With its ancient castles and cutting-edge research in climate change, Scotland is the perfect place to pursue my love of travel in the most sustainable way.
Edinburgh has set itself a very ambitious target –- becoming a net zero city by 2030.
The University of Edinburgh, where I will spend my fall semester, is already helping to reach that goal. It is now ranked second in the UK for sustainability, and seventh in the world, beating other prestigious universities like Harvard, Oxford and Cambridge.
My study abroad start date is still weeks away, but I can already sign up for free sustainability classes, including the university’s accredited and award-winning Carbon Literacy Training.
I am a Mechanical Engineering major, and once I get to Edinburgh, I hope to take classes in renewable energy technologies, particulary wave and tidal. I’m excited to visit the university’s FastBlade facility, the first-ever regenerative fatigue testing center for tidal turbine blades, that’s helping confirm Sotland’s lead in global marine energy.
At Northwestern University, I’m an intergral part of the Formula SAE car-building team, where we have switched from internal combustion engines to electric motors. I want to further that green race car knowledge by joining the award-winning Formula team in Edinburgh.
My eco-friendly travel of the Scottish capital will continue outside of school as well, in line with SDG3, Good Health and Well Being.
Edinburgh has several locally-sourced, zero-waste shops and restaurants that will let me support local farmers and businesses and discover delicious Scottish foods at the same time (but maybe not haggis)!
I’m curious to see how the city’s sites are bringing tourism and sustainability together as well. The 12th-century Edinburgh Castle, Historic Scotlands’s biggest energy user, has drastically reduced its carbon footprint already with great initiatives like using sheep’s wool for better insulation.
I can’t wait to explore Edinburgh’s many iconic attractions by taking several eco-friendly walking tours, or using one of my favorite forms of sustainable travel – a bike!
If I do decide to journey outside Edinburgh, I plan on going by rail. Train travel reduces carbon emissions by two thirds compared to cars and planes.
But overall, I am most excited about staying in Edinburgh as it pursues SDG 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities. If Edinburgh itself wants to be net zero by 2030, the University of Edinburgh wants to reach that goal ten years after that. The school has reduced its overall carbon emissions by 19% since 2008, so it’s well on its way to reaching that goal.
And just like author J.K. Rowling got much of the inspiration for her Harry Potter series while living in Edinburgh, I hope to use my international placement there as a personal reminder of some of the lessons I learned from reading those books… That true growth means not only discovering new places, but also learning how to protect them. Sustainability needs to be part of every journey we take if we want to keep the magic of our world alive.
