. Analyses demonstrate the potential resources for photo voltaics (PV) in Iraq, and barriers for its implementation in Indonesia, where perceived costs is a dominant barrier. Heat planning is a long-standing focus area of the journal – in this volume with a focus on stakeholder interests and the organisation of the heat planning process. Lastly, this volume presents analyses of links between energy and development in Africa
Digital enclosure maps as starting point for the Danish Green Tripartite negotiations
No full textI forbindelse med flere landskabsprojekter på SDU i perioden 1998-2005 skete en vektorisering af original 1-kort for de valgte undersøgelsesområder. Artiklen fortæller om kortenes baggrund, og hvorfor de med deres detaljerede indhold kan være et godt udgangspunkt i forbindelse med planlægning af de nye landskaber. De afspejler dels arealudnyttelsen og dels boniteten omkring år 1800, og er dermed det tidligste detaljerede kortmateriale, som hermed er gjort tilgængeligt digitalt.As part of several landscape research projects at SDU (University of Southern Denmark) in the time period 1998-2005, enclosure maps from the selected areas have been digitized (vectorized). This paper deals with the background of the maps and why they with their detailed scale can be a good starting point for planning of new landscapes. They can show as well land use as productivity of the soil around year 1800; they are the earliest maps in Denmark at a very small scale, which are digitally accesible
Proving Fear: the corporeal witness and its role in asylum seeking
Get PDFThis essay examines the cases of two Central American asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border. It argues that their bodies, marked by scars, mutilations, or other forms of trauma, emerge as credible witnesses in support of asylum seekers’ claims. Through their scars, fear becomes visible, quantifiable and relatable. It further argues that despite the “objective” quality of the credible fear test, the credibility of asylum claimants’ stories hinges on the acknowledgement or disavowal of their fear, suggesting the impossibility of establishing fear as an “objective fact”, speaking instead to a lack of responsiveness and responsibility towards others
On-Screen Prototypes: Making Speculative Designs For And Through Animation
Get PDFThis paper gives a short insight into the author’s exhibition and book project Visual Music Design Fiction, a project that explores both adventurous and silly interconnections between sound and animation and simultaneously addresses problems within contemporary media technology. The text positions the project in relation to speculative design and design fiction, traditions that encompass design proposals that are made to critically explore technological or societal developments rather than to make commercially viable products. Further it draws lines between these and wider artist/inventor traditions. Based on experiences from the project it is being demonstrated how the craft of animation can be applied to model processes, and such work as an “expanded draughtsmanship” for the artist/inventor
From Carbon Footprint to Social Justice: Rethinking Sustainability in Television Production and Virtual Studios
Get PDFThe environmental and social impacts of television drama productions are staggering, with a single hour-long episode generating an average carbon footprint of 77 metric tonnes, equivalent to driving a car around the world six times. Key contributors include extensive fuel consumption (58% of emissions), air travel, energy use, and accommodation. This research explores the integration of environmental and social sustainability practices across diverse filming contexts, addressing the absence of clear, adaptable guidelines for production teams.
There is clear evidence for pushing the integration of sustainability practices in the entertainment industry. However, the lack of research in this field is a challenge. What is the climate impact of the various production operations? What are the greener choices? And what about diversity, health and safety, and workers’ unions? When every production is unique, how does one know the best option for sustainability?
This research aims to advance environmental and social sustainability integration across various departments and production locations. This research project addresses the lack of concise and clear sustainability guidelines tailored to each filming department and adaptable to multinational productions. A multinational project team of academics and practitioners from five countries simulated the monetary and environmental costs of filming a six-episode television period drama set in both Denmark and Argentina. The simulations assessed the effectiveness of the proposed environmental and social sustainability guidelines across the different production methodologies.
Some early adopters and industry experts suggest that virtual production could enhance crew diversity and mitigate biodiversity loss within the entertainment sector. This belief has driven significant investment in costly virtual production studios across Europe. However, these claims remain largely theoretical, lacking robust empirical validation. To bridge this gap, this project undertakes the world’s first large-scale investigation to quantify and qualify the environmental and social impacts of virtual production, providing data-driven insights into its true potential for sustainable filmmaking.
