Iris

What a week, What an amount of unique experiences! Sitting in the train I think back at all the things we have done this week and I think I can say that I had a real Texel experience. I finally had my real Texel bear, survived biking through the storm, have seen the lighthouse and the beaches at the tip of the island. But the thing that I think I always will remember is the meat excursion Borris…

The Zelfpluktuin on Texel is a farm that grows soft fruits that are harvested by the consumers themselves. This 20 year old initiative is a rather popular attraction for both tourists and local inhabitants. The direct connection of producer with its customers eliminates overhead costs, such as trading and transport, that would make the business less profitable. The local consumption makes the…

7.1 Initial Plans After coming to Texel we proposed our plan to improve Texel and make it self – sustainable and self – sufficient. A part of our plan was to propose a movable dyke which could retract in and out to allow sea water to enter in. This would make the land a floodplain that could have been used as a saline agricultural research laboratory. This proposal would involve making a certain…

A transition will take place in the agricultural sector. In order to keep the sector should profitable more income should be generated, without harming the environment.Action should be taken with respect to the landscape. Locally produced food and organic farming are the two main focus points. The agriculture should shift from bulk products to more high-end products, like delicacies.  3.1      …

The entire sustainability map of Texel can be identified from different perspectives. In this chapter everything will be with respect and from the perspective of the Food and More sub – system (SS). All of the points mentioned below are possible expectations and possibility of these to be successful outcomes completely depends on the feasibility of the concept.   6.1 Materials and Waste…

Windmills run on subsidies instead of on wind, is one of the remarkable statements of our Prime Minister Mark Rutte during election campaign. In the discussion on sustainable energy costs and subsidies are returning arguments. Wind farms are expensive, solar panels are expensive, subsidy is expensive, are statements that are commonly made. That windmills only cost money is of course emphasized by…

Dog s. You love them or you don’t. I think I belong to the second category. A few days ago I was on traveling by train and I wanted to get off, but a really ugly dog was standing in the way barking at me. Why I don’t know. Maybe  jealous that I was able to get out and he wasn’t. Luckily the owner could stop the dog otherwise he would have attacked me. That is one of the reasons I don’t like dogs.

The first step in achieving change is by changing the mind – set of people. Any change that effects culture, traditions and religious beliefs even slightly is resented. Change can start by inspiring people. Change that gives a monetary benefit is an added incentive. Having a positive outlook is also a bonus in achieving change. This is a difficult process to achieve if not planned out properly

Hoe is het idee van Saline agriculture ontstaan? Om de mensheid te kunnen voorzien van voedsel is steeds meer landbouwareaal nodig. In de onlangs verschenen documentaire ‘Vlees, wat kost het ons?’ wordt duidelijk gemaakt dat het geschikt maken van land als landbouwgebied ten koste gaat van de natuur. Daarnaast is wereldwijd te zien dat verzilting van landbouwareaal een probleem wordt. De…

Uit je eigen stad, Rotterdam Wat is het concept achter Uit je eigen stad? Samen Bas de Groot en Johan Bosman heeft Huibert de Leede in 2012 het initiatief uit je eigen stad gerealiseerd. Uit je eigen stad is een stadsboerderij gevestigd aan het Rotterdamse Marconiplein. Op twee hectare grond en in een grote loods worden groente, fruit en paddenstoelen verbouwd. Daarnaast worden er kippen gehouden…

De agrarische sector is een heel belangrijke peiler voor de Texelse economie en dat willen we graag zo houden. In het algemeen wordt de agrariër, of boer zoals u wilt, gezien als een  hardwerkende moderne ondernemer . Deze ondernemers letten op hun bedrijfseconomische omstandigheden maar net zoveel op hun  omgeving . Het land waarop zij gewassen laten groeien en/of hun vee houden moet namelijk in…

Were to make the changes? 

  The subsystem ‘Food and More’ encompasses everything to do with types of food, the distribution of this food and the effects these actions have on the ecosystem. 4.1 Present scenario Presently, Texel earns its maximum revenue from the food sector with a turnover of about 30 million Euros. This is due to the fact that there has been considerable field enlargement and land consolidation since the…

Do you like a piece of meat for dinner? I do! A delicious and tender piece of beef or crispy fried chicken, I like it. And with me many others.   World meat production has quadrupled in the past 50 years and farmed animals now outnumber people by more than three to one. In other words, livestock are being bred into existence faster than the human population. Growing production of animal products…

Do you know the feeling of looking at pictures of food you already smell it and really want to taste it. You get immediately hungry. I know that feeling very well! My group mates and I are looking for a more sustainable way of food production and consumption on Texel. We are investigating which food is common on the island right now and which kind of food would be the best for Texel. We are…

2.1 The current sociotechnical sub-system and its functions The sub system agriculture has a productive aspect, i.e. farms and a consumptive aspect, such as restaurants, hotels and deli shops. The producing category consists of dairy farms, sheep farms, agriculture, horticulture and flower bulb production. The production is for the islands own use, but also for export, since products from Texel…

Not only in the Netherlands, but throughout all the countries in Europe plays sustainability an increasingly important role. Not only is this reflected in the European regulations, this is also shown by the interest of European student. Last week a large number of students from various technical universities throughout Europe come together for the ATHENS program in Budapest to learn more about…

‘Food and More’ is the sub system that is researched in this chapter. Food is a very wide domain of research in which two main divisions can be made. The first division is the production side. We will investigate what role food production plays in the socio-technical system of Texel. The other side is consumption. The people on the island need to feed themselves and we are investigating what…

With 36 students of the Technical university of Delft from different faculties and different countries we are invited to design a more sustainable Texel. When hearing the assignment everyone was immediately eager. All the engineers in the making were super excited and immediately wanted to start designing innovations and sustainable adjustments for the island. You might think wow that’s a unique…