Sustainability-Live

Why do we focus on sustainability?

Dear visitor of this page,

This year, one of the goals of the board was to create a more sustainable and conscious mindset throughout the association. We share the opinion that it is an important part of the professionalization of an organization nowadays, so we could not be missing out!

We can see a very clear shift during the planning of our events. Our committee members keep surprising us! During these meetings, waste has become a new point of discussion. Do we already have something we can use for this idea? Can we make it ourselves? Do we actually think something adds value to our event?
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We are very proud of our members and what they have done so far, and will be achieving! Therefore, we made this page to keep you up to date. Hopefully, you will find here some inspiration as well!

Love,

The Board of 2022 - 2023

Meet the Sustainability Officer

Hello everyone!

As you perhaps have already seen or heard, my name is Babette van den Berg and I will be the Sustainability Officer of POLIS this year :)

I feel like almost everyone can feel a certain pressure to become more aware about the environment and be thoughtful about what (not) to do/eat/buy/etc. While we as individuals only have limited influence, there are many little things we can do to make the world a bit greener. As the Sustainability Officer, I will help POLIS and its members with becoming more sustainable. One of my tasks is to brainstorm with committees and come up with concrete ideas on how they can make their events as sustainable as possible. In order to broaden my knowledge and to execute my function to the best of my abilities, I will follow a course from the United Nations about sustainability.
Additionally, I will update this column on the POLIS sustainability page regularly. With this column, I will write about various subjects regarding sustainability. This column will entail sustainability tips and tricks we can incorporate in our everyday lives, like useful apps or instagram pages. In addition, I will write about veggie or vegan seasonal recipes, reviews of books and series/movies or my own experiences with trying to become more sustainable.

I hope you’ll have a look at this page once in a while and maybe even learn something or get inspired yourself!

Lots of love, Babette

November Blog

Hey guys!
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For my first ‘real’ blog, I wanted to write a bit about some sustainable practices I have encountered in the last few weeks. Perhaps some of you noticed, but from the 31st of October to the 6th of November it was the National Climate Week in the Netherlands. During this week, special attention was given to what everybody, such as companies, citizens and the government, can do to reduce their CO₂ footprint. People could sign up as ‘Klimaat Burgemeester’ (Climate Mayor) or ‘Klimaat Supporter’ (Climate Supporter). As such they got the opportunity to ask questions to and have a conversation with Rob Jetten, the Dutch Minister of Climate and Energy. During the week, several events were held all over the Netherlands with the aim to inform and inspire people to reduce their CO₂footprint and help the environment.
Something particular that stood out to me during this week was a Dutch article written by ‘de Volkskrant’. While most articles praised the Climate Week, the Volkskrant was very critical. They gave some very interesting insights into how Climate Week might not be as progressive or good as we might think of it to be. I will not summarize the whole article, but if you want to read it, you can click on the link below! The main point the author made was that weeks like this turn global crises, i.e. wicked problems, into some sort of ‘temporary’ charity goals. These cannot and do not stress the real urgency of the situation. The National Climate Week will end, but climate change will remain. Should we not care about the climate every week of the year? Maybe some food for thought, and definitely worth a look!
Something else that stood out to me in the last couple of weeks was here in Tilburg at the LocHal. The LocHal currently has two expositions that focus on sustainability, namely the “Stadkas013” and “Expositie Stad = Natuur”. Stadskas013 is a little green oasis on the third floor of the building. It is mostly about what inhabitants of Tilburg can do themselves to create a greener city, house, garden or street. There is information about composting, circularity and food for example. I think it is easy to implement some of these recommendations into your own life. The exposition City = Nature concerns the balance between people and nature, but from an artist and architect perspective. If you happen to be at the LocHal, I would definitely advise you to take a look! The Stadskas013 will be there until the 31st of December and Stad = Natuur will be there until the 20th of November.

Until next time!

Lots of love, Babette

‍https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/hartelijke-klimaatweek-iedereen-alsof-de-klimaatramp-een-goed-doel-is~b055bcfd/?referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ecosia.org%2F
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January Blog

Hello everyone!

Firstly, of course, Happy New Year!

The new year often comes with New Year's Resolutions. As the Sustainability Officer, I want everyone to be as sustainable as possible in 2023. However, New Year’s Resolutions can be a little difficult to adapt to. Especially, resolutions regarding sustainability, since these can be expensive and most students are limited in what they can do. Therefore, I did some research and picked two student-friendly tips on how to live more sustainably, which can (hopefully) be easily adapted to your daily schedule.

