Almost forty years ago an extraordinary book was published in Bermuda, which, while it did not use the phrase “sustainable development” was one of the earliest works in the world – to my knowledge – to adopt a sustainability focus. This book, Bermuda’s Delicate Balanceremains a book that I often turn to for inspiration; in fact, it is this book which has largely inspired my own personal path in terms of education and career choices.

The title of the book referred to the delicate balance that Bermuda must play between progress and sustainability, balancing the social, the economic and the ecological. Taking a holistic look at Bermuda, it’s chapters, full of detailed statistics and policy recommendations, looked at population, industry, resources (land, agriculture, fisheries, ecosystems, etc.) traffic, waste and pollution, conservation and issues of values and attitudes.

The core philosophy of the book is distilled in its concluding, of which it is worth quoting in full here:

“Bermuda is truly a microcosm of the entire planet; finite in size, limited in resources, and containing a complex mixture of races, nationalities, and lifestyles. Unlike some other congested communities, Bermuda is neither the business district of a larger country nor an enclave for wealthy retirees. Solutions that might apply to such places might be largely unworkable here. Our problems are more universal, and our solutions must be broader and more integrated also”.

“It is this universality that makes Bermuda the place for the rest of the world to watch in the coming years. We are experiencing here and now what other countries can expect in the near future. Our success in the complex task of melding social and economic growth with environmental health may foretell the future of human survival throughout the planet. If it cannot be done here, then where?”

While the statistics in this book are now outdated, and new issues have come to play – the Cold War is over, and the danger (and imminent reality) of global climate change is now the largest single challenge to humanity in this century, along with the related crisis of global biodiversity – this underlying challenge posed by this book remains relevant. If it cannot be done here, then where?

Due to Bermuda’s size and advanced wealth and resources, we remain not just at the forefront of this global challenge, but also unique in our ability to shine a light on what a sustainable Bermuda – and thus planet – can be.

I am not one for spinning castles in the air of what might be; as useful as such daydreams can be, they can also prove distractions. Nonetheless, there is utility in conceiving a vision of a future Bermuda and what that might be. Such visions can serve to inspire and through such inspiration, lead to the organisation, motivation and action required to actually build a better and sustainable Bermuda. This, indeed, was the underlying message of Thomas Moore’s Utopia; the perfect place may not (and may never) exist, however that vision can inspire the change that can lead to a “Eutopia” a “good place”, a better place than the current reality.

One important role of such visions as well is their utility for “back-casting”. This is the reverse of “fore-casting” where one looks at the current trends and tries to predict what will happen in X amount of time. With back-casting you envision what the desired goal would be and then you work backwards to identify what steps need to happen to achieve that end goal. Importantly, also, one must note that often the ends are determined by the means – or at least greatly influenced by them, to such a degree that while an end goal may be “good” in and of itself, the means to achieve it can often lead to a dystopian version of that originally ‘good’ end.

The question of what kind of Bermuda I would like to see, what is Bermuda’s “green potential”, is thus quite an interesting question. And one I think which can be done in a participatory fashion; indeed, it is a question that all of us must ask individually and collectively – what would an ideal and sustainable Bermuda look like? What would it be? Once we can agree on a common vision, a collective answer, then perhaps we can begin working on how to get there.

I am reminded of living in Scotland during the months leading up to the 2014 Independence Referendum. Just as during the America’s Cup last year, everyone (well, many persons at least) became sudden experts in sailing, at that time in Scotland everyone became a constitutional expert and well-versed on the minutiae of the independence arguments, for and against. And simultaneously everyone was discussing what an independent Scotland would be. You would catch the bus or be waiting in line somewhere, and inevitably there would be engaged and respectful conversations on constitutional matters, the economy, social welfare, inequality, child poverty, living wages and more.

I welcome Bermuda engaging in just such a conversation on the question of what would an ideal and sustainable Bermuda be.

In the next issue I will look to outline my own attempts to answer that question – and I hope that this encourages readers to try to answer it themselves and to share their thoughts here.

In closing, an excerpt from Alice in Wonderland:

Alice – Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

The Cheshire Cat – That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice – I don’t much care where.

The Cheshire Cat – Then it doesn’t much matter which way you go.

Alice – So long as I get somewhere.

The Cheshire Cat – Oh, you’re sure to that, if only you walk long enough.

Jonathan Starling is the Executive Director of Greenrock, an organization that is working to empower individuals and companies to do their part in making Bermuda socially, economically and environmentally more sustainable. This article was written in a personal capacity.

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By Jonathan Starling

A “green” workplace is a space that works to minimise its overall ecological footprint. It is, essentially, applying sustainable development to the workplace. Ultimately, the aim of a green workplace is to reduce the overall environmental impact of the workday. It can involve:

• considering sustainability from the earliest stage of designing the workplace;
• retrofitting an existing workplace; or
• focusing on purely behavioural change to be more sustainable in one’s working life.

