While some began immersing themselves in Norwegian culture a day or two early, many of us arrived today in Oslo, which is found in eastern Norway. Our host university, where we will be completing our community health clinical, is Lovisenberg Diaconole University College. Those who arrived a few hours early took a stroll in a local park and noticed many recycling bins throughout. This follows closely with the sustainable development goal (SDG) #11 “Sustainable Cities and Communities”, which focuses on making cities sustainable and resilient in many ways, one being through solid waste management. Many people were enjoying the weather and walking their dogs. (One student even met another Westie, who looked almost identical to her four-legged friend back home.) After our walk, we went to a local cafe and noticed that all cafes provide self-serve tap water and glass cups. Providing clean water in a majority of their restaurants and cafès closely relates to SDG #6 “Clean Water and Sanitation”, which increases the availability of clean water.
Shortly after everyone arrived and settled in, we met up with a few of the nursing students from Oslo and our university host, Ms. Unni Jenssen. Once everyone was accounted for, we began our first of many walks through the city because the weather was beautiful! Walking the city felt relaxing and strangely quiet despite the amount of people around. We started our walk through Palace Park (Slottsparken) and went right past the Royal Palace (Det kongelige slott).
During our walk, we spent time admiring Oslo’s beauty and cleanliness. It was surprising to see no traces of garbage or litter, especially after a major Norwegian holiday (Constitution Day on May 17th). The faculty discussed that trash remnants of the celebration were completely cleaned less than a day later. This also conveys SDG #11 through efficient waste management to maintain a clean and sustainable city. It was also interesting to see a few of the Norwegian females still wearing their “Bunad,” or traditional Norwegian folk costume, while walking the streets.
We continued our walk until reaching a popular “House of Oslo Street Food”, which is where we would stop for dinner. The building had a variety of food vendors and options, but what really stuck out was the use of all wooden utensils, glassware, paper products, many recycling bins, and so much more. These are some of the many ways we see Norwegians care for the environment and their capital. These all follow SDG #12 “Responsible Consumption and Production”, especially the use of wooden utensils and glassware (over plastic), which ensures sustainable production and consumption patterns. After dinner, we hopped on a local bus to go back to our hotel.