DISCLAIMER: At the time of writing this text, final results have not yet been obtained from the research
South African Hacked Animation Methodologies: A Conceptual Foundation to Studying Animation Metamorphosis in Local Production Practices Post-2020
No full textSouth African animation studies have historically been constrained by outdated frameworks that fail to reflect current local production realities. This paper argues that contemporary South African animation must be analysed through locally adapted production methodologies, digital distribution strategies, and shifting intellectual property (IP) structures. The discourse around “authentic” African animation remains problematic, as outsourced productions are dismissed as “odourless,” while local content is critiqued for not being “native” enough. These views overlook how studios creatively adapt to economic, political, and infrastructural challenges through “hacked” production techniques—innovative, resourceful strategies that work around systemic limitations.
With the rise of platforms like YouTube and Netflix, studios are bypassing traditional distribution barriers but still face algorithmic biases reinforcing dominant Western norms. This study calls for an updated and decolonised framework that addresses both Web 4.0 technologies and culturally situated analysis. Drawing on case studies of Rams Comics and Cabblow Studios, the paper highlights how animators assert creative agency and IP control
Scaffolding Reflective Practice through VR-Mediated Mentoring of Teachers
Get PDFNovice teachers often struggle navigating the complexities of in-service teaching practices when transitioning from education and practice, leaving them feeling unprepared without support structures. Tool-based mentoring can scaffold reflective practice by enabling teachers to collaboratively analyse video-recorded teaching episodes, supporting professional development, self-efficacy, and well-being.
This study examines the use of collaborative 360-degree video in virtual reality (360VR) as a reflective mentoring tool for novice teachers in Danish primary and lower-secondary schools. Grounded in Reflective Practice-Based Learning (RPL) and situated within a broader design-based research (DBR) project, the study focuses on how teachers and mentors experience and reflect on the potentials and limitations of immersive technologies for scaffolding shared reflection around classroom management situations.
Following each VR-mediated mentoring session, participants engaged in structured debriefing interviews, which have been thematically analysed. Four themes emerged from the analysis (1) immersion allows for re-experiencing authentic situations, (2) shared immersion affords multiple perspectives, (3) cycles of action and reflection link VR and practice, and (4) implementation perspectives. Findings highlight the potential of collaborative 360VR to mediate and scaffold reflective practice by creating create an immersive, shared space for reflective dialogue. The findings however also highlight technical and organisational challenges in terms of implementation. By engaging with participants' reflections during debriefings, this paper contributes to ongoing discussions about using immersive technologies to support newly graduated professionals' development through reflective practice
How to Teach Teamwork in a PBL Curriculum
Get PDFThe needs of the globalized world and the transformations that different organizations undergo make being competent in teamwork a necessity. Therefore, the education sector must give it the appropriate relevance and concern itself with developing this particular competence in higher education. A Colombian university has a course called Engineering and Science: A Shared World, which has a PBL curriculum and aims to train this competence explicitly. The course design included a theoretical presentation on what a team is and its main characteristics, postulated by Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R., & Smith, K. (1998), and activities to evidence these characteristics and their importance to work adequately. This text presents a case study that seeks to identify the learning outcomes related to teamwork within the PBL proposed in this course. To achieve this, qualitative information was collected through the products created during the course: the class activities, the contracts, a group of team health activities, the final reflections, and the co-assessments. This information was analyzed through predetermined categories based on the course objectives and the dimensions of teamwork; no new categories emerged. The data analysis revealed that students identified and conceptualized elements such as individual responsibility or face-to-face interaction properly and as essential for team building and development. Still, positive interdependence and a proactive approach to communication and conflict were challenging to conceptualize and exemplify. Finally, many of the students identified that although team monitoring activities were carried out in class concerning the progress of socio- emotional skills, such as anticipating conflict or managing agreements, it was new for them. Their teams did not take full advantage of these spaces that, reflecting on the entire process, were as important as monitoring the products to be delivered. 
Integrating Project-Based Learning and Cooperative Education for Future Engineers: Insights and Best Practices from the Iron Range Engineering Bell Model
Get PDFThe Iron Range Engineering (IRE) Bell Model combines project-based learning (PBL) with cooperative education to enhance students’ technical and professional skills. The program begins with the Bell Academy—a semester-long bridge emphasizing foundational engineering principles, design thinking, and career development. Students then undertake 24-month paid co-op placements while completing remote coursework, supported by learning coaches who foster self-directed learning and reflective growth. Recent data highlight high co-op placement rates and a strong sense of community, demonstrating the model’s effectiveness across diverse student populations. This paper discusses key strategies, including assessment tools, self-directed learning, student recruitment, and support, which have been integral to the program’s success. By sharing these best practices and lessons learned, we aim to present an adaptable model for other institutions seeking to integrate experiential learning into their engineering curricula, ultimately promoting both academic excellence and career readiness.