Author: Jamilah
It was a Friday morning, around noon when I sat down to enjoy a
delicious coffee and cheese pastry in Buchman, Emmen centre. As I looked around my eyes were met with a variety of different people, from elderly people to families with small kids, couples, and groups of young people, predominately all immigrants. Each one of them was sat in Buchman for a different reason but connected by a space that’s reliable, affordable, convenient, and for the most part safe. It’s fair to say this was the impression I got from walking around Emmen, there isn’t a lot to offer but there’s
enough to be comfortable. Although, it’s not as aesthetically pleasing as Buchman since Emmen is an industrial stomping ground. I noticed a lot of greyed tones, interconnected paths, a 10-minute walk connecting Emmen centre with the train station (great new discovery) and there is only ONE bar to enjoy an alcoholic beverage (I know this because I went looking for it on Friday evening).
As I sipped my coffee, I thought, I really enjoy sitting inside
Buchman because you can always count on receiving consistent service – from the food to the coffee – and enjoy a brightly lit ambience. It then made me wonder how much energy would be required to create such an atmosphere and would anyone care if there was 30% less light. I hadn’t really considered the impact of wasted energy within shops and cafes until then. Walking through the shopping centre, this thought remained active, and my awareness sharpened. I quickly googled, does Emmen utilize renewable energies to power the shopping centre? Sadly, no information was available. I then tried, are there solar panels on the roof of the Emmen shopping centre? I receive a similar response. Hmmm, maybe one day Emmen could be an industrial stomping ground that brings together immigrant communities and pioneers in green light innovations. The city of Emmen in the Netherlands is already doing a great job! I think there are some lessons to be learnt.