Breeana Laughlin, the 2011 New Zealand and Sydney Sustainable Business student blogger, writes:

In my first few days in New Zealand, I learned the Kiwis like to do things a little bit differently.

Students in New Zealand use an adapter for their electrical devices

– They talk in a strange way that makes you smile.

– The shape of their electrical plug ins prevents you from using your so-called necessities – hair dryer, laptop and IPod charger – without an adapter.

– They use the metric system (along with the rest of the world outside the United States).

– They drive on the other side of the road.

– The Kiwi way of life seems less hurried and more carefree. Perhaps this is because they have a low crime rate.

– The police don’t carry guns.

– Kiwis also don’t have to worry about poisonous animals or even predators when they tramp (hike) through the beautiful mountainsides.

Along with these slight variances from the American way of life come a few more subtle differences – differences that that rest of the world could take a hint from.

– In three days in the city of Wellington I saw one truck. Cars are markedly compact and fuel efficient.

– Trash bins for ‘rubbish’ are commonly accompanied by recycle receptacles.

– Businesses hardly ever use disposable dishes. I haven’t seen any Styrofoam.

– Instead of sniffing for drugs, the dogs at New Zealand airports sniff for fruit to prevent invasive pests that could disrupt their stunning, yet fragile environment or damage their successful agriculture industry.

– Windmills dot the landscape.

– Organic is a common term.

– The Kiwis pride themselves on being ‘clean and green.’

It seems these simple, hardworking and friendly islanders have somehow managed to catch onto the concept that caring about the environment not only makes sense, it’s a practical thing to do. And although nobody’s perfect, I applaud New Zealand for setting an example for the rest of the world – including Americans like myself.

Being part of the Sustainable Business study abroad program has already opened my eyes to new ways of doing things.

Students in AUIP's Sustainability: Humans, Business and the Environment study abroad course gather together to enjoy the Wellington scenery

As the group travels to the South Island, I’m eager to discover more ways New Zealand businesses are incorporating environmentally friendly practices into their operations. I realize that in order to create real strides toward sustainability we need not only the general public to buy-in to environmentally friendly ways of doing things, we also need private industries to change their ways. The little island country of New Zealand can serve as a model for the so-called ‘world powers’ and we can all move forward to change the way we treat our planet.