Athens, Ga. – Over the past three months, 52 University of Georgia students on a total of 13 teams were tasked with designing a temporary shelter to house at least 12 Chew Crew goats at Driftmier Woods, a patch of forest on the UGA campus that is currently overrun by invasive shrubs and vines.
The winners of the House the Herd Student Design Challenge will be announced at a celebration Feb. 13 at 5:30 p.m. in the Jackson Street Building, 285 S. Jackson St. Beverages and food will catered by The National and Condor Chocolates, and the event is free and open to the public.
Student designs will be judged on practicality, environmental impact, innovation and presentation.
“A major component of this challenge was innovation,” said Ansley McKinney, a member of the House the Herd steering committee and the UGA Office of Sustainability’s watersheds intern. “Students had to apply their knowledge in creative ways to meet the design criteria, and I can’t wait to see what they have come up with.”
Experts in fields ranging from goat care to construction will come together to determine the winner. The panel of judges includes Elizabeth King, associate professor in the Odum School of Ecology and Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources; Tom Lawrence, program coordinator for mechanical engineering in the College of Engineering; Lisa Williamson, associate professor of large animal internal medicine in the College of Veterinary Medicine; Chris McDowell, coordinator of the UGA Material Reuse Program; Mark Callahan, artistic director of Ideas for Creative Exploration and instructor in the Lamar Dodd School of Art; Dexter Adams, former director of the UGA Grounds Department; Lori Bork, architect at Bork Architectural Design; Sara Clarke, teacher at Barrow Elementary School; and Mikey Salter, founder of Herdscapes.
The winning team will be awarded $1,000. The second- and third-place teams will receive $500 and $250 respectively. Designs created by Barrow Elementary School students also will be on display.
The competition was organized by the Society of Environmental Engineers, the United States Green Building Council Students and the Society for Conservation Biology with support from the UGA College of Environment and Design, College of Engineering and the Office of Sustainability. It was made possible by a grant from the Ford Motor Company Fund’s College Community Challenge. For more information, see www.fordscholars.org/contests/ford-c3.
Project implementation will begin in late February. For more details and volunteer information, contact McKinney at ansleym1@uga.edu. For more information about the Chew Crew, see www.facebook.com/tanyardcreekchewcrew or www.ced.uga.edu/pso/outreach-programs.