by Jonathan Starling

In 2015 the UN agreed on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity ‘for people and the planet, now and into the future’. At the heart of this 2030 Agenda are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), each with various targets, which, taken together, serve as a roadmap for every nation and the world as a whole. 

With this being the month of ‘back to school’ the focus of this article is on the fourth SDG – Quality Education, and in particular target 4.7 of this SDG, which refers to education for sustainable development (ESD). Here I will discuss what ESD is, why it matters, and how it applies in Bermuda.

The SDG 4 is ‘ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’. There is a total of seven targets under this goal, of which the relevant one for ESD is number 7:

“By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and culture’s contribution to sustainable development.”

For this target, there are two indicators:

• Percentage of population in a given age group achieving at least a fixed level of proficiency in functional (a) literacy; and (b) numeracy skills; by sex.
• Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development, including gender equality and human rights, are mainstreamed at all levels in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment.

What It Is & Why It Matters

Now what this means is that ESD is focused on empowering learners to take informed decisions and actions for environmental integrity, economic viability and a just society, for present and future generations, while respecting cultural diversity. Furthermore, it is not restricted solely to the formal education system but is about lifelong learning (and equipping citizens with the skills needed for that) and is fundamental to quality education (the 4th SDG itself). 

It is also a holistic approach to education – every subject is relevant to ESD, not just biology or science classes generally, as is all too often the perception. ESD and the principles involved are as relevant for subjects such as economics, civics, art, history and mathematics as they are for biology and science classes. Nor is it supposed to be restricted solely to the classroom – ESD envisions a whole school approach, as well as involving the wider community. The point of ESD is not simply that of achieving quality education but the goal of transforming society.

Education for sustainable development is crucial for developing citizens who are able to cope with the challenge of sustainability and the various crises of climate change and biodiversity that are expected to dominate the 21st Century, with particular consequences for small island states like Bermuda. 

And of course, there are transferable skills that arise from ESD (although the intention is that citizens apply sustainability thinking in all things, so that isn’t exactly surprising). In 2017 UNESCO released an outline of the eight competencies that define ESD:

1. Systems Thinking: The ability to recognise and understand relationships; to analyse complex systems; to think of how systems are embedded within different domains and different scales; to deal with uncertainty.
2. Anticipatory: The ability to understand and evaluate multiple futures – possible, probable and desirable; to create one’s own visions for the future; to apply the precautionary principle; to assess the consequences of actions; and to deal with risks and changes.
3. Normative: The ability to understand and reflect on the norms and values that underlie one’s actions; and to negotiate sustainability values, principles, goals and targets in a context of conflicts of interests and trade-offs, uncertain knowledge and contradictions.
4. Strategic: The ability to collectively develop and implement innovative actions that further sustainability at the local level and beyond. 
5. Collaboration: The ability to learn from others; to understand and respect the needs, perspectives and actions of others (empathy); to understand, relate to and be sensitive to others; to deal with conflicts in a group, and to facilitate collaborative and participatory problem-solving.
6. Critical Thinking: The ability to question norms, practices and opinions; to reflect on one’s values, perceptions and actions; and to take a position in the sustainability discourse.
7. Self-Awareness: The ability to reflect on one’s role in the local community and global society; to continually evaluate and further motivate one’s actions; and to deal with one’s feelings and desires.
8. Integrated Problem Solving: The overarching ability to apply different problem-solving frameworks to complex sustainability problems and develop viable, inclusive and equitable solution options that promote sustainable development.

As you can see from the above, ESD is not simply about learning about Bermuda’s natural history, as important as that is (and is part of it). Nor is it simply a school creating an environmental mural or growing vegetables in a school garden (although that can be part of it).

Eco-Schools

In Bermuda the SDG’s, and SDG 4 do inform our educational policies. While schools can incorporate education for sustainable development in various ways, one of the most popular approaches is the Eco-Schools Programme, formerly operated by Greenrock and now by the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (BUEI).

As an overview, the Eco-Schools Programme is part of the Foundation for Environmental Education, which works with UNESCO to achieve ESD through its various programmes, of which Eco-Schools is their flagship. 

