Greece
Preparation Activities GREPLA-PLA
Research about Sustainable Cooking in Athens
Located in the heart of Athens, in a neo-Classical house in the trendy Pangrati neighbourhood, the restaurant Soil has a secret : its huge organic vegetable garden in Alepochori, some 60km outside the Greek capital. Blessed by the gods with a view onto the silvery waters of the Gulf of Corinth, the garden abounds with vegetables, fragrant herbs, plump fruit and edible flowers.
At Soil, it's the menu that is tailored to the daily harvest from the kitchen garden, not the other way round. The approach goes further than simply serving seasonal cuisine; it implies a great capacity to adapt. " When produce isn't ripe, we can't use it; when it's ripe, we have to hurry up and incorporate it into our menus before it's too late ", says Tasos Mantis, a very humble chef.
Delta's futuristic-looking restaurant is housed within the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, a glass and concrete complex designed by star architect Renzo Piano. With 10,000m2 of solar panels and a large hanging Mediterranean garden, it is one of the greenest buildings in Europe. It produces almost 85% of its own energy, and has been awarded LEED Platinum certification, the highest environmental standard for buildings. It is the perfect setting for the Delta restaurant, where sustainability is a guiding principle. Vegetables, fruit and flowers are sourced from the restaurant's biodynamic farm just outside Athens ; the herbs are grown on site, on the roof ! When it comes to fish and seafood, they work with artisans who practise sustainable fishing. The same applies to their partner farmers and market gardeners, all of whom are bound by strict specifications. Another of Delta's founding principles is to deliver a zero-waste culinary offering. All food must be used up – any surplus is reused in other dishes, preserved or composted… as long as the golden rule that nothing should go to waste is adhered to!
Research about Global Warming
in Athens
According to the new findings, the average high in the Greek capital rose from 20.55 degrees Celsius in 1971-1980 to 22.15 Celsius in 2011-2020, while the low also increased from 12.37C to 13.50 Celsius in the same period, a seemingly small change, but one that has a dramatic overall impact nevertheless. The trend, according to the report, is attributed to global warming but also to Athens' intensive urbanization during the years in question.
Figures compiled from the National Observatory of Athens also show an increase in the intensity of heatwaves. More specifically, the average number of annual heatwaves rose from 0.3 in the period between 1971 and 1990 to 2.2 in 2001-2020, with their duration skyrocketing from 1.5 days to 10.5 days, and the hottest spell growing from 4.3 to 6.1 days. In terms of temperature, the high increased from 39 degrees Celsius in 1971-1990 to 39.9C in 2001-2020. Given that in the past two summers Athens has experienced protracted heat waves during which the daytime high soared above 40 degrees Celsius, the pattern is alarming.
Indeed, simulations carried out by the authors of the report for the period 2046-2065 pointed to a 52% rise in the number of very hot days Athens will experience and a spike in the highest average annual temperature of 2.4 degrees Celsius.
Research about Sustainable Practises in Athens
There's no excuse to lean on taxis or rental cars to get around town. Athens' public transport system is affordable, reliable and covers most of the city and suburbs—while the metro (underground) ranks among the best in the world and is pretty simple to work out. In Athens, where the goal is for every third new vehicle to be electric by 2030, there's a growing network of electric car charging points—some of which are free. Additionally, all municipalities are now required to provide EV charging points. Naturally, cycling is another top eco-friendly way to experience Athens—especially if you're not afraid of a few hills. Cycling infrastructure still lags behind other major European cities but new bikeways are popping up everywhere and there some great traffic-free cycling routes where you can sightsee on the fly. To stay on message, start from the historic neighbourhood of Thissio and glide down the coastline to check out Renzo Piano's cutting-edge beacon to sustainability, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre, in Faliro.
Up-cycling has caught a strong tailwind in Athens as environmentally-aware designers find ways to turn all types of discarded items into chic clothing and household objects.
Preparation activity
On 15th June, participants of IN-PLANET gathered all together to prepare about the project and made an environmental activity to the beach of Glyfada, Attica.