I think we all know the basic “lower the temperature of your heating system”, “try to eat more plant-based products” and “shower for a shorter amount of time”. While these are of course also very important/useful tips, I don’t think I’ll need to explain these further.

The first tip that I found is to shop more locally and more seasonally. This has many benefits to the environment, to the local community, to your health, and to your wallet. There is not necessarily an exact definition of “local”, but a good starting point could be to buy products that mostly originate from Europe. Shopping locally also often includes shopping seasonally. The benefits of this are that products do not need to be flown over from another continent, or that they do not need many extra chemicals or energy to be produced (like heating in greenhouses). A nice bonus is that local and seasonal products tend to be cheaper.

Tilburg has quite a few markets where you can buy vegetables, cheese, bread, and many other things. I listed them down below. They are definitely worth checking out!

Wednesday: 09:00 - 12:00 Besterdplein

Thursday: 09:00 - 12:00 Westermarkt

13:00 - 17:00 Shoppingmall Heyhoef (ReesHof)

Friday 09:00 - 12:00 Koningsplein

11:00 - 17:00 Wagnerplein

Saturday 10:00 - 16:30 Koningsplein

My second tip for 2023 is to start voting in the elections, if you don’t do so already. With your vote, you can influence the decisions of the government that concern the environment. In 2023, Dutch citizens can vote for the Provinciale Staten (provincial states) and the Waterschapsverkiezingen (water boards/water authorities; they take care of water management in the Netherlands). Both the Provinciale Staten and the Waterschappen play an important role in matters such as the energy transition. Provinces are often responsible for setting up windmill parks, solar panel parks and providing subsidies. The provincial states are also the main authorities that execute policies regarding nitrogen, and are thus important for the nitrogen crisis that is currently going on in the Netherlands. The Waterschappen play a role in the energy transition as they own the ground on which windmills can be placed (for example in the sea). The role of the Waterschappen in water management also becomes increasingly important due to the rising sea levels and more extreme weather.

It’s also important to note that every election is important! For now, I just focused on the ones in the Netherlands in 2023, but it’s relevant to all elections in all countries.

These are my tips for 2023, I hope they were helpful!!

Until next time,

Babette

https://www.duurzaamnieuws.nl/kieshulpen-en-stemwijzers-provinciale-staten-verkiezingen/ https://www.duurzaamnieuws.nl/stemwijzers-waterschapsverkiezingen/

What does POLIS do to stay green?

Our summaries went paperless this year! A great addition to saving paper is that online summaries made it possible for us to make them free for all our members.
The food that was left after our lustrum weekend was picked up by an organization that could divide the food over the lesser fortunate in the area.
The Theme Party Committee was able to reuse all the decorations they bought so far. Reusing decorations is something we try to do within every committee.
The Promo Committee didn't print any cantus booklets, but instead showed the lyrics on the TV screens in the Boekanier. This saved 2.400 pages of paper!
For their first event, the Food Committee asked all participants to bring containers to bring the leftover food home to enjoy a second time. Secondly, FoodCie went vegetarian this year! The committee has organized two vegetarian meals so far and is busy planning the third. During the week without meat they also did not sit still! More about that on the bottom of the page.
The FoodCie wasn't the only committee that went vegetarian this year, during the Business Dinner from the Master Committee Auberge du Bonheur served several vegetarian courses.
On the 26th of April, the Community Committee organized the first sustainability event! The event started of with a workshop on how you can make your daily life more sustainable. After that, the committee organized a do-it-yourself tutorial on how to recycle glass bottles to make a self-watering planter out of it. Come see how the flowers are growing at the POLIS room!
The Excursion Committee took us to Ghent this year, where the municipality organized a case for us regarding the sustainability of the city.

Week Without Meat 2021/2022

In this column, we will be highlighting the most interesting things our committees have done for sustainability. The kick off is presented by the Food Committee! During the week without meat, 7th till 13th of March 2022, every committee member cooked their favourite vegetarian dish and shared it on FoodCie's own Instagram account (@foodcie22_23). Try them out yourself!