The process involves a seven-step method, which begins anew with each school year, involving:

1. Establishing the Eco-Schools Committee – which also selects the theme focused on for the year.
2. Doing an audit relevant to the theme – such as energy, this would involve reviewing the school’s energy use and what is using the energy at the school.
3. Developing an action plan – if energy, how to reduce energy usage?
4. Monitoring and evaluation – is the action plan working? If not, why not? 
5. Curriculum linking – Eco-Schools isn’t supposed to be limited to just the committee or just one class. The theme is supposed to link with the entire curricula of the school. The data from the audits, for example, can provide relational knowledge for maths class, or economics. English class can involve literature or poetry themed around the chosen theme. Same for art class. The theme also can be applied in history (history of electricity, of greenhouse gas emissions, etc.) and of course in the science (what is electricity; what are fossil fuels; how do renewable energy sources work, etc.).
6. Informing and involving the wider community – community outreach and involvement, first through a whole school approach and then to the wider community.
7. Developing an Eco-Code – to reinforce the lessons from the theme.

Of the different themes available, there are twelve to choose from, and schools are encouraged to select one per year – but to maintain past themes each year too. The twelve available themes are:

1. Biodiversity & Nature
2. Climate Change
3. Energy
4. Food
5. Global Citizenship
6. Health & Wellbeing
7. Litter
8. Marine & Coast
9. School Grounds
10. Transport
11. Waste
12. Water

For more information about Eco-Schools and how you or your school can get involved, contact BUEI at [email protected] 

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As an operator of Bermudian restaurants, Take Five Ltd takes seriously its environmental responsibilities.

From deterring the use of single-use plastic bags to helping to clean up island beauty spots and raising environmental awareness, the company is playing its part as an environmentally-conscious corporate citizen. 

Jason Berwick, general manager of Take Five, said: “One of Take Five’s core values is respecting the environment, especially Bermuda, which is why we decided to turn this one-day event of Earth Day on April 22 into an ‘Earth Week’. 

“As a company including Devil’s Isle, Village Pantry and Buzz outlets across island, Take Five has the ability to connect with Bermuda’s community in hope to create a movement towards ending plastic dependency, educate those about their impact on the environment and to inspire change.”

One of the week’s initiatives was to raise an appreciation among the public of the damaging impact of plastic trash on the marine environment. Take Five charged five cents for each single-use plastic bag used at Buzz outlets during the week in order to donate the proceeds and more to the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo.

Dr Ian Walker, the principal curator of the Aquarium, said: “I think one of the nice things about Buzz and Take Five is that they really take protecting the environment seriously. I see a huge move towards moving away from single-use plastics. 

“The initial discussions are all ‘yes, let’s make this happen and let’s make sure we put our best foot forward in terms of protecting our environment’. It’s wonderful to see a corporate group working in that way.”

By the end of the week around 2,000 plastic bags were used at Buzz outlets. For every dollar made from the plastic-bag charge, Take Five added $9 more. This added up to an overall donation of $1,000 to the Aquarium. The money will lend support to the Aquarium’s education programmes, which help children to learn more about conservation. 

Mr Berwick, together with Holger Eiselt, managing director of Take Five, presented the donation to Dr Walker.

Also during the company’s self-styled “Earth Week”, both Devil’s Isle and Village Pantry invited customers and employees to write down what they do to protect our planet and our species. One comment from Devil’s Isle was: “Let’s end single-use plastics.” 

Another comment from Village Pantry was: “I throw my garbage in designated areas. Reduce, reuse, recycle what you throw.” 

Take Five’s eateries source a significant proportion of the produce they use to prepare meals from local farmers, including carrots, romaine hearts, tomatoes, cilantro and more. Buying locally not only benefits Bermuda’s community through supporting local farmers but also reduces the company’s carbon footprint, when compared to importing from overseas.

The group said it hoped to inspire residents to buy products from Bermudian farmers such as J&J Produce, Amaral Farms, Pacheco, Wadson’s Farms and Windy Bank Farm. 

The group also collaborated with Keep Bermuda Beautiful for a clean-up of Warwick Long Bay and Jobson’s Cove on the morning of April 14. In the space of two hours, the team of volunteers collected 19 bags of trash, weighing around 340lbs. 

A Take Five spokesperson said: “Although it was not obvious that this beautiful Bermuda beach had litter hidden in the sand and its surroundings, it definitely created awareness for all those that contributed to this day of how much of a difference can be made in just a couple of hours.”

Keep Bermuda Beautiful is the island’s oldest environmental charity and has been taking care of Bermuda since 1960 through its message of litter awareness. KBB’s mission is “to engage individuals to take greater responsibility in reducing waste and eliminating litter through action and education”. 

Reusable KeepCups were also introduced at Buzz outlets in another joint initiative with KBB. The aim was to inspire the community to stop using single-use cups by encouraging them to buy KeepCups instead, with part of the proceeds donated to KBB. 

