Today entailed both cultural and educational experiences in Amsterdam!
At CREA, Karel Bockstael shared how his experience at KLM (a major airline company in Europe) influenced his current position as a sustainability consultant. We learned the drastic effects that airplanes have on the environment in terms of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emission. In fact, the average amount of power consumed per passenger on a BOEING 787 is about 320 kilowatts, which would be the equivalent of running 150 washer/dryer machines per passenger. Karel also provided insight into alternative energy resources for the future of plane travel. While airlines would like to incorporate battery power into planes, current lithium-ion batteries have a higher mass and volume than kerosene (the current energy source). The increased mass and volume would be problematic to incorporate into the design of current planes that store kerosene in the wings. Unfortunately, even with developments in battery power, there has yet to be potential for an option as efficient as kerosene. I really appreciated learning how sustainability is prevalent in the Netherlands at both an individual and corporate level. Learning that large airline corporations like KLM are taking measures to reduce their carbon footprint is motivating. It is often easy to question why I should be taking small steps towards a sustainable lifestyle if corporations are going to continue to pollute our environment on an immense scale, however, knowing companies like KLM are actively pursuing alternative energy resources alleviates any doubts I put onto myself.
After the lecture on sustainability, our class groups partook in a The Fault in Our Stars scavenger hunt around Amsterdam to explore the city more. It was the first time I used the tram system here, and the system seems much more efficient than the Port Authority buses back in Pittsburgh. The trams were clean, quick, and incredibly easy to navigate. Although my group was under the impression we won the scavenger hunt, that turned out to not be the case. Regardless of the competition, I really enjoyed all of the sightseeing along the hunt, including seeing the Rijksmuseum and Vondelpark.
Our last stop for the day was the Anne Frank House, which was by far the most well-run historic site I have visited. I read the Diary of Anne Frank in eighth grade for school and walking through the house brought all of the details to light. Going through the hidden bookshelf door into the annex was surreal having pictured it in my head for a long time. While I spent close to an hour and a half learning and reading all of the information, I felt like no time had passed at all. The Anne Frank House was definitely the most memorable part of my day given all of the history and significance of her story.