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Friday October 7, two colleagues will defend their PhD thesis in Leeuwarden. Mariana Rodrigues is one of them.
Maybe she doesn’t like to admit it, but PhD student Mariana Rodrigues has some big dreams for the future. “Coming from the Azores, I have seen up close how dependent we are on others. If there is one place where a circular economy is vital, it is on the islands. I would like to contribute to a circular economy.” And her PhD research in collecting fertilizer compounds from wastewaters is just the beginning.
The science behind the person, and the person behind the science.
“My parents have a cattle farm and vineyards on the Azores, so I grew up learning what it takes to run agriculture on an island. It is the perfect spot to learn the needs of sustainable water use, nutrient scarcity, and much more,” said Mariana. “Ever since I left the islands for my studies, I have always wanted to bring something back to where I’m from.”
And scientific knowledge offers a great starting point.
Fittingly, her research would have an agricultural twist. The goal was to retrieve nitrogen from waste streams to make fertilizer or components thereof. Currently, these compounds are made with a lot of energy from thin air and flow down the drain. There it will be made into volatile nitrogen again, wherefrom it will float back into the air.
“As part of the EU project NEWBIES, I was to help develop electrochemical systems to retrieve ammonia – a nitrogen compound – from different waste streams. Consequently, shortcutting the nitrogen cycle. Aiming for a kilogram of it per day in a rather large pilot plant. And it all had to be chemical-free.”
Previously, a proof of concept on collecting ammonia worked with electricity-generating bacteria. “Although my background is Biological Engineering, I was happy to leave the unpredictability of microorganisms and develop a system that I could be in full control of.”
Which was needed, as the project was quite extraordinary. “It was a perhaps unusual approach. We first did engineering, then modeling. We already had it somewhat working in the lab, but now we had to get it working on a larger scale, and the challenges kept coming. Nevertheless, the concrete challenge of this project is what I like.”
NEWBIES was only a three-year program, so the race was on to make a viable ammonia-filtering machine. So promising selections had to be made. Mariana: “We worked with three different streams: “landfill leachate, urine, and digestate. All of which are relatively high in soluble ammonia.” Works well on paper, though the stakes were high; 90% of all the nitrogen had to be extracted, and at least a kilogram was to be gained per stream, using no added chemicals, keeping the cost low and using little electricity.
It required these three years of tweaking and adjusting based on the knowledge derived from small-scale systems. And even a sidestep into the world of modeling. “It was quite the engineering approach. It shows that doing a PhD is not just about becoming an expert in one insignificantly small topic – like many people think. I, for instance, had to expand my knowledge on electro-chemistry, physics, engineering, and modeling.”
Now, by generating acid from electricity and water, the pilot can filter out the positively charged particles – among which ammonium. And on the flip side of the membrane, using base, the nitrogen compounds transform into a gas. Easy to catch and easy to process. And that all in no harsh environment, and using less energy than making it anew from thin air.
And as if that did not sound like enough of a challenge, Mariana set out to do even more.
“During my time at Wetsus, I have got to know so many people and learn their stories, driving forces, and many new things in general.” It is an inspiring environment to dabble in new disciplines. “As I want my research to be concrete, I wanted to ensure we could do something with our product.
So, I tried some scientific farming. Seeing if our nitrogen could grow plants. Make NEWBIES the solution to our wasted nitrogen.” And growing the plants did. Very well. However, the product is not market-ready. Dutch and EU law does not yet allow fertilizers generated from waste. It is a shame, as these could be leaps forward into making a sustainable environment.
With all this scientific knowledge in her pocket, Mariana is more determined than ever. “It still is my goal to give something back to where I came from. Now I have some scientific knowledge covered. But to achieve change, I need to get familiar with management and finances and gain more experience. At Wetsus, I already had the great experience of meeting so many people, and learning from them, what drives them. It is inspiring.” But of course, the more, the merrier. For now, building a network of people and knowledge isn’t a bad start to turn the tides on her Atlantic island adventure.
Surely this will only get better as time moves on.
Abstract
The realisation of a circular economy has thus far unfolded under the assumption that it would fit within existing economic arrangements. In practice, we witness many circular initiatives struggling to give shape to their ambitions, let alone develop to maturity. These past months, various material recycling organisations terminated their activities, seeing virgin alternatives from other parts of the world flooding the market at prices against they cannot compete. If the transition towards a circular economy (i.e. an economy of value preservation) is to be taken seriously, a new perspective on value in our economic system seems unavoidable, as the rewriting of the rules of the economic game. At this moment, current perceptions of value stand in the way of this transition both at micro as well as macro levels. Several contours for a collective exploration of new directions of value and economic configuration that foster circular transition will be addressed.
Abstract
In his key note he will conclude after a life of innovations that it is impossible that humanity will stay within the save planetary boundaries with innovation only. We should be more critical about the behaviour of the rich population in the world and more critical about new innovations that prove to be dangerous, like the PFAS crisis shows at this moment. In his keynote he will investigate how to look at the world that can stay within the save planetary boundaries, how should we change ourselves? It is clear if we only talk about the words of science and systems we miss the essential words of how we should cooperate and change ourselves. And his search for coherent save innovations. Which innovations will be save and will lead to a fair and sustainable world? And will lead to a world we want to live in.
Abstract
There is a growing number of new sustainable, inclusive, cohesive, participatory, just and humane economic models. A possible next step in the discourse about them is the comparative analysis in order to find out key commonalities, potential synergies, and “requirements” for a future-fit economic model. The author and initiator of the Economy for the Common Good provides an overview of these „new sustainable economic models“ and compares them according to underlying values, principles, and practical ways of implementation. The keynote addresses the cooperative spirit of the conference and prepares the ground for its public highlight on the eve of June 3rd, the round table with representatives of diverse future-fit economic models.
Abstract
The scientific debate on whether economies should always continue to grow increasingly becomes a political and societal debate. On the one hand further growth for the most affluent countries seems neither possible nor valuable, but on the other hand there is still lack of understanding and knowledge what a non-growing economy should look like and could best be governed. In this lecture we discuss various policy measures that can be realistically implemented, take into account government finances and aim at a higher quality of life despite a non-growing economy.
Abstract
Democracy is under pressure, and less and less able to stir the economy into a sustainable direction. Therefore, to stabilize democracy and to make possible the socio-ecological transformation of the economy, democratic principles need to be implemented directly in the economy. This is not only a matter of morality, but also has practical advantages. Democratizing the economy can increase legitimacy and take advantage of the “knowledge of the many” to accelerate the transformation. Democratic practices, especially deliberation, allow bringing together different forms of knowledge, which is crucial for the local implementation of principles of social and ecological sustainability. This talk explores what this idea means in more concrete terms, from democratic participation in the workplace to the democratization of time.
Abstract
Over the past decades, markets have conventionally been seen as the best instrument to stimulate economic growth and enhance prosperity and well-being. The automatic link between markets and economic growth is increasingly questioned, however, as well as the automatic link between economic growth and enhancement of well-being. This has led to attempts to capture well-being development more directly than through GDP per capita figures and has produced a more variegated picture of well-being growth. Also, this has led to a shift of focus to other coordination systems than the market, as primarily the state but increasingly also the association. Analyses of the historical record suggest that especially the latter could be a vital component in future well-being.
