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[Abstract]: Permanent Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) networks of Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS) are becoming routinely used for surveying activities, including maintenance of the geodetic datum, deformation monitoring and land surveying. These networks consist of several fixed GNSS antennas and receivers that operate on a 24-hour basis and provide positional information to those who request it. Before a network can be used in survey application it must be validated to ensure the results required for specific tasks are achievable. The NSW Department of Lands (DOL) has developed a network of CORS, predominantly covering the Sydney basin called Sydnet. The network objective was to provide a user with centimetre accurate coordinates, regardless of their position, using static and real-time kinetic (RTK) applications. This dissertation tested and validated the coordinate information provided by Sydnet against class 2A and class B for horizontal and class LB and class LC for AHD heights of coordinated permanent survey marks found in the northern suburbs and northern beaches of Sydney. The outcome determined whether the information provided could position a user with an accuracy and precision that is acceptable under current legislation. The aim was to evaluate and critically analyse the horizontal and vertical results of GNSS observations using Sydnet with respect to accuracy, precision and reliability. Research into the Sydnet system was critical to determine its functionality and limitations before, a network of control marks was planned to test these limits. The test network was based on careful planning to ensure that the special selection of known coordinated survey marks chosen, provided the necessary geometry along with mocking field simulated situations i.e. sky obstructions. The essential field observation data was collected in a manner that conformed to the ICSM SP1 standard to make certain the best possible outcome for tests 1 and 2

This case study examines a group of 10-11 year-olds participating in a nature-based educational role-play adventure program called Wild Craft Play. The facilitative approach used mirrors some of the characteristics of the hummingbird, and thereby is affectionately referred to within these pages as The Hummingbird Approach. In this approach, once the facilitator has set the activities in motion (like the Hummingbird), her role becomes one of hovering as observer or witness rather than that of the more traditional didactic instructor who stands in front and tells the students what they will learn. In this way, the Hummingbird facilitator ‘pollinates’ the learning process with questions, comments and stories at appropriate intervals in order to catalyze and deepen the children’s flowering awareness. Seven sessions of Wild Craft Play were video-recorded for the purposes of data collection, theming, and analysis to help examine and assess participant engagement and identify what facilitation techniques effectively optimized their learning, with the potential for replication and possible future training of other nature-based facilitators. This case study also suggests that strong and important connections are forged through this more playful approach that invites children to make their own discoveries and meaning, guiding them toward a deeper level of understanding.