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 %.
BrightVibes is all about counter acting the negative and fear driven press and news that surrounds us everyday.
Media organisations have a huge effect on the well being and general feeling of the population yet they keep resorting to driving fear into people in order to sell newspapers and drive viewers.
This leaves people numb and depressed and less likely to take action to help their fellow man.
Bright Vibes is all about taking a different angle on every story. There are plenty of people telling you why something is bad and what is going wrong with the world so you don’t need another outlet doing that.
But how about someone telling what is going well with the world. To show you that even amidst a war there are heartwarming stories or people helping each other to get through the struggles.
This information comes from the website of BrightVibes.
Welcome to the world’s largest collection of vetted and verified sustainable solutions.
You can either search for sustainable alternatives, browse what’s trending or learn what is happening in new markets.
Rooted in over five years of research involving over 17,000 business leaders and 17 expert panels, the Explorer guides you through hundreds of sustainable solutions and market opportunities which address the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Global Opportunity Explorer also showcases 300 of the most innovative urban climate solutions from cities around the world. Cities100 shows how cities are using climate action to future-proof against challenges such as extreme weather, air pollution and growing populations in areas including transportation, waste, energy, mitigation, and adaptation.
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.
During the spring and summer months, the birdsong on Knepp estate is a glorious cacophony of sound.
Walking through the scrubland of this 3,500-acre estate in West Sussex in the south of England, it’s hard to believe the tangled thickets and rugged pastures were once orderly arable fields.
The estate, which includes a 19th century castle, has belonged to the Burrell family for over 200 years. Charlie Burrell inherited it in 1985, when he was just 21.
“I came out of agricultural college incredibly enthusiastic about farming,” he says. “We’d been taught that conventional farming can work.”
But by the late 1990s, with the farm producing low yields and costs rising, the estate was facing serious financial trouble.
Burrell realized that the farm occupied “very poor agricultural land” and was destined never to produce high yields.
“I got to the point when I just felt that I couldn’t go on, because we actually were beginning to lose serious money,” says Burrell. “I needed to change and to change radically.”
Burrell and his wife, Isabella Tree, decided to turn to nature for a solution and in 2001, set about “rewilding” the estate. Knepp is now home to an astonishing array of biodiversity and has become a celebrated conservation success story, attracting many rare species and transforming the landscape from English country farm to untamed wilderness.
“We were living in a biological desert,” says Tree. “Now, ecologists are blown away all the time by just the amount of life here.”
Once in every generation a new technology comes along that completely changes the rules of the game. Candela Electric Speed Boat is just that. A watershed moment in nautical history. The world’s first all electric hydrofoil speedboat.
What makes Candela unique is the combination of cutting edge research within hydrodynamics and battery technology. Add to that computerized control systems from high-speed aeronautics. This revolutionary engineering blends seamlessly in a hull? that respects the traditions of the greatest speed boat designs. Built with the highest Swedish quality standards in mind.
The result is a unique boating experience. The hydrofoils cut effortlessly through the waves without ever slamming. With a top speed of 30 knots, a range of 2,5 hours at 20 knots and a near silent ride, Candela is something completely new.
No engine roar, no slamming waves. It’s just you, the boat and the nature.
This information comes from the website of Candela.
The Peaceful Schools Movement is a network of schools and organizations putting peace into practice through peace education and the creation of peaceful learning environments. Together we are creating peacebuilders who are bringing peace and harmony to the world.
By peaceful schools we mean peace on four levels: (1) the development of inner peace/peace within each individual within the school, (2) peaceful relationships between pupils, between school staff and between staff and pupils, (3) peaceful ethos/school community and (4) the way the school works for peace in the world. All schools – all phases too i.e. primary and secondary, and special schools of various kinds.
Auroville – also known as the “City of the Dawn” – is an international city in South India founded in 1968. Currently, it has 2,800 citizens from 54 countries, with the capacity to grow to 50,000 citizens.
Auroville is a “collective experiment in human unity” based on the worldview of Indian yogi Sri Aurobindo. The idea is if people from all cultures and castes can learn love each other in Auroville, maybe the rest of the world can follow suit.
The township was created with support from the Indian government, UNESCO and well-wishers around the world, but is becoming more and more self-sufficient over time.
In Auroville there is no individual ownerhip of land, housing or businesses. Everyone is given a basic living “maintenance,” whether they work for one of the commercial units, doing community service or are unable to work.
When they go to the store, they take what they need, tell the clerk their account number and it’s deducted from the Central Fund.
It’s an economy designed to serve humanity, rather than the other way around, Aurovillians say.
“We give our work, and we are given what we need,” says citizen Jean-Yves Lung in the documentary below. “It’s very simple. If you give your work, and you are happy to give it, you don’t need money to evaluate the quality of your giving. We can still be productive, creative, innovative, and what happens is people discover that they feel better. We take what we need and that’s it.”
Read the whole article by Sara Burrows in Return to Now.
