Unity, not pollution, was in the air as we entered our eighth annual Green Week here at Stride Treglown.
In correspondence with EU Green Week we gathered for a week of cultural and sustainable insight. With the theme ‘green cities for a greener future’, events ranged from activities inspired by our continental counterparts, to simple changes in what we eat, travel and do. Blessed with sunny skies, it was a week of eye opening, eco-friendly fun.
Here are the highlights from across the practice, Twitter style…
Busy bees
Down in Plymouth and Truro, activities took place in honour of our favourite honey-making friend. The Truro team visited sustainable design firm Green & Blue to hear about their bee boxes, whilst Plymouth spent their time assembling a hotel for bees.
Embracing new technology
A visit from BMW on Monday saw the Bristol office gather outside for an exclusive talk on their latest hybrid, the stunning BMWi8. Progressive in design and energy consumption, BMW are proof that even high performance cars can be designed with sustainability in mind. The innovations in these high-end models are now beginning to appear in many more of their cars. Props off to Germany for their pioneering approach to design.
Tesla also dropped by our Cardiff office to show off their latest product, the Model X. With autopilot technology, some of us even got the chance to take it for a spin; hands on the wheel of course!
Putting the art into ar(t)chitect
Inspired by street art in Bordeaux, Tuesday in Bristol included a self-expressive art workshop. Posed with the question ‘what does going green mean to you?’, we gathered on the lawn to visualise ideas for a sustainable future. Penciless, we think our architects fared pretty well with a paintbrush.
Lending a hand in the sand
Like much of Britain, the Cornish coast is no exception when it comes to littering. Bin bags at the ready, our team in Truro headed out to Perranporth beach to restore this stretch of sand back to its natural state of beauty.
Wheelie sustainable travel
No green week would be complete without our trusty bikes. Plymouth led the way with a cycling excursion to Looe for coffee and cake, whilst a visit from Dr Bike brought a bit of TLC to Bath. Our Manchester office even took a travel survey, with most people using public transport, walking or cycling to work that day- result!
Learning from the best
Keen to hear from the experts, guest speakers took part in lots of our events. In Bath, we had counsellor Mark Shelford (the B&NES Cabinet Member for Sustainability) in to discuss how this historic town is going green. Elsewhere, sustainability consultant to IKEA, Jessica Ferrow, shared with Bristol all the incredible steps this Swedish company are taking to reduce their environmental footprint.
https://twitter.com/helenmelon100/status/999310088862134272
And finally… FOOD
Of course, the main attraction of the week was food. In Manchester, we had a fantastic meal at Real Junk Food, a restaurant that intercepts food before it hits landfill, transforming it into yummy food. In Bath, a continental picnic was enjoyed on the lawn and ‘fika’ took place in the newly opened Café Create in Bristol. We even ditched the Cornish pasties and went vegan in Truro.
Education was at the forefront of Green Week this year. Exploring other European cities has taught us a lot, but we’ve also had an insight into sustainable practices gaining momentum across the UK. With a huge way to go, we understand going green isn’t an overnight solution, but a transformation of how each and every one of us lead our lives. Only by learning from each other and working together can we hope to reach a future that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable.
Today may be about Europe, but tomorrow is about the world.