A student dressed up as a carrot during the AID info market in 2015. © Sven Menschel
Sorting waste, reusing cups, no packs of juice in the lunch crates, bringing the surplus of food to the food bank. Each year, the AID committee tries hard to organise the introduction days as sustainably as they can. But the annual surveys which the committee hands out at the end of the introduction days revealed that most AID participants have no clue of all that happens behind the scenes. That is why this year, the committee aims to raise awareness among students, explains committee member Sanne Knoppers. ‘We want to show the new students how they can live in a more sustainable way from the very start of their study career.’
Posters
One such example is Meatless Tuesday: no meat is served with the meals on Tuesday. Another is the placement of posters on the inside toilets doors on the festival grounds that list all sustainable initiatives. And finally, each daily video review will highlight one of the ‘green’ aspects of the AID. Knoppers: ‘For example, the fact that we will have fewer sandwiches in the lunch crates that were prepared beforehand. That’s because we cannot bring unconsumed sandwiches to the food bank.’ But AID participants need not be afraid to go hungry, Knoppers emphasises. ‘Those who will want another bite can make an additional sandwich or two at the Take Away Corner. This way, the buns that aren’t eaten can still go to the food bank, helping us prevent them from going to waste.’
At the moment, about 2300 upcoming first year students have registered for the introduction days – just as many as last year. The committee expects a new record this year. ‘We expect an increase of 2 to 3 percent in the number of bachelor’s students. The number of master’s students that will join this year will remain the same or also increase slightly. We now have enough mentors for the master’s students, but we are still looking for people to accompany the master-light programme.’
Additional reading:
AID in the race for the Netherlands’ greenest intro week