If you were asked what makes Advent the most magical time of the year, we would probably get pretty similar answers. Festive lights and decorations, lively festive fairs, gift shopping, exquisite culinary delights and socialising with friends would probably be at the top of the list. But also the euphoria and crowds of December, which can sometimes be quite exhausting, can’t they? Why not make this a time to pause for a moment, think about the true meaning of the holidays and discover the magic of Advent in a different way? Also, by thinking ahead and embracing the joys of Advent in a more sustainable way. Here are some of the things we are trying to do in Slovenia to bring some “green” consciousness to the Advent fairy tale. In the glow of festive lights – Slovenian cities and towns shine with thousands of festive lights in December. Despite the lavish lighting, energy-saving strings of lights are mostly used and in some places additional energy-saving measures are being taken. In Celje, more attention will be paid to the daytime decoration of the city and its bars and lighting elements will be replaced by non-illuminated features that are less energy-consuming. Murska Sobota, Maribor, Kranj and Slovenj Gradec have also decided to switch off their New Year lighting at night, and the light decorations in Koper will be partially switched off at night, while Jesenice will keep its lights on for a shorter period than usual. Additional or non-essential lighting was also given up in many towns. Festive decorations for homes and towns. In addition to the lights, decorated Christmas trees and other types of decorations, mostly made from natural or recycled materials, decorate the towns. Instead of cut down Christmas trees, you will find so-called living trees, which are planted in special pots. In Ljubljana, 10 spruce trees and 79 evergreen trees will be placed on four streets in the city centre and returned to nature after the holidays. Children from local schools and kindergartens often take part in decorating the trees. For example, the children will decorate the forests around Ljubljana and they have invited the city’s residents to contribute their own decorations. In Maribor, you can also join the citizens in decorating the urban woods.
The World Bank predicts that global annual waste generation will have reached 3.4 billion tonnes by 2050. That’s almost a 75 percent increase on the 2 billion tons we generate today. Building a circular economy will play a crucial role in reducing this forecast. Here, Mats W Lundberg, head of sustainability at global engineering group Sandvik, looks at why circularity needs to be considered from the initial design process; otherwise, it’s already too late.
