Seaweed is gaining importance as a source of human food, animal feed and health products, and in addition, have wide ranging industrial applications. Seaweed can grow faster than any land plant and requires neither fresh water, nor fertilization for cultivation.
As food, one can compare seaweed and kelp with fruits and vegetables. The different sea vegetables have many different flavors, characteristics, textures and colors, and differ from each other in the same way as apples, pumpkins and herbs.
Norway became the first country in the world where the sale of electric cars has overtaken those powered by petrol, diesel and hybrid engines last year, with the German carmaker Volkswagen replacing Tesla as the top battery-vehicle producer, data shows.
Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) made up 54.3% of all new cars sold in the Nordic country in 2020, a global record, up from 42.4% in 2019 and from a mere 1% of the overall market a decade ago, the Norwegian Road Federation (OFV) said.
Seeking to become the first nation to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2025, oil-producing Norway exempts fully electric vehicles from taxes imposed on those relying on fossil fuels.
The policy has turned the country’s car market into a laboratory for carmakers seeking a path to a future without internal combustion engines, vaulting new brands and models to the top of bestseller lists in recent years.
While the sale of BEVs had broken the 50% mark in individual months, 2020 was the first time that fully electric cars outsold the combined volume of models containing internal combustion engines for a year as a whole.
In this Super Bowl commercial, GM and Will Ferrell want to challenge America to out-EV Norway. Then they have a long way to go. Norway is the first country in the world with over 50% of its new cars being electric because of good incentives. In USA the percent is only slightly more than 1 %.
On The Explorer, companies from all over the world can find green technology to solve their problems. Together, we can cut carbon emissions and build a better future.
The Explorer is part of Innovation Norway’s efforts to promote Norway as a sustainability pioneer. It is developed in close collaboration with leading Norwegian businesses, organisations, and government bodies.
Innovation Norway is the Norwegian government body responsible for value creation, innovation and growth for Norwegian start-ups and established companies.
As a country, Norway wants to take an active role in helping the world to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. All solutions on The Explorer are therefore linked to specific Sustainable Development Goals. The solutions also help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or other negative impact on the environment.
Solutions on The Explorer are offered across a spectrum of industries, from green shipping and renewable energy to food production and smart cities. Since its inception in 2018, The Explorer has helped to connect the companies that offer these solutions with those who need them.
This information comes from the website of The Explorer.
REV Ocean is focussed on reversing negative environmental conditions in the ocean by increasing knowledge and developing concrete sustainable solutions.
From understanding to sustainable solutions with four unprecedented ocean initiatives:
1) Exploring our blue planet with the world’s largest and most advanced research and expedition vessel. https://www.revocean.org/vessel/
2) Connecting data, people & technology to drive sustainable ocean governance and blue economy. Constructing an intelligent, all-encompassing and open-access Ocean Data Platform. https://www.oceandata.earth/
3) Gathering decision-makers, NGOs, scientific communities and other key stakeholders at the World Ocean Headquarters at Fornebu, Oslo. https://www.revocean.org/headquarters/woh/
4) The Plastic REVolution Foundation has been established to find the best opportunities to support Ghana and pilot solutions that can be scaled-up globally. https://www.revocean.org/plast_ghana/
Hurtigruten is introducing MS Roald Amundsen and MS Fridtjof Nansen, leading the way towards emission-free cruise and shipping.
Tourism is an essential part of many local and national economies, as well as an enriching experience for the individual. But growing numbers of tourists worldwide bring with them increased climate impact and strain on local ecosystems.
To uphold a responsible tourism industry, electrification of sea and road transport will be one of several essential measures. Demonstrating successful electrification on a large scale could also pave the way for low-emission transport alternatives more broadly – especially within shipping.
Low-emission cruise tourism
Hurtigruten is launching MS Roald Amundsen, the first of a series of hybrid-battery powered expedition cruise ships. A sister ship, MS Fridtjof Nansen, is currently under construction at Norway’s Kleven Yard, and will be introduced in 2020. A third ship is planned for 2021.
Hurtigruten’s ground-breaking ships employ the same hybrid technology, which – combined with increased fuel efficiency and other green technology – will reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions by more than 20 per cent. The powerful battery packs will allow the vessels to operate entirely emission-free during short periods of time, with room set aside to expand battery capacity and add new technology.
On top of the hybrid technology, the ships are designed to let guests travel as sustainably as possible to some of the world’s most spectacular destinations, such as Antarctica, South America, the Caribbean, Greenland, Svalbard and the Norwegian coast. They feature no single-use plastic, improved waste management and recycling, and custom-built expedition equipment, including a fleet of Blueye underwater drones.
”There is group of countries which have done remarkably well in the face of the challenges to our modern, democratic societies… Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden might just hold the clues to solving the security, social, political, environmental and technological threats and challenges of the 21st Century”.
– These are the words of Project Director András Simonyi in the foreword to a book of essays, “Nordic Ways”.
Nordic Solutions to Global Challenges is a joint initiative by the Prime ministers of the Nordic countries. We want to invite the world to share Nordic knowledge and experiences of six priority flagship projects. These Nordic solutions will be effective tools in our common work to reach the United Nations Sustainability Goals before the year 2030.
The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra has teamed up in 2016 with the Nordic Council of Ministers and distinguished institutions from all the Nordic countries to answer a simple question: how far could we go simply by scaling up already proven Nordic low-carbon solutions? The Green to Scale project has combined innovative analysis with active communication.
By scaling up just 15 proven Nordic solutions, countries all over the world can save 4 Gt of emissions every year by 2030 which is as much as the EU produces today. The costs for this scale-up equal the amount spent in just 9 days on fossil fuel subsidies.
These results come from the Nordic Green to Scale study which was launched during the UN Climate Conference in Marrakech.
The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra has partnered with the Nordic Council of Ministers and distinguished institutions from all Nordic countries to answer a simple question: how far could we go simply by scaling up existing Nordic low-carbon solutions to a level of adoption in 2030 that has already been achieved by one or more Nordic countries today…
Read the whole article by Christian Bjørnæs in CICERO.
