Copenhagen Week 1

This week we have had so many amazing experiences: 

First, on Tuesday, students visited the UN and went on a tour there. They learned more about the UN's 17 sustainable development goals and applied them to a shoe company of their choosing. After, we went swimming in the harbor baths at Nordhavn. 

On Wednesday, we started our day by helping clean up cigarette butts around Nørreport with Skodbevægelsen. In just 30 minutes students collected 4,400 cigarette butts. According to Skodbevægelsen’s social media post, “Cigarette butts are the most common piece of litter worldwide. The filter is made out of cellulose acetate which is plastic and also toxic and therefore we need to stop the pollution and remove as many of them as we can to protect our environment.” I am so proud of these students for helping beautify this city while protecting their environment. 

After this, we went to the BIOFOS Sewage treatment plant. BIOFOS helps treat water in Copenhagen’s municipalities to create a sustainable water environment and extract resources for the benefit of people and the city. They use the resources contained in the wastewater for climate-friendly energy in the form of electricity, biogas and district heating for the grid. Students toured the facility and got to practice using ferric chloride to remove phosphorus in “wastewater” like they do in the water treatment process at BIOFOS. 

Finally, Thursday, we had another jam-packed day. We started by visiting Copenhill, a waste-to-energy plant topped with a ski slope, a hiking trail, and a climbing wall. We climbed to the top and afterwards, got some well-deserved ice cream. At the top, we hung out, played some foosball, and soaked in the beautiful views. 

Then, we went to Reffen – Copenhagen Street Food. The students did a scavenger hunt there and explored all the street food stalls. The stalls had over 18 nationalities represented and students ate food ranging from Nepalese to Argentinian. We hung out there and ate, then took a water taxi home.

Farvel!