Not only does this mean the workplace is better for the environment, but it also involves green savings, which leads to benefits for the workplace’s bottom line. For a worker it often leads to a healthier working environment (which also benefits the workplace’s bottom line!). One aspect that is often overlooked, as long as it’s worker driven, is that it can create a sense of belonging, of ownership and empowerment, which can lead to improved work satisfaction.

It can create a sense of belonging, of ownership and empowerment, which can lead to improved work satisfaction”.

Greening the workplace can be daunting when you start out. Just as sustainability is all-encompassing, covering social, economic and ecological aspects, greening the workplace can consider a range of issues, from transport, water, waste, energy, food and more.

The first step to greening the workplace is to make that decision in the first place. This can be worker led or an initiative coming from management, either way it will need a champion, preferably a “green team” to lead it.

The next step is to do some brainstorming about what green ideas you can do. It’s always good to try and hit the low-hanging fruit first to get a sense of momentum.

It can be useful to approach greening the workplace using the same pathways we use in our Eco-Schools Programme, so to focus on a particular aspect of sustainability at any one time.

For instance, you could decide one year to focus just on energy.

Your first step there is going to be to conduct an audit. Ask the questions:

• What are the energy bills?
• What is the lighting like?
• What is the energy efficiency rating for appliances and machines?
• What behaviours are contributing to the energy bill?

That lets you identify what can be done to become more energy sustainable. It helps identify low-hanging fruit as well as long-term goals.

You might find that there’s some simple behavioural changes that can work – office or room not in use? Turn the lights off. Likewise, unplug equipment. Make sure sleep modes are in place. Switch off computers at the end of the day.

Beyond that, can you change the lights over to LEDs? We know that really reduces energy bills – not just in terms of reducing greatly the amount of energy being used for light, but also the amount of energy needed to air conditioning, as LEDs produce a lot less heat energy. Can you install sensors into bathrooms or hallways so that the lights switch off when not in use? Can you introduce a policy, so any new equipment purchases are for the most energy efficient? Can you install solar PV on the building?

And you can apply this to other aspects. If you’re looking at waste, you can provide reusable bags for staff to use for take-out or shopping. You can phase out plastic cutlery or water bottles in the workplace and provide reusable cutlery or bottles. Coffee pods can be a big producer of plastic waste and can be easily replaced with alternative coffee machines. Holding a function? Ban single-use plastics such as straws or water bottles; go for glass or cans. Don’t use balloons.

There really are lots of ways to green the office, make it a healthier and happier place and at the same time reduce the costs to the bottom-line while also reducing the costs to the planet.

And, of course, join Greenrock as a Corporate Supporter and through that attend our Green Building Forums to learn and share from other green workplaces!

Image from Pittsburgh Today.

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“How green can you go?” asks Davida Morris, School Programme Manager for Eco-Schools at Greenrock. As the green movement becomes less of a trend and more of a way of living, the programme continues to gain major traction, challenging how schools are treating the environment and offering guidance through the journey to sustainability.

The programme not only teaches about the costs of unsustainable ways but encourages students to use the power that they have to protect their immediate environment and its future.

To give an idea of its reach, this program was created by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) and is currently implemented in 55 countries, involving 46,000 schools. It’s recognized by the United Nations as a model initiative for Education for Sustainable Development.

This holistic programme is geared to schools with children between the ages of 11 and 21, but encourages everyone to get involved, from teachers to parents, friends and family. “Children are the perfect ambassadors,” says Morris. “Adults have more factors to look at (cost-effectiveness, customs, habits, and comforts, etc.) but children have no biases. They just look at the facts, there’s less of a debate there. They’re just thinking about what’s good for the environment.”

Eco-Schools is divided into 10 different pathways or themes that are followed to sustainability. Schools who have committed to this green philosophy, prepare themselves to take one pathway per year. Focusing on one theme means addressing all of its components, including changing behavior and infrastructure. Schools can choose from the following pathways:

1. Water
2. Biodiversity
3. Transport
4. Energy
5. Healthy Living
6. Waste & Litter
7. Healthy Schools
8. School Grounds
9. Sustainable Food
10. Marine & Coast

Greenrock works with the schools to follow a strict path that, in the end, brings together a robust portfolio showcasing their eco-work. The path looks something like this:

1. Form an eco-club

Greenrock offers to assist in creating a Green Team, a point of contact between the organization and school and a committee that keeps the programme running all year long.

2. Conduct an environmental audit

The Greenrock team comes into the school to help the school answer the questions “Where are we right now with respect to our specific pathway?”

3. Action plan

The action plan engages the territory of what needs to be done to improve the sustainability of the school.

