Thinking global, eating local

For one week now, my parents and I have been trying to eat only stuff that is made within 50 km of Freiburg, where we live. The pictures shows both of them getting interviewed by our local radio station SWR. The project has generated some media attention already. Note the rabbit collection in the background.

That sounds funny but has a very serious background: We produce a lot of CO2 not only by driving around in our cars or by travelling, but also by the stuff we eat. Lots of our foodstuff is grown or processed in distant places. And that does not only extend to the obvious stuff like coffee or chocolate, bananas or Kiwis, but by a lot of other food like pasta or bread.

You get into talking with other people a lot, nothing is such a good topic then food. When you go into shopping places and ask around for stuff that is grown here in the region. Farmers markets, such as the one in Stühlinger or at Freiburgs Cathedral square work very well, but supermarkets are awful for getting local stuff. Despite getting to talk with lots of people, you are  thinking more about what you eat and where you get it from. „Thinking global, eating local“ weiterlesen

Remarks welcoming the Korean Students to Freiburg

Remarks welcoming the Korean Students to Freiburg

12.08.2009 9:30 Rathaus Aula

Welcome to green city, I have prepared some remarks and hope to tell you about our city a little

Scientific analysis has shown that ¾ of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of the city of Freiburg are caused by the energy sector and approximately ¼ by the traffic.

In 1996 the city council of Freiburg passed a resolution to reduce the CO2 emissions by 25% of the 1992 level by the year 2010, obviously we have not reached that target, so we passed an even more ambitious plan: in 2007 the we defined a new very ambitious long-term reduction–goal for 2030 by 40 %. A recent evaluation for the year 2005 led to the result, that Freiburg reduced its CO2-emmissions by  7.3 % in all and by 13 % per capita.

„Remarks welcoming the Korean Students to Freiburg“ weiterlesen

Sebastian @ICLEI Worldcongress

ICLEI hat mich gebeten zu ihrem World Congress nach Edmonton zu fahren und dort beim Young Municipal Leaders Gathering dabei zu sein.

Über die Initiative heißt es:

Young Municipal Leaders

The initiative aims to create a world-wide network of young mayors, city council members and other activists involved in local decision making, e.g. within a party or as a leader of an engaged youth group. „Sebastian @ICLEI Worldcongress“ weiterlesen