Article

Introduction

Texel is an island in the north of Netherlands which is the largest and most populated among the Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea. A lot of tourists of different ages visit the island every year for its nature, its character and the different activities offered. The island is the base of various researches about the environment and the different animal species. The Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ) carries out research on oceanography all over the oceans and the Ecomarine museum of nature (Ecomare) provides information and education for the protection of the Wadden and North Sea. Most importantly, Texel is the first island that aims to be self-supported, which means that it will create a closed-loop system where no energy will be needed from the mainland.

The program of 'Texel 2020', which wants the island to be 100% self-supported, has been introduced by the municipality, but the inhabitants are mostly not informed about this progress. As a scenario is quite unrealistic, but a lot of effort is being put towards this direction. However, the inhabitants are not willing to change and thus some changes have to be made in order to inform people about the reasons we should all be more sustainable. The people should share the same goals with the municipality in order to progress and develop an innovative program, such as 'Texel 2020'. To do so they must acknowledge all the benefits.