Anne Hyde, of KBB, said: “It fits in your hand and is easy to drink from — just like a disposable cup — but this you get to keep. Getting a hot beverage to go? Why not reach for a KeepCup, help the environment and KBB at the same time.”

Although new to Buzz, Devil’s Isle has been offering KeepCups to customers since last year. KeepCup was founded in Melbourne, Australia, in 2009 by Jamie and Abigail Forsyth who had the simple idea to “keep it and use it again”. KeepCup is now being used in over 65 countries worldwide and Take Five is proud to involve Bermuda in this movement. 

Take Five’s green initiative has also involved saying goodbye to single-use plastic straws and replacing them with biodegradable straws throughout the group. Other multi-use products include travel cutlery, reusable straws and reusable bags in collaboration with Greenrock. 

Mr Berwick said: “Although the overall aim is to move towards reusable products, using biodegradable straws will break down in a reasonable amount of time compared to one use plastics and it is a good step towards reducing the amount of plastic pollution within Bermuda.” 

Take Five said it has been committed to changing single-use plastics for several years. It started with the company looking for a plant-based material for containers. However, this has evolved into driving initiatives with reusable products to avoid the excessive carbon footprint created by single-use plastics. 

A spokesperson added: “Take Five are focused on the community that we live, work and employ in and making sure Bermuda and the planet can be enjoyed for many generations to come. We’d like to give special thanks to all those that contributed towards this donation, and we look forward to deploying more green initiatives in the future.”

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by Jonathan Starling

May 22^nd is the International Day for Biological Diversity that commemorates the 1992 UN Earth Summit which sought to launch international cooperation to address global sustainability issues – outcomes of this summit were the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Climate Change Convention, the Convention to Combat Desertification, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, Agenda 21 (an action plan for sustainable development) and the Forest Principles (for sustainable forestry).

Each year there is a different theme for the day that helps to raise awareness and coordinate activities and policy focus. The theme for 2019 is: ‘Our Biodiversity, Our Food, Our Health’.

What’s biodiversity got to do with food and health?

Biodiversity is crucial for our food security and overall health. Our agriculture is dependent on a diversity of plants, insects, habitats such as seagrasses, mangroves and coral reefs as well as the soil microorganisms and the genetic diversity of crop and livestock species.

Healthy seagrass meadows, mangroves and coral reefs are key for our local fisheries, providing not just habitats for shellfish and fish, but also key breeding grounds and nurseries for important seafood species. And just as importantly is the need for ensuring a healthy and diverse population of other animals that play key supporting roles in maintaining healthy marine ecosystems – the parrotfish for example help graze the reef to ensure healthy coral populations, healthy stocks of groupers (rockfish) and other predatory fish keep prey populations in balance, and their loss cause trophic (nutritional) cascades through the food web with unexpected consequences, often leading to a collapse of fisheries in the long-term. Which means a loss of local food security (local seafood) and jobs. Not to mention other problems such as erosion and storm damage increasing from the loss of healthy reefs, seagrasses and mangroves.

While our grocery stores may have more food options than even a few decades ago, over the last 100 years more than 90 percent of crop varieties have disappeared from global agriculture. Half of all breeds of many domestic animals have been lost, and all of Earth’s seventeen main fishing grounds are assessed as being overfished, beyond their sustainable limits. At the same time, the loss of local food production in Bermuda – in 1921 3,000 acres of farmland; in 1977 the number was just 600 acres; in 2010 only 360 acres of land was being actively used – has meant a loss of traditional and local knowledge of medicine, foods and skills, as well as radically changing the landscape of our island and increasing our dependence on food imports – undermining our national food security.

From an economic perspective, dependence on food imports translates into a loss of hard currency (economic leakages) from Bermuda and increasing our vulnerability to threats to our supply lines. A natural disaster affecting the USA’s eastern seaboard, or a shipping accident to our main cargo ship, or even international tensions could quickly lead to extreme food shortages for Bermudians. Our current agriculture cannot provide for all our needs. This is not new. In the 1981 book Bermuda’s Delicate Balance it was calculated we could at best produce enough food for a quarter of our needs – and that was with twice the amount of farmland than we have today, as well as healthier fish-stocks.

We know though that a greater genetic diversity of crops and livestock acts as a sort of insurance against disease – as well as giving more variety of taste and nutrition and preserving traditional knowledge. We also know that a healthy agricultural industry that promotes agrobiodiversity (so not mass plantation crops and dependence on artificial fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides), as well as a healthy marine environment, increases our welfare, improving our food security and Bermuda’s overall protection against hurricanes and climate change.

