Emmaus Fribourg - Switzerland

Transcription

1 Emmaus Fribourg - Switzerland CONTEXT Type of structure: Residential community Number of people: 18 male companions, three deputies, a salesperson and a leader. Year the group was founded: 1985 (following three international youth camps in Fribourg) City of Fribourg recycling bin Leader: Daniel Mauron Environmental issues contact person(s): Everyone Group activities: Shelter and support, recycling and sorting, service, addressing issues. Year when the group started its environmental practices: 1985 (since the community was founded). Environmental initiative leader in the group s day-to-day life: Everyone The community has a single building dating back to The building was renovated in 1992 and has total floor space of 2,600m² (half of this space is occupied by the shop on the ground floor and the other half is divided between the workshop and residential accommodation). The Association Romande des communautés Emmaüs (ARCE or French-speaking Swiss Association of Emmaus Communities) is the owner. The community has 19 companions, three of whom live in night shelters in the city of Fribourg. They have single rooms with communal showers / toilets. The building has the following common areas: refectory, kitchen, laundry and lounge areas. A forest and river are located 200m from the community. Means of transport used by the group: three 3.5 tonne trucks and one car. Insulation: roof insulation, double glazing and external wall insulation (15cm thick). Type of heating: oil-fired boiler. A study on whether to install an additional wood-fired boiler was carried out but the projected cost was 80,000. The project has been put on hold. Type of fuel: Heating oil. Specific town / region / country context: The community is located in a rural zone that is traditionally home to large families. It should be noted that Fribourg is a university town due to the presence of the University of Fribourg. The local authority recognises Emmaus Fribourg to be an important environmental stakeholder. The community does not pay for waste disposal. This is Emmaus Fribourg s pet subject and is not called into question. Emmaus Fribourg is located at the bottom of a valley in which fitting solar panels would raise a number of profitability and feasibility issues. Group-specific context Anything relating to the buildings is submitted for approval to the Association Romande des Communautés Emmaüs, as was the case for the recently built car park. The communities that make up the association trust each other. 1

2 THE EMMAUS MOVEMENT: A WELL-ESTABLISHED STAKEHOLDER IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL SECTOR DUE TO ITS ACTIVITIES Emmaus Fribourg recycles, sorts and sells different types of waste including wood, paper, iron, metals, textiles, glass, inert products, electronic devices, motorbikes, toys, ornaments and old paint pots, basically anything from a teaspoon to a whole house! The community collects goods from households or people bring donations to the premises. The average distance travelled each month for collections is equivalent to 600l of diesel per month. Unusable donated goods are taken to the waste reception centre in return for modest remuneration for our collection / sorting work (average of 1,000kg a day). Selling these goods enables still useable items to be brought back into circulation and stops them being binned and to support the community and be in solidarity with the others. Secondhand store opening hours: Monday to Friday 2-6pm and Saturdays 9am 4pm. General public environmental awareness raising work Special Emmaus sales once a year. Environment themed events: a special sale of rugs was organised around the theme of water. Various special themed sales are also held over 10 ten days (comic books, pictures and other items). Daytime opening with a display in the shop. Publication of a brochure Articles in the media Website: 2

3 The community lobbies politicians when they come to the shops to exchange ideas or recharge their batteries. Opportunities do therefore present themselves for the community to convey its concerns. Politicians drop in on average twice a month. Their visits are triggered by the quality of the work and the life example of the community, living as it does without receiving any handouts. ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY PRACTICES CHAMPIONED ON A DAILY BASIS AND THAT CONTRIBUTE TO OUR IDEAL OF COMMUNITY LIVING. Waste Waste sorting: scrap metal, metals and domestic appliances are sent to a salvage dealer, generating income for the community ( 3,700 a year). Sale of waste to specialised companies and artists who buy utensils to make artworks. + Sorting prevents waste being incinerated. Reduces waste: what is no longer useful to some may still be useful to others. - Sorting requires time and energy. Food Locally-produced food: the community is a Table Suisse partner. Table Suisse collects surplus produce from supermarkets and redistributes it to associations. Table Suisse delivers dairy products, fruit and vegetables, and salmon to the community twice a week. Results Our food bill has been reduced by roughly 6,000 a year for the past four years. It prevents food wastage. Results The Fribourg community collects a tonne of waste every day. 3

4 Water Housing Tap water ionisation to stop the pipes furring up. + Reduces consumption of water and detergents. Reclaimed materials used when fitting out the workshops. External insulation and double glazing in the building. + Less heating oil used. Energy Purchase of consumables Time switches have been fitted on the lights in the main corridors and toilets. Everyday steps to reduce energy consumption. Particular attention paid to the fact that lights should not remain switched on for no reason. Recycled low energy light bulbs. Reuse paper and other recycled materials. Reused white paint donated for the renovation of the accommodation building. + Saved money. Group environmental awareness raising Our daily actions must be an example to others. Each practice requires the support and motivation of all community members at all times, which in turn contributes to group environmental awareness raising. NETWORKS AND PARTNERSHIPS Table Suisse directly helps needy people in Switzerland. In 11 regions of the country, excess top quality food is collected from producers, wholesalers and supermarkets. The food is then distributed free-of-charge to social institutions that support people who are affected by poverty (for more information, visit: La Tuile, a night shelter for homeless people. Banc Public, a daytime drop-in centre. The probation service which deals with ex-offenders who are required to do community service type work. Regional Employment Centre, centre specialising in the labour market, job placement and unemployment. 4

5 Le Tremplin, a foundation that aims to care for anyone who is experiencing difficulties following drug use related-issues, with the primary objective being socio-professional reinclusion (for more information, visit: ) Caritas Fribourg. Fribourg Grouping of Social Institutions City of Fribourg Social Services and Mentoring Service. Department for migrants and Department of Integration. DEVELOPMENT PROSPECTS AND PLANNED ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVES For your environmental practices Some building renovation work. Renew the trucks and do away with one of them to limit collections, as too many goods are being collected in light of what is actually sold. SHARING YOUR EXPERIENCE (interview with Daniel Mauron, director of the community, 11 July 2011) What practical advice can you offer? What pitfalls need to be avoided? Pointless journeys should be avoided and 250 page reports should be axed in order to save paper; having more targeted themed meetings on textiles and recycling would help us to progress our business, or even on themes such as immigration, ethical banking and human trafficking. It would be worthwhile organising meetings for leaders about practices and our various campaign issues. Do you think that Emmaus has an environmental role to play? Emmaus does have a role to play due to its everyday work and by being attentive to anything that could harm the health of our planet, for example, nuclear power plants, as their waste takes a long time to break down. Do you think that Emmaus has a role to play in raising the awareness of the general public? Emmaus should raise the general public s awareness via its everyday work. We prevent waste that can be reused from being thrown in the bin, limiting pollution and also our thirst for artificial possessions. At global level, we help thousands to live, notably by avoiding billions of dollars of credit, which only further marginalises and oppresses people. Abbé Pierre used to say to us keep one eye on the problems of the world and the other for looking at the flowers and birds. Let s keep our eyes open! 5