Day 5 was a busy one. We started the day off in Larnaca by visiting the Cyprus Marine and Maritime Institute or CMMI. One of the main goals of CMMI is to make shipping, which is a huge industry in Cyprus, more sustainable. As we learned today, shipping transports 80% of the world’s goods but represents 3% of global CO2 emissions. Through its many EU funded projects, CMMI hopes to achieve carbon neutrality and decrease pollution in the shipping industry as well as restore biodiversity. in the nearby sea regions.
One thing I noticed about CMMI was the collaborative nature of the organization, a common theme in engineering. Even internally, CMMI is collaborative. For example, the engineers who made up the marine robotics team were mostly responsible for building the of the small automated boat while Dr. Elias Yfantis’ team was more responsible for the small, tracking technology inside the boat. Even in these small groups collaboration must happen because CMMI does not have the resources for all projects. They explained that they worked with a datasourcing company to create their marine spacial planning map. After listening to the speakers at CMMI, I feel like I understand more about the effects of supply chain. An irresponsible supply chain, especially one that primarily involves water, can have a major negative impact on the surrounding environment and all its inhabitants.
After our visit to CMMI, we headed to see two very historical churches: the Church of Saint Lazarus and Angeloktisti Church. Located in the village of Kiti, Angeloktisti Church was very unique because, it contained features from different religions and cultures. Although it is a Byzantine church built in the 11th century, it contains a Christian mosaic from the 6th century! Without even knowing the history behind the piece of art, the mosaic was very impressive. The tile pieces are so small that from where I was standing, it looked like a painting. Even though it was created in a time without advanced technology, each mosaic piece is only 4mm wide.
Next, we traveled to the village of Lefkara which was probably my favorite part of the trip so far. The views from the Trodos Mounatains were beautiful, just like everything else in the village. The narrow streets were lined colorful doors and silver and lace shop. For many years, Lefkara was known for its intricate, handmade lace and silver work. Today, the tradition continues with lace decorated cookies and handcrafted silver jewelry.