Okay, but what can I do about it?

There are quite a few things you can do!

To protect our marine fisheries, help look after our mangroves, seagrasses and coral reefs. This could be something as simple as helping clean up a beach or reducing your consumption of plastic – trash can cause detrimental effects to these habitats, so removing the threat benefits them. Support local fisheries, however I would ask that you help reduce the pressure on our rockfish population and choose alternative local fish instead.

Buy local produce. This ensures that we maintain a land bank of agricultural land and keeps people employed in the industry, helping reduce the further erosion of our agricultural land and skills. The famers market is an excellent opportunity to do this, including supporting small farmers. Not only does the agricultural land ensure our food security, but it also provides important habitats for our wildlife and helps maintain the Bermuda image.

Grow your own food. And grow different varieties of it at that! Why stick to your usual tomato when you can grow tastier ones? Much of the produce we import are varieties that hold up well for export. That doesn’t necessarily translate into taste and variety. But produce you grow yourself only needs to go from the garden to the kitchen – so you can expand your taste buds!

And beyond that, gardening is a healthy (physical and mental) exercise, can involve the whole family (better than Netflix!), helps reduce your grocery bills, provides healthy fresh vegetables and develops mindfulness and appreciation of nature.

It’s true that the summer isn’t necessarily the best season for growing veggies in Bermuda (the fall is actually the better planting time). However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t options!

For May, the best plants to start growing are beans, cucumber, okra, pumpkin, squash, sweet potato and tomato.

For June, it’s beans, cucumber, squash and tomato.

For July, go for beans, carrots and tomato.

Don’t worry if you don’t have a lot of space. Even a container or two is better than nothing. Herbs like parsley, cilantro and mint are all great options.

So, this year, buy local. Grow your own veggies – even if it’s just some potted herbs. And remember, our biodiversity, our food, our health.

Get growing!

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In this day and age, not only do we want our homes to be environmentally friendly and energy efficient but we also expect our offices and the buildings we work in to go green and contribute towards a healthy environment.

These offices in Bermuda and around the world are taking efficiency to a new level — inspiring and sustainable, while delivering far more than just a place to work.

HSBC Harbourview, Hamilton (Bermuda)

In 2013, the HSBC Bank Bermuda’s Harbourview branch received the prestigious US Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold award by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). Each floor features a central ‘village’ which consolidates all recycling, houses a central printing area and kitchen facilities. All workspaces are trash can-less reducing the need for more than 300 trash bags per night. The Harbourview Centre was built using sustainable construction methods and materials and harvests daylight by dimming the lights when the sun is bright, reducing energy consumption.

Chubb, Hamilton (Bermuda)

The Chubb building (previously ACE) on Woodbourne Avenue was the first on the island to recertify LEED Gold using the LEED Dynamic Plaque to manage its building performance in 2011. The company’s Green Team have worked diligently with their employees to transform the premises enabling it to achieve and maintain the achievement. Many have opted to forgo their trash bins to reduce plastic waste liners, use reusable water bottles, support the Tin, Aluminum and Glass (TAG) recycling policy and are supplied with reusable lunch containers to use in the buildings cafeteria. Waste management is then measured by an annual waste stream audit.

141 Front Street, Hamilton (Bermuda)

Built of glass, steel, granite and stone, 141 Front Street displays the latest breakthrough concepts in green engineering technology. The automated energy management system employs earth friendly power sources to maintain a comfortable and sustainable work environment. Other features include waterless urinals in the men’s bathrooms save up to one gallon per flush, landscaped gardens, double-glazed solar control glass to keep interiors cool and reduce glare and noise pollution, a chilled water system and more. The building is designed to incorporate future energy saving technologies including photovoltaic solar panels and wind turbines.

One Angel Square, Manchester (UK)

The Co-operative Group Headquarters, located in Manchester, United Kingdom achieved the highest ever, new building BREEAM score of 95.16% in 2014. The sustainability assessment method recognised the 15-storey building as being one of the most energy efficient offices in the world. It has its own source of heat and power generation plant and an intelligent heat recovery system that takes heat generated by the IT systems and reuses it to heat the building.

The building is designed to save 40-60% of the current energy cost incurred by a standard head office building and also implements technologies using low energy LED lighting and IT systems, greywater and rainwater recycling systems for toilet flushing and irrigation, as well as high efficiency passenger elevators.

