Competition geared toward encouraging Swedish island residents to save lots of water is being copied elsewhere
Dry, brown grass is now not a supply of disgrace on one Swedish island the place residents have been competing over the “ugliest lawn” in an try to save lots of water – and it appears the development is spreading.
“It was the easiest competition to win, I didn’t have to do anything,” mentioned this 12 months’s winner Stina Östman, a resident of Sweden’s largest island of Gotland, who has blended emotions about her victory. “It’s always nice to win, even if you are the worst,” she mentioned.
Judges described it as “a very ugly and in no way useful lawn – unless you’re a sparrow”.
Gotland’s ugliest garden contest was created final 12 months due to an irrigation ban which prevented residents from watering their lawns.
The objective of the competitors is to make individuals conscious of water shortages on the island, which is in the course of the Baltic Sea. An OECD report from 2022 mentioned water availability in Gotland was anticipated to lower by 13% between 2021 and 2050.
Following widespread enthusiasm for brown lawns in Gotland, different competitions have popped up in seven municipalities in Sweden this 12 months, in addition to three in Canada, in an effort to encourage individuals to make use of much less water.
“We shouldn’t be embarrassed if our lawns are not perfect or green. I don’t feel ashamed – I’m happy to show the world – or at least Gotland,” mentioned Östman. Included in her prize was a T-shirt asserting her victory and a diploma.
The runner-up, Madeleine Fagerlund, mentioned: “I was a little bit sad not to win – it’s a really ugly lawn, it’s just sand practically. We had a really dry spring. I think I deserved to win – but actually Stina’s lawn was quite ugly too.”
Fagerlund’s neighbours have been complaining about her backyard since she moved in. “The dog loves to dig in the dust, so there are a lot of holes and bumps, so at least he’s very happy,” she mentioned.
A report from the OECD praised the ugly garden contest as a approach to adapt to a altering local weather. The report mentioned the “innovative competition” had “helped to reduce water consumption and inspired a debate about water use outside Sweden’s borders”. Earlier this 12 months, research showed 25 international locations had been going through excessive water stress, affecting greater than 1 / 4 of the world’s inhabitants.
Residents of Gotland are actually challenging the world to share photographs of their ugly lawns. Johan Gustafsson, who works for Differ Agency, which does communications for the Gotland area, organises the competitions. He mentioned: “Lots of people would like to see similar competitions in their local communities, and that is where the idea was born to make it a global competition.”
He mentioned: “It’s a cultural norm in Sweden to have a well-kept lawn, like it is to have your house in order. An ugly lawn is considered a sign that something is wrong, that you are not on top of things.”
He mentioned he believed Australia, the US and South Africa might have some sturdy contributions. In arid areas of the US, water used on lawns and gardens accounts for 60% of family water utilization, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Gustafsson mentioned: “We wanted to make sustainability communication positive – it’s common to see negative headlines that make you feel bad. This is the opposite – the competition made people smile and they didn’t have to do a thing to participate, they could just relax and have a cup of tea. We think that also made it a success.”
People can enter by sharing an image on Instagram with the hashtag #worldsugliestlawn or emailing [email protected]. The jury will choose the winner in December 2023. Already somebody from Berlin has submitted an entry to the worldwide competitors. “Berlin is always good at ugliness contests,” they wrote.
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