On Monday Julia made:

Satay Sweet Potato Curry
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Ingredients (for 4 people):
1 tbsp oil
1 big onion, chopped
Garlic and ginger as much as your hart desires, grated (but I recommend 3 gloves of garlic and a thumb-sized piece of garlic)
3 tbsp Thai red curry paste
1 tbsp peanut butter, preferably 100% peanut
500g peeled and diced sweet potato
400ml can coconut milk
200ml water
600g fresh spinach
1 lime, juiced (and zest)
Cashews, roasted
Serve with rice or naan bread

Method:
1. Warm oil in a saucepan or a wok. When the oil is warm, soften the chopped onion. When the onion is soft add the grated garlic and ginger until they start smelling nice.
2. Then add 3 tbsp of the Thai red curry paste and bake for a minute. Add the tbsp of peanut butter and the 500g sweet potato. Then add 400ml of coconut milk and 200ml of water. TIP: If you like it to be a bit fresh you can also add the zest from the lime.
3. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat. Let it simmer, uncovered for 30-35 minutes, until the sweet potato is soft. In the meantime, you can roast your cashews and you can cook your rice or bake your naan bread.
4. Take the pan of the heat and stir through the 600g of spinach and the lime juice. Also, add the cashews.
5. Taste and add seasoning to your liking.
6. Enjoy!

On Tuesday Milou made:

Falafel Pita with Tahini sauce
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Ingredients for about 5 people (+/- 3 falafel per pita):
2 cans of chickpeas (410 gr. incl liquid), drained and rinsed
130 gr flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
2 spring onions
4 pieces of garlic
10 gr fresh parsley
2 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoon paprika powder
1 teaspoon cayenne
Pepper & salt

Pita
Lettuce
200 gr tomatoes
1/2 Cucumber

Sauce:
2 tablespoons tahini
4 tablespoons yoghurt
1 piece of garlic
Juice of half a lemon
Fresh chives
Pepper
Water

Method:
1. Blend all ingredients for the falafel together, until it's a smooth mixture.
2. You can chill the mixture for about an hour. This makes it easier to shape the mixture into patties. Or you embrance the sticky mixture on your hands and shape the falafel straight away.
3. Preheat your oven and bake the pita according to package instructions.
4. Mix the ingredients for the tahini sauce in a separate bowl. Add water to adjust the consistency to your liking. Chop the cucumber and tomatoes into small cubes.
5. Meanwhile, bake your falafel in a little bit of oil for about 2-3 minutes per side until they are golden brown and crispy on the outside.
6. Build your falafel pita with veggies and the tahini sauce and dive in (: This recipe makes about 30 falafel. If you have leftovers, you can eat them in a salad the next day!

On Wednesday Zara made:

Pasta alla Vodka

Wednesday = vodka day

Ingredients (4 people)
‍500g pasta
2 shallots
2 cloves of garlic
120g tomato paste
250ml whipped cream
2 tablespoons vodka
2 zucchini’s
2 tablespoons butter
2 balls of burrata
50g parmesan cheese
Fresh basil
Salt pepper
Olive oil
Chili flakes

Method:
1. Bring a pan of water to the boil for the pasta.
2. Heat olive oil in a pan. Add the garlic and shallot and sauté. Bake the zucchini’s in the same pan for around three minutes.
3. Add the tomato paste and stir well.
4. If the tomato paste is discolored, deglaze it with the vodka. Allow the vodka to evaporate and add the whipped cream. Add the chili flakes and salt and pepper to taste.
5. Meanwhile, cook the pasta until done and keep about 150ml of pasta water aside.
6. Add the pasta to the sauce and add the pasta water as well.
7. Add the butter, parmesan and basil.
8. Divide the pasta between the plates and top with half a ball of burrata per person. Serve with basil and extra parmesan cheese. Enjoy!! 💙

On Thursday Isa made:

Vegetarian Lasagne
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Ingredients for 6-8 persons:
Box of lasagna sheets
1200 gr diced tomatoes
350 gr tomatofrito
3 onions
3 cloves of garlic
250 gr mushrooms
2 zucchini
1 eggplant
400 gr spinach
375 gr mozerella
120 gr parrano parmezan cheese
250 gr grated cheese
15 gr fresh basil
Balsamic crema (optional)

