[Courtesy of the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology]
The Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) said in a statement that the institute has partnered with a local bank, BNK Kyongnam Bank, to showcase a sustainable garden to students and Ulsan residents in June 2023. The project will be carried out through the bank's donation. Visitors can take a break from their busy life inside the pesticide-free garden with many different flowers and other wild plants.
"We are trying hard to create a space where UNIST members and Ulsan people can enjoy together," UNIST President Lee Yong-hoon said in a statement on February 24. The institute said the garden that has a shape of a whale will also be used to offer educational programs for sustainable agriculture and carbon neutrality.
In 2017, the research institute created a lab called "Science Walden" on the campus to turn human manure into energy. The lab has three living quarters equipped with waterless toilets, a dining room, and an energy-producing bioenergy center. Using a grinder and a fan installed in the toilet, human excrement can be immediately turned into powder. The powder is then decomposed through microorganisms and produces methane gas and carbon. While methane is stored for heating, carbon is used to culture green algae for biofuel.
As of February 2023, the UNIST had about 2,254 undergraduate students and 2,263 graduate students. All lectures are conducted in English.