So far in my time in Amsterdam, I have begun to see a connecting ideal in many of the people and places we have had the chance to explore: A willingness to take the difficult steps to bring about change. Everyone wants change to occur, but the hardest part of this is actually starting to make progress towards our ideals (“The journey of a million miles begins with a single step”). Today’s activities were especially indicative of this, as both the Royal Flora Holland and the Schoonship showed people and organizations willing to change and adapt to the circumstances they have been given.
Our day today started bright and early with a trip to the Royal Flora Holland, the largest flower auction in the entire world! Getting a chance to see a building of such a massive scale (bigger than the entire state of Monaco) astounded me, and the efficiency described as “controlled chaos” down on the work-floor really left me impressed. The workers used electric scooters to connect to trolleys carrying flowers around the company floor, highlighting how EVs are a way of life in Amsterdam, and I found it really interesting when an alarm rang and every worker took a company mandated break. The commitment shown by these aspects of the company highlight how a big improvement in carbon emissions and in worker satisfaction and sustainability can be achieved with small changes to company policy. I also found it interesting how the company produced billions of dollars in revenue while only selling to a couple thousand buyers, meaning that the company’s auction buyers were primarily larger distributors of flowers. This made me think how a product as “simple” as flowers produces such a large number of emissions to deliver and move at every step of getting it to the consumer, meaning even if Royal Flora Holland makes changes its buyers might not necessarily follow suit. Further, I found it very interesting how the company’s transition from physical to more digital auctions made the older auction clocks (pictured) redundant. Now being used as a storage room, I feel like this efficient use of older space reflects a broader sentiment in Amsterdam of utilitarianism in achieving climate goals.
Next, we explored a warehouse filled with modern art, which was remarkably pretty and housed some really compelling pieces, and I really enjoyed the modern aesthetic. So far, the street art and graffiti I have seen around the city have been really well done, and I feel it is really unique culturally how the city mixes very old structures with new and creative visions for art. We then explored the Schoonship, a floating community that prioritized sustainability and environmentally conscious living more than anywhere I have been to in my life. The guide began by briefing us on the history of the area and how, despite pollution and a long history of industrial activity in the area, the members of the Schoonship community have worked to build a more sustainable way of life in the area. I really enjoyed how he described to us how the community justified its existence to the city and fought to have such a radical housing project allowed. I was impressed both by the community’s fight to build a more environmentally conscious way of living and how Amsterdam gave them the time and resources to see this vision realized. Making change needs people in power willing to give ideas that seem crazy a chance and, in this instance, this created a beautiful town for families to live in. I also was fascinated by how comprehensive the sustainability measures taken by the town were, from sustainable insulation to the use of vacuum toilets and an abundance of solar panels. These little changes could make a big difference if implemented in other towns/areas, and I genuinely am considering asking my parents to put some of these practices into place in our own home. It might seem crazy at first, but so did the Schoonship!
The connection I was able to make today between ideology and action in the Netherlands inspired me, and I hope that more places can take the active approach to sustainability that we had the chance to see today. As I see more companies and communities on this trip, I am interested to see who takes the most drastic measures to become more “‘green”. Tomorrow’s trip to the cheese producer is one of my most anticipated, so I am excited to see what the future has in store!
