Short survey for SINC

8 March 2016 by IM Posted in events, issue, News Leave a comment

Dear everybody,

Together with the City of Lugano and Aziende Industriali di Lugano (AIL) SA, SINC is starting a project about tap water.

Thus, we invite you to take a short survey and to complete it by March 13.

https://usi.eu.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_06UYdscCV3mMYzX

It should take only 10 minutes and when completing it, you have the possibility to enter a contest to win some prizes.

—————————————————————————–

Cari amici di SINC,

In collaborazione con La Città di Lugano e le Aziende Industriali di Lugano (AIL) SA, SINC ha dato il via ad un progetto sull’acqua del rubinetto.

Vi invitiamo dunque a rispondere ad un breve sondaggio riguardante questo tema entro il 13 marzo.

https://usi.eu.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_06UYdscCV3mMYzX

Il tempo stimato di risposta è di 10 minuti. Completando il questionario, potrete partecipare ad un concorso e vincere diversi premi.

Every Drop counts

1 March 2016 by IM Posted in events, issue, projects, sustainability Leave a comment

Almost everyone knows that water is a limited resource, but we still continue to avoid the topic. Are we aware of how much water one person needs for drinking, cooking, or cleaning?

Here are some facts about water, that you maybe didn’t know:

A person needs about 20 – 50 litres a day for drinking, cooking and cleaning according to the UN.

We have only 1% fresh water on Earth, and all 7 BILLION people must share this 1% water.

The United States has the biggest Water Footprint (2483 m3/capita/year).

Everyday 132 litres water are used for Garden Hose/ Sprinkler, followed by 125 litres water for Power Shower (under 5 minutes).

128 litres water per year are wasted, if you have a dripping faucet (1 drop per minute).

To produce one kilo of rice – it takes 1000 – 3000 litres of water.

For 1 chicken – 44 litres of water are used.

A person taking a 5 minute shower in a developed country uses more water than a person living in a slum in a developing country uses in a day.

Americans use 5 times more water than Europeans do.

More people have a mobile phone than a toilet.

So there is one conclusion to make: Every Drop counts !

Tips on reducing your footprint

24 February 2016 by IM Posted in buying wisely, issue, projects, sustainability Leave a comment

Dear USI Students,

as we are a big family, we wanted to give you ten tips on how to reduce your footprint.

Join a Sustainable Student Organization or in our case just create a sustainable student organization (for serious considerations: please contact SINC).
Study Sustainability: just attend a sustainable course or if you have any ideas of sustainable projects -> Let us know!!
Conserve Electricity: If you happen to take a break of Facebook or Twitter, just shut down your laptop or if you live in a dorm, make sure to use LED lights.
Reusable water bottles: One of our biggest enemies: PLASTIC. There are so many reasons, why you should not use plastic bottles anymore. There are only benefits at using reusable water bottles. Besides Mother Nature will be grateful for that.
Second Hand Shops: Don´t be shy to enter in a Second Hand Shop, we are sure you will find something interesting. Macklemore has even wrote a song about Second Hand Shops
Textbooks: Please don´t start a bonfire with your Textbooks, you can sell them to other students and earn some money.
Remain Digital: If you really don´t like books, there is an option: Digital Textbooks. Of course there is also a benefit: Reduction of paper.
Ditch the Car: At the main entrance of the University there are rental bikes, but if you happen to live far away, just take the bus or create a carpool.
Buy Locally: We have to support local restaurants, farms etc
Swap Party: Meet up for Swap Parties, just share clothes, DVD´s, books you don´t need.

How much water do you eat on a daily basis?

16 February 2016 by IM Posted in buying wisely, issue, sustainability Leave a comment

Did you know that you are eating daily 3496 liters of water? And by eating I mean literally eating.

There is the visible part of our water consumption: that would be drinking, cooking, washing and the total consumption amounts 137 liters/ day.

And then there is the invisible part:

The water used for production of industrial products that we use for example for cotton, clothes and paper; this part makes 167 liters/ day
The production of food that we eat: amounts 3496 liters/day. It means that 92% of water we use is hidden in our food (=VIRTUAL WATER)

Beef production

Let´s take the beef production, it takes an average of 3 years before the animal is slaughtered. One cow makes about 200 kg boneless beef. In three years about 3 091 000 liters of water is needed for the cow including the food, drinking water, servicing farm house and slaughtering process.

That means: 1kg beef= 15400 liters of water

Improvement:

But there is an improvement, the environmental footprint of beef is shrinking due to improvements in raising cattle on grass pasture. Many farmers and ranchers are using new technologies and implementing ways to conserve water.

Almonds:

For one nut 1 gallon (3,8 liters) of water is needed, which sounds wasteful.

Brad Gleason, president of West Hill Farm Services, is a almond and pistachios farmer in California. His statement to the water consumption of almonds: „Drive across the expanse of farmland around us and you´ll be hard pressed to find a puddle. That´s not because of the lack of rain. That´s because of the efficiency of irrigation. Out here, every gallon of water is measured from ditch to drip line.“

To compare:

Beef: 1kg= 15400 liters of water

Goat: 1kg= 960 liters of water

Sheep: 1kg=1462 liters of water

Pork: 1 kg= 1152 liters of water

chicken: 1 kg= 936 liters of water

Beer: 1 gallon (3,8 liters) = 2608 liters of water

Coffee: 1 gallon (3,8 liters) = 3331 liters of water

Tea: 1 gallon (3,8 liters) = 485 liters of water

Wheat: 1 kg= 1000 liters of water

Rice: 1 kg= 3400 liters of water

Potato: 1 kg= 900 liters of water

Cotton: 1 T-shirt = 2700 liters of water

Chocolate: 1 kg= 24.000 liters of water

Cheese: 1 kg= 4546 liters of water

Bread: 1 slice= 40 liters of water

Burger: 0,15 burger= 2500 liters of water

Online Ethical Fashion Store

3 February 2016 by IM Posted in buying wisely, sustainability Leave a comment

How can I trust the brands? Are the clothes I buy ethically made and match my style?

You may ask yourself where to shop to still be fashion while respecting the environment, animals and human beings. The minimalist vegan blog made a list of ethical fashion stores from which you can buy online.

From ecofriendly fashion to organic clothing and vegan shoes, read the article and discover the 10 online ethical fashion stores that help you live more consciously.

http://theminimalistvegan.com/ethical-fashion-stores/