Green Initiatives
Sustainability Statement
CIS Abroad is dedicated to promoting and enacting sustainability initiatives. We believe that by doing our part in educating our participants and employees on green measures we can help keep the Earth around us clean. Therefore, we are delighted to announce that CIS Abroad has formed a sustainability committee known as “Green Flags.” We are joining many other organizations in the education abroad field who are working to prioritize sustainability and climate action in our operations and programming abroad. Learn more about it here!
Sustainability Built Into Local Life
Local life activities have been carefully selected so that students are not only learning about local culture, but supporting local, sustainable businesses. With any activity that requires transportation, local staff think of the best way to transport students with the local environment in mind. Please keep reading below to see how we, as participants and as an organization, we can contribute to building a sustainable local life.
Recycling
Italy has an excellent public recycling system: in 2020, Italy recycled 72% of all of its trash, compared to the EU average of 53%. This is because recycling is mandatory in Italy: if you do not sort your recycling, there are associated fines. Luckily, recycling is very easy and convenient.
Most municipalities separate recyclables into plastics, metals, glass, paper, and compostable organic material, as well as a sixth category for garbage ("indifferenziata"). Often times, you will see several of these categories combined in one clearly labelled container. The exact policies vary by municipality, but in Florence, you can simply bring your recyclables out to the containers on the street. If you're not sure how to sort, all packaging produced in Italy is labeled with instructions on how and where to recycle it.
Resources for recycling in Italy
Shopping
Groceries
Italians love to buy groceries at the markets, where you can find the best quality and many times you have the possibility to buy directly from the producer. This is a sustainable practice and an incentive to help the local producers. To respect the Italian cuisine heritage, locals know that the best way to buy good and fresh products is to buy groceries more times over the week (instead of going once a week and buying a lot of food all together).
Farmer’s markets and local markets:
Mercato Sant’Ambrogio from Monday to Saturday from 8:30 AM to 1:30 PM in Piazza Sant’Ambrogio.
Mercato di Santo Spirito on Thursdays on Thursdays from 8:30 AM to 1 PM in Piazza Santo Spirito.
Mercato di Campagna Amica on Saturdays from 8:00 AM to 1 PM at Cascine Park.
Mercato Centrale everyday from 10 AM to midnight (top floor) in Piazza del Mercato Centrale/Via dell’Ariento.
Made Green in Italy
If you want to focus on supporting environmentally friendly products while in Italy, look for the Made Green in Italy certification in supermarkets and clothing stores. Products marked with the symbol have been proven to meet the standards of environmental sustainability as set by the Italian Ministry of Environment and Energy Security.
Secondhand & Vintage Stores
Florence has many stores where you can purchase secondhand clothes, books, and other items. Brick and mortar vintage stores tend to command premium prices. For a more economical option, the Sant'Ambrogio market has many stands with secondhand clothes at very reasonable prices. Additionally, the new Humana People store on via Faenza is a curated yet still inexpensive choice, and additionally donates to charity. Not all stores allow you to try on clothes before purchase, so ask the vendor before trying on clothing.
One great place is Humana Stores in Florence (pre-loved vintage fashion)! There are a few locations around Florence and can be found on social media: @humanavintageitalia and located on.
Clothing Donation
In Florence, Project Caritas collects used clothes in yellow containers around town to donate them to charity. It's an excellent way to get rid of any excess clothes you've collected, and help families in need in the process. Find a drop-off bin near you.
Water Consumption and Electricity
Taking shorter showers at home can help conserve water, an essential resource, without compromising personal hygiene. This is especially necessary in Italy given its history of drought. By integrating this sustainable habit into daily life, residents and visitors alike can play a vital role in preserving Italy's natural beauty and fostering a greener future for the city.
High Quality Water Fountains
Florence offers free high quality purified water fountains at which you can fill up your own clean bottles with natural water and, in some cases even sparkling water, like in Piazza Signoria. Several new fountains are being established in the city every year. For a complete list of their location, please visit the Publiacqua website.
Energy and water are very expensive in Italy, and overall in Europe. Each student has a €50 per month utilities allowance, which is more than what Italians use, but be mindful of the following:
- Hanging your clothes to dry saves A LOT of energy and also reduces pollution
- Turn off lights whenever you’re not home.
- Turn off the A/C when you’re not home.
- The length of time you take a shower.
- Use a reusable bag when shopping! Saves on plastic.
- Carry a reusable water bottle with you. Tap water is drinkable in most European cities and you can refill your water bottle around the ancient water fountains that surround Italy.
- Avoid plastic packaging.
- Ask for no straw in your drink.
- Eat in instead of take away to avoid containers.
- Of course, don’t litter.
Public Transportation
Florence is a very walkable city, with most of the main attractions being close together and in a no-car zone. Overall, Florence has taken strides to cut down on the contamination and encourage residents and visitors to take public transportation. For this reason, there are many options for public transportation, such as trams, bike rentals and trains.
For more information on public transportation options, please visit our "How To Move Around" page.
Green Campus
FUA for the Community
Many courses at FUA address the social and political side of sustainability, such as Environmental Architecture and Sustainability, Grow Green course, and more!
In addition, FUA implements environmentally intelligent practices, such as reducing the amount of environmental waste, preserving the local microcosm and fostering research for alternative approaches to production processes.
At The Social Hub (TSH)
When it comes to environmental impact, TSH believes in leading by example and driving industry change while setting realistic, measurable sustainability goals. We make this possible by collaborating with likeminded partners, holding ourselves accountable and by regularly benchmarking our environmental efforts. Some examples include:
- Plastic free and paper cups
- Water fountains (to refill the bottles)
- Jeans recycle project: they collect jeans and give a discount to get a new pair of jeans
- Bikes for the TSH community
- Too Good to Go partnership
- WeForest partnership
- Plant-based meat meals
- BREEAM Certification
Local Organizations
FIAB Firenze in Bici
The FIAB Firenze Ciclabile ONLUS association aims to promote the use of bicycles in both urban and suburban areas. Thanks to this association, Florence has expanded its network of bike lanes and is becoming an increasingly bike-friendly city.
GAS Fiorentini
The GAS (Gruppo di Acquisto Solidale, Solidarity Purchasing Group) is a group of people who decide to buy food and non-food products together, directly from producers through a common list and with cumulative orders, and then redistribute the purchased products among the various group members.
Circular FARM
The goal of the Circular Farm project is to produce healthy, quality food by regenerating resources and limiting waste production as much as possible.