Energy for the Environment

My family recently took a trip to Germany and Austria, and I noticed several things that Europe is doing differently than America in terms of sustainability.

First of all, the dual flush toilet. While it may have some prevalence in America, it is not typically in houses, restaurants, or stores. In Europe, however, every place we stayed at featured one of these. Even restaurants, shops, or public toilets sport one of these. Now, what do these do, you may ask. They work to conserve water, as one button is for liquid waste (the flush uses 3 to 4.5 liters of water) and one button is for solid waste (the flush uses 6 to 9 liters of water).

Second, Europe handles garbage/waste management very differently. The first picture (on the left) shows a sign at an apartment we stayed at. In America, we group all of our garbage together- it’s just garbage. In Europe, they have different bins for organic waste, paper, plastic, etc. The second photo (taken at a palace in Vienna) shows another “trash can” where waste is divided up into paper, plastic, or other waste. 

Lastly, Europe focuses on educating on sustainability in areas such as public museums, shops, etc. The photos shown were taken at Salzburg Museum in Austria. They had a whole section devoted to the climate. The photo with all the sticky notes shows a bulletin board where people could write their ideas for a better, more sustainable future. Then, there was a board on Sustainable Development Goals, and how Salzburg was striving to become more environmentally aware and efficient. Finally, visitors could take a Climate Quiz to learn more about the impacts of their actions on the environment. 

Overall, Europe wins the prize for sustainability! The trip was so much fun and I’m glad I got to learn some European norms that were not so normal for an American like me.