In the context of man-made global warming, the probability of extreme heat waves has increased by about 30 times, sweeping across the South Asian continent of India and Pakistan, eastern, central and southwestern China, Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain in Western Europe, and Sweden in northern Europe. In fact, sweden's persistent heat has not only triggered forest fires in many places, but also caused water shortages in the country. Recently, in order to effectively alleviate the lack of freshwater resources in the country, they are taking an incredible approach: normalizing dry grass, and launching the "ugliest lawn" competition to this end.
Lawns of local residents in Gotland, pictured from the Internet
We know that convincing homeowners to reduce water on their lawns during the hot, dry summer months is a daunting task, and who wouldn't want their own lawns to be green? This requires a way to guide their behavior, to launch a "ugliest lawn" competition, so that they can participate in the competition, perhaps they will be willing to give up the sprinkler in their hands.
A log cabin in the forest of Gotland, pictured from the Internet
Recently, the city government of Gotland, Sweden's largest island in the Baltic Sea, pioneered this clever strategy. Summer is the peak season for tourism in Gotland, and the local population doubles as tourists arrive. This has put enormous pressure on the island's already limited water supply, which is expected to decrease by 13% between 2021 and 2050, and demand is expected to increase by 40% by 2045. The initiative, known as "the ugliest lawn in Gotland," urges homeowners to compete for the saddest, deadliest, brownest courtyards. They were asked to avoid watering throughout the summer and then put a tag with a picture of the lawn to indicate that they were involved in the competition.
Gotland, a popular tourist destination in Europe, is inspired by the Internet
The cleverness of this event is that the organizers of the event did not teach homeowners not to use unnecessary water, but launched the interesting way of "the ugliest lawn in Gotland", thus changing the role of green lawns in traditional standards, which will have a long-term impact on people and facilitate the more rational allocation and utilization of water resources. The Guardian interviewed Mimmi Gibson, agent marketing and brand manager in Gotland, who believes that "the ugliest turf race will remind islanders not to waste water and discuss how to adapt their gardens to existing conditions and climate crises." ”
Gotland, Sweden, the image comes from the Internet
This year's winner, announced in mid-August, is a local resident named Marcus Northtreon, who hasn't watered the lawn all summer. His photograph shows a huge brown space with some sparse yellow grass sticking out of the yard and you don't want to walk barefoot on the "lawn" so as not to hurt your feet. The jury gave a very high rating: it was a truly bad lawn that lived up to all our expectations of "the ugliest lawn in Gotland" and was in good condition for more sustainable improvements, while also demonstrating "meritorious laziness" and "great care for our common groundwater". Norström's award is also very special: a professional proposal for him to grow drought-resistant plants by professional gardener Sara Gistedt. This will lead to more people getting involved, and the more they are seen around the community, the easier it will be to be accepted by more people, creating a virtuous circle.
Xanadu Gotland, picture from the Internet
Overall, Guona Tech Sauce thinks this is really a very interesting strategy, a very constructive attempt. There are also lessons to be learned from other water-scarce cities on earth. What do you think about that? Welcome to leave a message. #Headline Creation Challenge ##Media Man Weekly Punishment ##我来科普 #
The geographical location of Gotland, the image is from the Internet
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I am @ Guona Technology Sauce, popular science writer; 100 ingenious plans to sign creators, 100 list creators; Senior operation with technical background, rooted in the fields of air purification, new materials, energy conservation and environmental protection for 20 years.
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