Not only in the Netherlands, but throughout all the countries in Europe plays sustainability an increasingly important role. Not only is this reflected in the European regulations, this is also shown by the interest of European student. Last week a large number of students from various technical universities throughout Europe come together for the ATHENS program in Budapest to learn more about sustainability.
A total of 90 students participated in three different courses in Budapest. I was one of these students that participated in this ATHENS program. Last week I followed a one week course at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics about sustainable reconstruction of historic buildings. The existing building stock is one of the biggest problems in the field of energy loss throughout Europe. In groups of 6 students we had to design a sustainable reconstruction plan for one of the many old historic building in Budapest. In this building one of the most famous Hungarian glass artist, Miksa Roth, used to have his workshop place. Within the group , each student had its own background and idea of sustainability. After several lectures, site visits and many discussions we came together to a plan for this building on how to insulate, how to cool and heat the building and how to construct this. With the new function of an impact hub, a working space for young entrepreneurs and a fablab, we brought a total new concept to Hungarian. After evaluation our group was elected by the students groups as the best plan for this building.
By participating in this course, through the lectures and the many discussions I discovered that the Netherlands is not so bad in the area of sustainability. Especially Northern countries, like the Netherlands and Germany are seen as examples in the field of sustainability. But even I, the only Dutch girl, in this course have learned new things in the field of sustainability during this short week. It was really interesting to get to know so many students with different backgrounds who are all interested in sustainability. I really hope all these young people will bring Europe a more sustainable future together.
