Stone for Development Work Integrated Learning

Fiji | Winter semester 2024

Program dates: 19 June – 17 July 2024

Are you a University student, early-career geoscientist or professional who is interested in sustainable development? The ‘Stone for Development’ Work Integrated Learning Program is a fantastic opportunity for you to gain hands-on experience in sustainability through a short work placement.

Working with partners from around the world you will receive training by The University of Queensland’s (UQ) Sustainable Minerals Institute, followed by a placement in Fiji, working on projects are designed to ensure local minerals and materials contribute to local development.

Development Minerals such as sand, gravel and crushed stone are locally sourced materials used in local development and are among the most commonly used commodities in the world.

They provide crucial inputs for infrastructure, housing, road building, manufacturing, and agriculture; and support the livelihoods of millions of people working in domestic artisanal, small and medium sized businesses. They are especially important in the context of disaster reconstruction and climate change adaptation infrastructure.

The program is an initiative of the Development Minerals Program in the Sustainable Minerals Institute, funded by UNESCO and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and supported by the Fiji Ministry of Lands and Mineral Resources, the Pacific Community (SPC) and Fiji National University.

The Stone for Development program provides a rich learning experience for participants that builds understanding of sustainable development challenges in a critically important sector of economies in the Pacific and other regions. The opportunity to interact with various private, public, and non-profit organisations will provide future opportunities and nurture new multidisciplinary skills – including fieldwork skills. The program also provides a rare opportunity for participants to interact to enhance cross-cultural exchange and learning, as well as to strengthen collaborative networks across the world.

The program consists of two main components:

40-hours of online training introducing participants to sustainable development and minerals. This component will be open freely to all participants from around the world. Participants from UQ will attend this component of the training in-person at St Lucia Campus, Brisbane.
Two-week (80 hour) field placement component in Fiji, working with local partners on how local minerals and materials contribute to local development. This component will be attended by Pacific students (with the support of travel scholarships from UNESCO’s International Geoscience Programme); UQ students (including those in receipt of travel scholarships from the New Colombo Plan – an initiative of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade); and approved self-funded participants.

The overall objective of this program is to provide students with a practical experience to address issues of sustainable development in Fiji and the importance of Development Minerals to these issues.

Specific learning objectives for students include:

Understanding the context in which the specific sustainable development challenge is situated (e.g. learning about the environment, society and economy in Fiji and other Pacific SIDS).
Developing interdisciplinary problem-solving skills.
Understanding the geology, minerology, and industrial processes involved in the Development Minerals sector.
Understanding the interconnections between ecosystems, minerals, industry, development, and consumers (systems thinking).
Contributing to solving a real-life problem.
Learning effective communication skills to help translate research into action.

Each field placement participant is expected to:

Attend the 40 hour compulsory training sessions delivered by UQ.
Select a project and deliver a proposal presentation.
Sign a working agreement with project partner including project tasks.
Participate in 80 hours of work-integrated-learning in Fiji with a local Team Leader and partner.
Prepare a final presentation to present to stakeholders and summary report about what was accomplished.

Key areas of focus include sustainable sourcing of materials for infrastructure development, low carbon cement adoption, quarry management, the environment, disaster reconstruction and other issues. Students will pick a project and work in groups of 3-5 on the following sustainable development topics:

Sustainable Aggregate Supply – From Waterways to Quarries

The extraction of sand and gravel from natural waterways (rivers, lakes, and the ocean) is creating significant environmental and social impacts across the world. This topic will explore the challenges, management strategies and alternatives.

Disaster Preparedness and Reconstruction

Quarried materials play a crucial role in reconstruction of housing and infrastructure following natural disasters, yet their absence as a feature of disaster planning has led to major challenges and supply shortages. This topic will explore how quarried materials can be incorporated into disaster planning processes to ensure resilient and sustainable supply following natural disasters.

Strengthening the Private Sector and Local Supply Chains

While a large majority of businesses involved in the sector are domestically owned, small island developing states in particular often heavily rely on import of construction materials. This topic will explore how local and regional supply chains can be strengthened to promote self-sufficiency and domestic economic development.

Low Carbon Infrastructure

Climate change is an urgent issue, especially for low-lying Pacific islands. Cement contributes as much as 8% of global carbon emissions. This topic will explore the potential introduction of low carbon cement (Limestone Calcined Clay Cement; LC3) to the Pacific.

Quarry Management

The quarry sector predominantly consists of small and medium sized domestic enterprises, which often are in need of support and skills across a range of quarry management topics. This topic will explore the capacity gaps and training needs of the sector.