One Embankment Place, London (UK)

Constructed in the early 1990s, the 40,000 square metre building situated on London’s Embankment, underwent extensive refurbishment and achieved the highest BREEM Outstanding rating recorded worldwide in 2013.  Now occupied by PwC, the building uses one of the largest tri-generation systems that has reduced its carbon emissions by 51%. Fuelled by recycled biodiesel produced from waste cooking oil, the system produces heat, cooling and power to the building.  The redesign also called for more cycle storage and showers to encourage the staff to use more sustainable transport methods.

David & Lucile Packard Foundation Headquarters, California (USA)

This headquarters is the largest Net Zero Energy certified building in the world. 95% of the materials used to construct the building were sourced from pre-existing, deconstructed buildings. It provides 100% of its own energy needs through on site resources including 915 rooftop photovoltaic panels. The design of the building means that it effectively uses daylight to supplement artificial light and reduce energy consumption. It also has extensive rooftop guttering like Bermuda houses and a living green roof that collects around 20,000 gallons of rainwater that is used for irrigation and the building’s bathrooms.

The Bullitt Centre, Seattle (USA)

The Bullitt centre is considered to be the greenest commercial building in the world being powered by 100% renewable energy. The design of the building takes cues from nature and it has been compared to a living organism. Its design means that it is naturally day-lit and ventilated to create a comfortable working environment — it is even expected to survive for the next 250 years. This can be achieved through technologies such as its extensive use of heat exchangers for the conditioned air, sophisticated building management systems and even composting toilets. It has also been designed to encourage inhabitants to walk up the buildings floors rather than using the lifts, which has a key card system to discourage use of the stairs.

Empire State Building, New York (USA)

One of the world’s most famous buildings has undergone a $550 million renovation that helped it to earn its LEED Gold Certification in 2011. The building’s environmental upgrade is the largest of its kind to take place in America and has helped to cut its annual energy use by $4.4 million. In the next 15 years the changes are expected to reduce the carbon footprint by 105,000 tonnes — the equivalent of taking 20,000 cars off the road. The upgrade also saw an improvement of insulation systems, energy saving technologies and products and the refurbishment of 6514 windows.

One way the islands’ offices are becoming more sustainable is through DIRTT. Commercial Office Environments (COE) is the official dealer in Bermuda for the pre-fabricated moveable walls for interior construction. The product aims to create a positive shift in the construction industry by placing as much value on the environment and people as much as functional design.

Managing director, Jeff Seiler said: “We use technology to create custom prefab interiors with minimal waste, fast lead time and a precise fit and finish. By giving customers complete design freedom, the interior space looks, feels and functions not only how it was imagined, but even better than thought possible.”

DIRTT has a product range of solid modular walls, glass modular walls, stacked, low, interior curtain walls and more.

For more information about the DIRTT modular interior system visit www.dirtt.net and www.coe.bm

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Bermuda Motors has noticed that more and more Bermudians are purchasing electric vehicles, as they presently have between 20 and 30 units on the roads – well above their projected sales.
“We thought it might be slow moving but obviously it’s taken off, word gets around,” Mr Winsby said as we drove around the city.
“We’ve also got the electric Kia Soul, which is selling big, we’ve got the 2 Series BMW Active Tourer which is a plug-in hybrid electric, the Kia Niro which is a hybrid and we’ve also got the Toyota Prius and the Lexus.
“A lot of people are either going after pure electric or the hybrids.”
So what is the difference between pure electric and hybrid?
Hybrid basically means two power sources, so there is a gasoline engine and electric. With most hybrids they are parallel hybrid, so you can use the gasoline to operate the generator to charge the battery to give it power to drive the car.
The i3 just uses electric. With the Active Tourer you actually get the “best of both worlds”. Flipping a switch between gasoline power, or electric power. The difference is that the front wheels are driven by the gasoline engine, and the rear wheels use an electric drive.
For Bermuda, these electric vehicles mean there are less carbon emissions which is great for the environment and sustaining our little island.
You also won’t have to worry about a regular car service, not passing due to rust at TCD, or weekly trips to the gas station for an expensive fill up.
“In my opinion, Bermuda is ideal for electric vehicles,” Mr Winsby said. “You’ve got a 35km speed limit and you can get from point A to point B quite comfortably.”
The fully customizable BMW i3 is available starting at $50,000. Contact Bermuda Motors to arrange your test drive today.

This article originally appeared in the RG’s green pages on January 30. Green pages is a monthly publication, look out for our next issue on February 27.

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