Cramer: Youngsters have different outlook on environment
The topic ‘sustainability’ has become more natural among students, Jacqueline Cramer, environment-minister says. ‘Fanatical environment-people can be found everywhere in the political spectrum.
Greenovator Tour
Minister Cramer travels from college to college with her ‘Greenovator Tour’. She tries to stimulate the sustainable attempts and steps amongst students and graduated students by putting the limelight on ‘green’ ideas and connecting them. ‘We offer a platform and a website where people interested in sustainability and innovation can start a ‘community’. But we also invite old-timers who can tell an inspiring story’.
New generation
She says to be pleasantly surprised by the enthusiasm of students, who have a different outlook on environmental problems than earlier generations had. In the 70’s, when Cramer studied Biology herself, it was mostly anxious scientists who put the environment on the agenda. But this topic was too abstract for most of the Dutchmen in that time.
Individuals
According to Cramer, who taught at the University of Amsterdam and the Erasmus University, sustainability is more common for youngsters than it was for her own generation. ‘We notice that many students and employees want to take sustainability into account within work or study, but not via a political party or environmental movement. Youngsters are more individualistic these days. They sympathize and they shop and are more often in a web than in a political party or movement. We try to fit with that’.
Sustainability involves all studies
The Greenovator Tour already passed the Technical University in Delft, the HAN and the University of Amsterdam. She objects that those evenings are only interesting for students of technical studies. ‘Thinking about sustainability has become this advanced that practically every field of study has something to do with it.’
Dutch sustainability
Even a study like History could contribute in sustainable development. ‘We can learn a lot from the Dutch history, about how we controlled the water and were capable to create land with our own hands. That is a good thing to know, now the climate changes and the sea level rises. We have to make sure that Holland makes another big jump towards sustainability, because we won’t get there with only polders and Delta works, this time.’
New ideas and proposals
The minister is curious about the research results of the National ‘Denktank’(translated: think-tank). The goal of the Cabinet is to save twenty per cent energy in 2020. The twenty-one students and research trainees who are part of the Denktank, think this goal can only be achieved when also consumers (together responsible for a quarter of all energy consumption) do anything to change their behaviour. In the end of November, Cramer and the Lower Chamber want to make a ‘shortlist’ with measures needed to achieve the goals. ‘If the students in the Denktank finish their jobs in November, we can still bring along their ideas. It would be nice if they come up with proposals we didn’t think of yet.’
HOP
