SUSTAINABILITY  

Forests return to Iceland

If you lived in Iceland 100 years ago, you’d probably never seen a tree in real life. They had all been chopped down by the Vikings who settled the previously unpopulated land starting in the 9th century. But more recently, the country known for its rocky, otherworldly landscapes has been trying to bring back its long-lost forests. Progress has been slow for a number of reasons: Iceland’s weak soil is low in nitrogen, which means trees take a long time to mature, and its cooler temperatures also present a challenge for tree growth. But recent data show Iceland’s tree-cultivating efforts are paying off. Today, forests and shrubs take up six times the amount of surface area than they did in 1990, when the country stepped up its reforestation efforts, according to the Icelandic Forestry Association. Thanks to the millions of seedlings planted each year, forest cover now stretches across 2% of Iceland. Reforestation has a number of potential benefits for Iceland, ranging from improving its soil quality (and benefiting farmers in turn) to helping to ward off sandstorms and offsetting some of the country’s carbon emissions.

INNOVATION

Funding founders

There is an Orca in the industrial kitchen of Lettice Events’ headquarters in Kennington. No, not the whale — this Orca is a boxy stainless steel beast that can “digest” up to 163 kg of food waste every day, reducing it all into a dark brown liquid that can be used as fertiliser or to create renewable energy. The Orca was introduced to the event company’s industrial kitchen this year as part of a renewed effort to tackle food waste. When it comes to food waste, catered events are a particularly guilty party — research shows that the average event wastes between 15-20% of the food it produces. Lettice has a history of using seasonal, local produce wherever possible in its catering menus, but committing themselves to a more sustainable means of working meant prioritising the use of such produce. It meant looking at each ingredient and figuring out how to make the most of it, what to do with the byproducts, and doing it at scale. As part of its initiative to create less waste in the kitchen, Lettice works closely with clients to design their menus with them. While Lettice might be in the minority of event companies that are actively pushing for more sustainability, their presence in the space is hugely important. The government is already seeking ways to reduce food waste among companies as part of its Food Strategy, so pivoting to greener business practices is both a sensible and responsible approach for every company.

THE LOW DOWN

• Cheetahs to return to India after 70 years
• First bill written by children on climate education
• Chinese court rules bitcoin mining harms the climate
• Protesters in UK decry climate change after record heatwave
• DRC to auction oil and gas permits in endangered gorilla habitat
• Massachusetts set to enable citizens to give climate finance to vulnerable nations

#ShowerThoughts

• Most people have only touched frozen metal.
• A lazy person probably says that they're busy more than an actually busy person does.
• You can hear things better with subtitles turned on.
• Humans make fun of cats for liking boxes so much, but humans spent 2/3 of their life in boxes.
• People who lack self-awareness are probably happier and they are not even aware of that.
  
  r/Showerthoughts

#RiddleMeThis

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