Now that I have had time to reflect and process the lessons I was able to learn on the Plus 3 trip to the Netherlands, I feel it would be productive to show how the trip has impacted me and how I can bring this to the Pitt community and beyond.

One of the most important lessons I feel I learned on my trip to the Netherlands is that different countries’ ways of operating can offer lessons that can better inform our domestic decision making. A prime example of this on my trip was the trip to the Royal Flora Holland flower auction, where getting a chance to see a building of such a massive scale (bigger than the entire state of Monaco) astounded me, and the efficiency described as “controlled chaos” down on the work-floor really left me impressed. The workers used electric scooters to connect to trolleys carrying flowers around the company floor, highlighting how EVs are a way of life in Amsterdam, and I found it really interesting when an alarm rang and every worker took a company mandated break. The commitment shown by these aspects of the company highlight how a big improvement in carbon emissions and in worker satisfaction and sustainability can be achieved with small changes to company policy. I also found it interesting how the company produced billions of dollars in revenue while only selling to a couple thousand buyers, meaning that the company’s auction buyers were primarily larger distributors of flowers. This made me think how a product as “simple” as flowers produces such a large number of emissions to deliver and move at every step of getting it to the consumer, meaning even if Royal Flora Holland makes changes its buyers might not necessarily follow suit. Further, I found it very interesting how the company’s transition from physical to more digital auctions made the older auction clocks (pictured) redundant. Now being used as a storage room, I feel like this efficient use of older space reflects a broader sentiment in Amsterdam of utilitarianism in achieving climate goals. The efficiency and focus of the facility on sustainability in a way that wouldn’t immediately stick out to me speaks to the importance of this broader lesson, showing how experience with other ways of doing things is so important.

More generally, I feel I really gained a better sense of how interconnected decision making is in every part of society. For instance, we learned in Amsterdam that efforts to encourage recycling made by city leaders placed a bounty on plastic containers, which then led to people tearing open bags of cans/bottles for money, and finally leading to further pollution of the city’s waterways. A well-intentioned decision led to the city being ultimately made worse off, and I took to heart this example and how it teaches the importance of considering the smaller ramifications of actions.

Finally, I felt the trip really taught me how much college has to offer beyond simple classroom content. The people I met, things I experienced, and places I saw were so important to my summer, and I now feel empowered to further explore outside the classroom learning in Pittsburgh.