Every time I travel, something is surprising and different about the place that I wasn’t anticipating. The biggest surprise for me on this trip was all of the smoking. The frequency, the amount, and the demographic who partake in the activity are really astounding. I start with this to then pivot and address the sustainability initiatives going on in Greece at present. It seems that, in my opinion, the citizens of Greece are more interested in the sustainability of the city around them, than they are in their own physical health! In terms of the supply chain, I believe it begins with what you put into your body before it can have an effect on the world around you. The traditional linear supply chain is now being phased out due to research about the environmental effects it leads. This traditional linear chain takes natural resources, turns them into a good or product, and then gets discarded. Similar to 99% of everything produced goes to waste just six months later. It’s terrible. It’s surprising to me that the closed-loop supply chain hasn’t gained traction sooner, as there is money to be made from the more sustainable practices. I guess that since it requires more work, and doesn’t play into the American ‘get rich quick’ query, it hasn’t been able to make an impact until something detrimental were to come of it, ie global warming, waste, pollution levels, etc. I think as time has gone on, many consumers are changing their attitudes in terms of consumption and realizing that there is no need to have excess things. Having said this, it makes for the perfect opportunity to purge the things we don’t need, in a sustainable way, to begin and help maintain a closed-loop supply chain. In a perfect world, closed-loop supply chains would be the only kind we know. This way, nothing would really go to waste, and everything would be used to create something else, therefore increasing the longevity of the smallest things. Closed-loop supply chains are very tough to achieve as there are only certifications out for companies, not individuals. These companies that are producing the goods and services that we buy are the ones responsible for overconsumption and pollution, as individuals are astronomically smaller comparatively. The change will come faster and more direct if it comes from the top. We as consumers and individuals can facilitate this through our consumer attitudes.