“The AlgaeFall” title video presentation by: M. Toprak CILIZLAR & Melike ERSOY, Ph.D.
At the #UN2023WaterConference – Outside-UN Side Event#W175 titled, “What is your commitment to the #WaterActionDecade? Seven core #WaterAction ideas toward #WaterAwareness, #WaterConscience and #GameChangers”, which is delivered by LMGlobal.Org in NYC on March 21, 2023.at the Shelburne Sonesta New York Hotel on Tuesday, March 21, 2023. The AlgaeFall titled video focused on #GrayWaterIsAMust idea, which was screened during the first section of the side event#W175, which titled: “Water Action Ideas and Commitments”

Background: The core purpose of the #W175 side event is to contribute toward #WaterAwareness & #WaterConscience and #GameChangers concepts on the local, national, and global levels through promoting and engaging with diverse communities and multi-stakeholders with seven (7) core #WaterAction Ideas, which are:
1. #WaterForestryClimateChange #StopConstantForestFires #ForestryForGroundwater #StopClimateEngineering #StopDeforestation
2. #MilitaryAccountabilityOnWater #GameChanger
3. #GrayWaterIsAMust #GreenWater
4. #WasteProcessorForOurPlanet #StopPlasticPollution
5. #WaterForALL #WaterForLife #DevelopmentNotAgainstPeopleWill
6. #WaterForInspiration #WaterInArts #WaterInPoetry #WaterForPeace
7. #WaterAwareness #WaterConscience.

“The AlgaeFall“ was one of the two videos screened under the first section of the side event, which produced and presented by M. Toprak Cılızlar and Melike Ersoy.

The narration of the video follows:

The algae waterfall system aims to reduce the water footprint as well as the carbon footprint. It is aimed to create a living environment for microalgae within the system by collecting the rainwater from the rain gutters around the roof and the grey water and the yellow water from house plumbing.

Further, the drained water of the compost applied on a roof, which will be obtained from the organic wastes in the roof garden provides an additional nutrient mechanism to yellow water, and all together will contribute to the growth and nutrition of algae.

This collection creates a liquid environment called the media where algae can grow. By integrating yellow water and compost, which can be used without using microalgae, with algae in this setup, we benefit from the carbon-holding capacity, while at the same time realizing our goals of improving air quality, enriching the soil and reducing the water footprint.

By inspiring from nature, our main goal is to extend the distance traveled by the media to ensure that the algae use the nutrients and excess compounds, and finally algae accumulate as a final product and used as fertilizer in the landscape areas or this biomass can be used as sustainable source for biofuel production.

This system, which is designed completely open, does not contain any toxic substances, and it is aimed to work like open system microalgae growing environments. The main purpose of open-pond microalgae growing environments is to produce biomass, the system built in large ponds aims to create an input that people can contact, raise awareness and interact with.

It is predicted that the carbon sequestration capacities that can be obtained when algae produce 1 kg of biomass are between 1.6-1.8 kg, depending on the algae type. This aims to visibly present the importance of the integration of new techniques and technologies within the built environment, where freshwater demand and carbon emissions are known to be the largest inputs.

Figure 1: The “Algaefall” system for large ponds

Figure 2: : The “Algaefall” systems for small ponds

ABOUT THE TEAM: • MELİKE ERSOY, PhD.; Lead, The AlgaeFall Team (Video) | #WaterAction Idea #GrayWaterIsAMust
Ms. Ersoy completed her primary, and secondary life in Uşak, completed her undergraduate degree in Architecture and Landscape Architecture at Yeditepe University. Take the master’s degrees’ from İstanbul Technical University, which is related to Environmental Control and Project Management.
Currently, Ms. Ersoy is about to complete her doctorate education in Landscape Architecture program at İstanbul Technical University. The motivation for choosing this program is how wonderful the relationship between living and non-living environments is important for users which live in built environments. The Solar Decathlon 21/22 Deeply High competition team, she worked on her main research area into ecology, sustainability and microalgea.
• MEHMET TOPRAK CILIZLAR, Team Member, The AlgaeFall Team (Video) | #WaterAction Idea #GrayWaterIsAMust
Mr.Cılızlar completed his primary, secondary, and high school life in Adana, completed his undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology and Genetics at Istanbul Technical University. Currently, he is about to complete his master degree education in the same program. The motivation for choosing this program is how wonderful the relationship between living and non-living environments is, which has intrigued since childhood. Although his major research area was oncoproteins in his undergraduate life, with the opportunity to be included in the Solar Decathlon 21/22 Deeply High competition team, he turned his main research area into ecology and environmental microbiology. His work in the ITU Astronomy student club and his curiosity about subjects in the field of astrobiology are the other main reasons for this change. He believes space research and missions heavily rely on sustainable practice. Throughout his life, he tried to appreciate the value of knowledge and at the same time took part in social activities such as theater and in voluntary non-governmental organizations. In summary, M. Toprak, being aware of the importance of acquiring information and communicating, his main motivation is transferring/transmitting what he learned to others.

2023, LMGlobal.Org. | #LMGlobalOrg | #LightMillenniumTV | #WaterActionCommitment | #2023UNWaterConference #WaterAction #SustDev