4. Monitor and evaluate

This is done consistently over the course of the program to give the opportunity to see if the action plan is actually working. “It’s not enough to just make a plan. We have to know that it’s working in the real world,” says Morris.

5. Integrate into curriculum

The ideas are not just dumped but integrated to fit well into whatever the teachers are doing. Eco-Schools programme cuts across subjects – not just math and science, but physical education and social studies. It must be evident in two different subjects in two different year groups in the school to be considered for an Eco-School award.

6. Inform and involve

The programme encourages children to share the information with friends, family and the greater community. “We cannot create greater change if the information stays with the individual.”

7. Eco code

Students are tasked with coming up with a way to relate their school’s pathway to the rest of the world. That can look like a school motto, a poem, a song or a rap. For example, Dellwood Middle School came up with “Slam Dunk the Junk,” a motto that illustrates their journey following the waste pathway.

From Somersfield Academy: “We are very happy to have had their support and partnership through this process of becoming Bermuda’s first Green Flag Eco-School. There are eight pathways to choose from locally and Somersfield has chosen to do the Grounds pathway and the Trash and Waste Reduction pathway. “Along the way, we have learned many things about our school community and continue to seek input from our community members to become an even more sustainable place.”

 Bermuda’s schools do not currently have a recognized, integrated environmental education program that promotes long-term, whole-school (students, teachers, parents, community) action for sustainability. According to the Center for Green Schools,a green school can improve student performance and health, while decreasing operational costs and energy demands, protecting the environment.

• Improves students’ mood by feeling a part of their immediate environment.
• Provides an understanding of the costs of continuing in unsustainable ways.
• Involves individuals in successful change, increasing their sense of self-efficacy.
• Instills the desire to take on responsibility for the environment.
• Provides the tools to make the appropriate changes.
• Empowers individuals to take the necessary steps to protect the future.
• Major cost-savings for the schools involved in the programme.

 Once the school has registered and implemented these seven steps it can apply for an Eco-Schools Award. The latest Eco-Schools were presented their awards for the 2017/2018 year on June 13, 2018, at CHUBB.

Green Seed Award (For completion of First Pathway)

 St. David’s Preschool – Biodiversity

Prospect Primary – Water

Port Royal Primary – Healthy Living

Heron Bay Primary – Sustainable Food

Dellwood Middle School – Waste & Litter

Bermuda High School for Girls – Waste & Litter

Kaleidoscope Arts Foundation – Sustainable Food

Green Shoots Award (For Completion of Second Pathway)

 Warwick Academy – Waste & Litter

Look for the Greenrock team at their Eco Expo next Spring, where they introduce students to sustainable living concepts. Greenrock will then be happy to assist your school in forming an Eco-Club and get you on your way to a sustainable future. Email [email protected] for more information.

Greenrock is a registered charity, that focuses on environmental education and wider sustainability issues. They seek to generate debate and to influence people to change their behavior; striving to be catalysts to including sustainable use of resources in decision-making for individuals, governments and businesses.

This article was originally published in the June Edition of the RG Green Pages supplement.

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Unlike anywhere else, Bermudians hold most, if not all the power in their hands, which means that regular cleaning, disinfecting, trimming trees and other shrubbery play a ginormous part in maintaining a quality of water that would fall from the heavens. In recent years, there has been a decline in effort from residents to maintain this standard.

“Although there is a law put in place to clean the tanks, there is no enforcement to ensure that people are actually doing it”, says Jonathan Starling, Executive Director of Greenrock. “We are losing our water conservation best practices and more people need to make investments in water structures at the resident level”.

The Bermuda College course is designed to enhance the knowledge of water specialists and those working in the field, and aims to raise awareness and understanding of the different facets of water quality control and how they interplay among a broad spectrum of private, government and other sectors. Participants invested in water met at Bermuda College earlier this week to discuss myths and facts concerning Bermuda water quality as it pertains to public health.

For $425, businesses and individuals were able to learn about and discuss topics such as water contamination prevention; building practices/codes relating to roof design and rainwater harvesting; water quality measurement; drinking water treatment processes and procedures; introduction to international water quality standards; best practices in integrated water management; and introductory concepts of applied science (as pertaining to the maintenance of Bermuda´s unique water infrastructures).

“People should be cleaning their tanks every two years”. Starling also suggests that Bermuda should look at reducing the feral bird population. “Birds are defecating on the roofs and that slowly makes its way into the tank”. Cleaning water tanks and roofs regularly is a start.

The task can seem daunting, but empowerment starts with knowing your tank and how to take care of it. Firstly, know that you should be checking your tank once a month to make sure that waste there are no unpleasant smells, growths or dirt.

How do I clean my tank?

 Before cleaning, block the drain pipes so that nothing enters the tanks. Screen any vents or overflows to your tank with fine mesh wire to prevent insects from entering.

How often should I clean my water tank?