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
2. Wash the vegetables and slice the onion, garlic, eggplant, zucchini in thin slices.
3. Place the thin slices of eggplant and zucchini on a baking tray and sprinkle them with olive oil and salt and pepper. Place them in the oven and roast it for around 10 minutes.
4. Fry the onion and garlic in a pan for several minutes. Fry the mushrooms in a separate pan.
5. Add the diced tomatoes and the tomato Frito to the garlic and union.
6. Add Some of the tomato sauce to a greased baking dish and cover it with lasagne sheets. Put some of the sauce on top of this.
7. Divide some slices of zucchini, eggplant and mushrooms over the red sauce. Add on top of this some raw spinach (this will be cooked in the oven) and some slices of mozzarella, and if you like cheese, some of the grated cheese.
8. Cover again with lasagne sheets, and repeat the process until the baking dish is well filled.
9. Finish with some of the tomato sauce, and top off with parmesan cheese and grated cheese.
10. Put it in the oven for at least 30 minutes. Check sometimes how the lasagne is going.
11. Top it off (optional) with basil and balsamic crema, and enjoy!

On Friday Marente made:

Vegetarian Gnocchi

Ingredients for 4 people:
800 gr Gnocchi
400 gr spinach
Some garlic and onion
250 gr Roma tomatoes
1 zucchini
1 burrata
Some butter and olive oil
2 cans of peeled tomatoes
1 teaspoon tomato puree
Some cooking cream
Salt, pepper, Italian herbs, chilli powder and Cajun powder

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Put the tomatoes in a bowl and add Some olive oil and salt and pepper. Put them in the oven for 20 minutes.
2. Cut the onion and the garlic and fry them in a pan
3. Add the courgette and after a few minutes the spinach too.
4. Add the canned tomato sauce and tomato puree and chop the tomatoes. Stir everything together and add some cream and herbs to taste.
5. Cook the gnocchi for 2 minutes in a pan. Drain and them fry the gnocchi in a pan with butter and olive oil until crispy. To make it extra crispy, you van add Cajun powder.
6. Serve the sauce and gnocchi separately and top with a piece of burrata and the tomatoes from the oven! Enjoy 💙

On Saturday Yanna made:

Vegetarian Empanada's
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Ingredients for 10 empanada’s:
175 gr vegetarian ground beef
1 union
1 bell pepper
1 small can of tomato paste
120 grams or half a can of olives
1 egg
2 teaspoon of paprika powder
1 teaspoon of Italian spices
1 pack (of 10 pieces) frozen savoury pie dough
2 tablespoons of olive oil
(Sriracha sauce)

Method:
1. Defrost the savoury pie dough by placing the pieces on a baking tray.
2. Cut the olives into small rings and cut the bell pepper and the union into small pieces
3. Add oil to a heated pan
4. Add the union and bell pepper and stir for 4 minutes
5. Add the vegetarian ground beef and the paprika powder, the tomato sauce, and the Italian spices to the rest of the ingredients and cook for 2 more minutes
6. Turn of the heat and add the olives
7. Preheat the oven to 180° Celsius
8. Add about a handful of the mixture to each piece of dough, fold in half and press the edges down with a fork (you can cut the edges off as well)
9. To get the perfect golden-brown colour, coat the empanadas with a whisked egg.
10. Place the pieces on a baking tray and place it in the oven for 25 minutes
11. Enjoy (I recommend some Sriracha sauce if you like spicy foods :) )

On Sunday Ramon made:

Taco's with Pulled Jackfruit

Ingredients (4 persons):
1 lime
300g sliced red cabbage
3 tbsp peanut oil
1¼ kg Fairtrade Original Young Jackfruit in cans
150ml Remia Black Jack smokey bbq
1 cucumber
7½ g fresh coriander
4 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp tap water
8 Mini tortillas

Method:
1. Scrub the lime clean, grate the green zest and squeeze the fruit. Mix the red cabbage with the lime zest, lime juice and ⅓ of the oil. Season with pepper and possibly salt to ones own taste.
2. Drain the jackfruit pieces and rinse them under cold running water. Pull them apart with your hands or with a fork. Heat the rest of the oil in a frying pan and fry the jackfruit pieces with the barbecue sauce for 5 minutes over medium heat.
3. Meanwhile, cut the cucumber in half lengthwise, remove the seeds with a teaspoon and cut the flesh into half moons. Roughly chop the coriander and mix the mayonnaise with the water.
4. Heat the mini tortillas according to package directions. Divide the jackfruit pieces, coleslaw and cucumber over the gorditas. Sprinkle with the coriander and drizzle with the mayonnaise dressing.
5. It's a wrap!!

Sustainability