The University of Cape Town (UCT) has won the Greenovate Property Award 2018 and the Greenovate Engineering Award 2018, taking top place in both streams of the prestigious Greenovate Awards.

This is the second year in a row that UCT has taken top honours in both categories, demonstrating continued outstanding leadership in environmentally innovative thinking for the built environment, Growthpoint Properties said in a media release on Tuesday.

The Greenovate Awards is a joint venture initiative between Growthpoint Properties and the Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA). Launched in 2015, this student programme aims to educate and to reward the young minds and future leaders of South Africa for innovation and green building in the built environment.

The programme has two streams – the Greenovate Property Awards, which was presented for the fourth time in 2018, and the Greenovate Engineering Awards, which is now in its second year.

Eight universities competed this year, with only UCT and the University of Johannesburg (UJ) competing in both award streams.

The pioneering submissions varied from ideas for green building materials, methods and management, to alternative sources of energy and water used within buildings, extracting valuable by-products that buildings generate, the most efficient way to heat and cool buildings, the positive impacts of green buildings on the people who build and use them, and the accessibility of the public spaces between buildings.

The winners were announced at a gala dinner in Sandton Central with international keynote speaker and business strategist Zipho Sikhakhane.

GREENOVATE PROPERTY AWARDS 2018

The winning UCT team in this category comprised Michael Inskip, Samantha Johnson and Morgan Knowles, supervised by Saul Nurick and Karen Le Jeune, with their submission titled “Assessing the relationship between green buildings and their occupants' green citizenship”.

The team won R30 000, as well as the opportunity to present at the GBCSA Conference 2019.

A University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) team won second place, and comprised of Rashid Bulbulia, Onneile Mfetane and Hitekani Mongwe, with their submission titled “Incorporating cow dung in modern acoustics”.

Stuart Ray supervised the team, which won R15 000, as well as tickets to attend the GBCSA Convention 2019.

Third place was awarded to a Wits team comprising Kimera Ramruthan, Ziev Shani and Justin Watkins, supervised by Prisca Simbanegavi, with their submission titled “Investigating the possibility of making rental housing in the gap market more affordable through green building technology”.

The team won R10 000 and GBCSA Convention 2019 tickets.

GREENOVATE ENGINEERING AWARDS 2018

The winner of the Engineering Awards category was UCT student Chloe Bolton, supervised Dr Dyllon Randall, with the submission titled “Greywater treatment and reuse: wetland microbial fuel cell and sand filtration system for the on-site treatment and recycling of handwashing greywater”.

The student took home R30 000 and earned the opportunity to present at the GBCSA Conference 2019.

Second place was awarded to North West University student Eben Schutte with the submission “Investigating the suitability of electromagnetic water flow meters in a residential context”.

Dr Henri Marais and Dr Leenta Grobler supervised Schutte, who won R15 000, as well as GBCSA Convention 2019 tickets.

Third place was awarded to a team from Stellenbosch University comprising Marchant van den Heever and Frederick Albrecht Bester and supervised by Prof GPAG Van Zijl, with their “3D printed concrete” submission.

The team won R10 000 and GBCSA Convention 2019 tickets.