Gender and Social Inclusion

In many countries women are under-represented in the quarry sector. For example of the 2,325 Fijians directly employed in the regulated part of the quarry sector on Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, just 4% are female. This contrasts with female participation of up to 40–50% in some African countries. This topic will explore how to open up pathways and opportunities for woman in countries where they may be discouraged from these opportunities.

2023-2024 projects

Group 1 – Topic: Limestone and clay resource mapping for Low Carbon Cement in Fiji

Climate change is an urgent issue, especially for low-lying Pacific islands. Cement contributes as much as 8% of global carbon emissions. This project explored the feasibility of introducing low carbon cement (Limestone Calcined Clay Cement; LC3) to the Pacific by identifying materials needed for LC3 production including limestone and kaolin clay.

Group 2 – Topic: Disaster preparedness in the quarry sector Questionnaire

Quarried materials play a crucial role in reconstruction of housing and infrastructure following natural disasters, yet their absence as a feature of disaster planning has led to major challenges and supply shortages. This project explored how quarried materials can be incorporated into disaster planning processes to ensure resilient and sustainable supply following natural disasters.

2021–2022 project presentations

Topic: Presentations to Stakeholders

University of Queensland participants

The Stone for Development program is open to a wide range of disciplines, especially those studying:

Bachelor/Master of Environmental Management
Bachelor Degree in Environmental/Earth Science, Chemistry, Geography, Biology and Physics.
Engineering disciplines and architecture, especially Mech/mining and Civil Engineering
Development Studies and Business

Participating students from The University of Queensland may wish to enrol in an industry placement course such as SCIE3050 to receive course credit for their participation in the program. However, there is no requirement for UQ participants to enrol in such a course to attend Stone for Development (unless they wish to be eligible for the NCP travel grant; see below).

More information about enrolment in SCIE3050 can be found here. If your program is not managed by the Faculty of Science (e.g. BEL, EAIT and HASS students), you must contact your Faculty to apply for approval to include SCIE3050 as an elective in your program.

Program costs for UQ Participants

In addition to any UQ Course fees, participants are responsible for travel and accommodation expenses (approx. AU$2,000).

UQ undergraduate students may be eligible to receive a Student Grant from the New Colombo Plan Mobility Program (approx. AU$2,000) to cover these expenses.

Each undergraduate student receiving a NCP Mobility Program grant must be:

an Australian citizen
not a citizen or permanent resident of a Host Location (Fiji) in which they will undertake a Mobility Project
is enrolled in UQ for the duration of the Mobility Project and undertaking a Bachelor’s Degree or Bachelor Honours Degree.
does not during the course of their Bachelor’s Degree or Bachelor Honours Degree:
- receive a Student Grant under more than one Semester Grant
- receive a Student Grant under more than one Short-term Grant, or
- receive a Student Grant under both a Semester Grant and a Short-term Grant for the same Mobility Project or for the same period of travel outside of Australia.
Must be enrolled in a course for credit (e.g. SCIE3050)

University of Queensland students can apply here

Applications for UQ students are considered on a rolling basis (final deadline for application 16 April 2024).

For SCIE3050 students, after receiving a confirmation email of being accepted in the Stone for Development Program, you must apply to enrol in the course by 15 May 2024. Information about how to enrol in SCIE3050 can be found here. Note: SCIE3050 requires attendance at compulsory workshops on 25 May 2024 (Saturday morning) and 24-25 July 2024 (evenings).

Pacific participants

Early-career geo-scientists and professionals, upper-level undergraduate students and post-graduate students from Pacific Island Countries are encouraged to apply to attend the program (woman are highly encouraged to apply). Selected Pacific students will attend the 40-hours of online training followed by the field placement in Suva, Fiji.

Selected students will be eligible for a travel grants to cover flight, accommodation and meals during the field placement component. Travel grants are supported by the UNESCO International Geosciences Programme. Participants from Pacific Island Countries will attend Stone for Development as a professional development program that does not attract course credit.

Pacific Island Country participants apply here

Final deadline for Pacific Island applicants: 16 April 2024.

Other participants

Early-career geo-scientists and professionals, upper-level undergraduate students and post-graduate students from any country are available to attend the 40-hour online training component of the program.

Travel scholarships to attend the field placement component in Fiji are only available for University of Queensland and Pacific Island participants (see above).

Approved self-funded participants may also attend. Please contact the coarse organisers should you be interested in self-funding your participation in the field placement.

Other participants apply here

Final deadline for applicants: 16 April 2024.