By law water tanks must be cleaned every six years to remove any accumulation of sludge, however, cleaning every two years is a preventative practice that should become a habit. If the smell of your water is unpleasant, it’s time to get down there and scrub. Dirt and decayed organic matter contained in the sludge can promote stagnation of the water and come out with foul smells.

How often should I disinfect my water tank?

Every 3 months, disinfect the tank supply using 2 – 4 ounces of regular unscented bleach for every 1000 gallons of water. To determine your tank’s capacity, in gallons, multiply the tank length x tank width x tank depth x 6.25.

How do I aerate my water?

Aerate the water if there has been very little turnover or it has a bad smell. You can do this by running your garden hose to the top of the roof and allowing the water to drain back into the tank. This procedure may require at least a few hours to complete for ample turnover. The water must first be chlorinated before starting the aeration process for maximum effectiveness on stagnant water.

Tip:  When purchasing water, it’s important to only buy enough to fill your tank to the halfway point. This will leave enough space for rainwater collection and avoid overflowing.

 What about my roof?

 Keep the roof clean and painted. You can rent eco-friendly power-washers from Bermuda Cleaning Ltd or any other rental shop. Eco-friendly products and hot water are key to disinfecting surfaces and eliminating stains with no adverse environmental effects. Before cleaning or painting your roof, make sure to block all drain pipes so that nothing enters the tank.

How do I clean my roof?

To clean the roof, power wash or use a wire brush to remove old paint and fungal growth. Before applying paint, wash the roof with a 50/50 solution of regular unscented household bleach and water and then apply an approved roof catchment paint. Do not remove the drain plugs until the paint has dried and until after the first rain shower. Trim any overhanging trees to prevent leaves from entering your tank. Use wire “pineapples” on gutter pipes to block the entry of leaves. They will require periodic cleaning to remove clogged debris.

Bermuda, unlike many places around the world, requires some special attention to maintain its reputation for water conservation – one of the many things for which Bermudians can be proud.  Institutions such as Bermuda College and Greenrock are sharing their knowledge to contribute to the conversation on sustainability. If you missed the first workshop, according to their Facebook page, the Bermuda College plans to run a second course in the Fall. For more information call 236-9000 or email [email protected].

This article was originally published in the June Edition of the RG Green Pages supplement.

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Since the settlers came to Bermuda, the rainwater catchment system has been in place. First-flush diverter devices (that remove the unwanted matter getting into the tank) can be seen since Ancient times around the world. Rainwater collected while using a first-flush system enhances the quality of drinking water and considerably reduces water borne diseases.

A first-flush diverter is a simple contraption that diverts the first flow of water away from a rainwater catchment system. The first pass of water in any storm essentially washes your roof of all the sediments that have collected since the last rain. The idea is that diverting the first flush can help ensure cleaner water in the tank. Water diverters improve water quality, reduce tank maintenance and protect pumps by preventing the first flush of water, which may contain contaminants from the roof, from entering the tank.

These systems also protect rainwater pumps and internal household appliances such as clothes washing machines, toilets and hot water systems.

Many experts criticize the extra attention that it takes for these systems to run smoothly, but some devices use a dependable ball and seat system – a simple automatic system that does not rely on mechanical parts or manual intervention. As the water level rises in the diverter chamber, the ball floats, and once the chamber is full, the ball rests on a seat inside the diverter chamber preventing any further water entering the diverter. The subsequent flow of water is then automatically directed along the pipe system to the tank.

Features and Benefits

•  Prevents sediment, bird droppings, spiders, insects, mosquito eggs and debris from entering the tank.
• Improves water quality, protects pumps and internal appliances.
• Ideal to use in conjunction with a rain head.
• Easy installation.
• No mechanical parts.
• Low maintenance requirements.
• Cost-effective.

How do they work?

When it rains, water slowly builds up in the roof guttering system before it exits through the downpipe. The first flush of water from the roof can contain amounts of bacteria from decomposed insects, bird and animal droppings. It may also contain sediments, water borne heavy metals and chemical residues, all of which are undesirable elements to have in a water storage system.

Instead of flowing to the water tank, these pollutants are diverted with the initial flow of water into the chamber of the water diverter.

For a water diverter to work effectively, the contaminated water in the chamber must be sealed off. This prevents the water passing to the storage tank and ensure the water does not carry off the contaminated water in the chamber. The simplest and surest way to do this is with a floating ball and seat. A slow release valve ensures the chamber empties itself after rain and resets automatically.

For those in Bermuda that use the rain catchment system (and that’s just about everybody) these are the types of ideas that we should continue to keep in the conversation of sustainability and general public health. To chat with Greenrock about other good ideas or learn more about the issues that are affecting our island environmentally, contact them at [email protected].

This article was originally published in the June Edition of the RG Green Pages supplement.

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