UQ researchers have teamed up with the Indigenous people of the Myuma Group to identify and develop potential technological applications for Spinifex grass.
The project is exploring uses and properties of this uniquely Australian resource as a future material for a sustainable building industry to replace current resource-intensive materials.
Director of the Aboriginal Environments Research Centre at UQ’s School of Architecture, Professor Paul Memmott said the project was using biomimetic theory, which advocates drawing from nature to find new technical solutions.
“Spinifex has unique physical and chemical properties that evolved within harsh environments that were recognised and have been utilised by Aboriginal people for many centuries," Professor Memmott said.
“The project will examine exactly how Spinifex was used in the past and how its properties can be used in the future to develop commercial products for residential and architectural purposes which will benefit all Australians.”
Researchers will also examine how Spinifex can be sustainably harvested, providing remote communities with a new local industry and training and employment opportunities.
Executive Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology, Professor Graham Schaffer said the research would contribute to an environmentally sustainable Australia by capturing the value of a natural resource which has been largely ignored till now.
“This project will deliver a cleaner, more efficient way to build infrastructure within remote communities, which currently require all materials and fuel to be transported from the coast, which is expensive and inefficient.
“The research will also provide significant economic outcomes for local communities, including the Indjilandji / Dhidhanu people of the Myuma Group, through harvesting Spinifex for Aboriginal commercial use,” Professor Schaffer said.
In addition to providing a greater understanding of the ecology and the sharing of knowledge between Aboriginal people and scientists, the project will document traditional Aboriginal usage of Spinifex to maintain cultural heritage.
The project is one of many being progressed by the Aboriginal Environments Research Centre (AERC) at UQ, which conducts multidisciplinary research and teaching into the culture, environment and architecture of Australian Indigenous peoples
The University of Queensland is establishing an arid zone field station in Camooweal to support this and other important research which aims to build more sustainable communities in remote and arid areas.
Media: Professor Paul Memmott (p.memmott@uq.edu.au or 07 3365 3660) or Kim Jensen (k.jensen@uq.edu.au or 3365 1107) at the Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology
