This is my fourth blog post in a series of blog posts from Innovative Sweden at Stanford University; a week-long event sponsored by the Swedish Institute.
Innovative Sweden is the first stop on a worldwide tour including Toronto, Washington DC, Rio de Janeiro and more.
Previous blog posts: Introduction, Day 1, Day 2.
It’s hard to beat the remarkable opening day at Innovative Sweden, but this may have been my favorite day so far. Today’s topic was Cleantech and how to build sustainable cities for the future. Sponsor was ABB.
I learned so many new cool things today.
Did you know that:
- The City Hall building of San Jose, CA is LEED Platinum certified? Scott Green and Chris Burton from the City of San Jose shared “San Jose’s green vision.” They also said that 1/3 of all VC funds in the US are invested in the San Jose area.
- Swedes are the heaviest users of energy per capita in the EU –but also of bio energy? Tomas Kaberger from Chalmers University said so. Tomas also said Sweden is a leading country within Smart Grid.
- If everybody lived the Western lifestyle we would need three globes? – Tomas Dahlman, from Electrolux revealed this alarming fact.
- Outside Stockholm there is a new, upcoming vibrant district for sustainable living, business and recreation called Stockholm Royal Seaport? A former brownfield industrial area is being transformed into one of Europe’s largest urban development projects using modern architecture and environmentally adapted energy-efficient solutions.
- Electrolux organizes an annual global design competition for industrial design students – Electrolux Design Lab? The student who presents the most innovative idea for household appliances reflecting Scandinavian design values (being sensitive to the environment, providing intuitive ease of use and aesthetic appeal) wins 5,000 EURO and a 6-month paid internship at an Electrolux global design center. I can’t wait for the future to be here if that means I can have a Bio Robot Refrigerator – watch it in this video featuring the finalists in 2010.
Enjoy the weekend. I will have a new blog post from Innovative Sweden for you on Monday.
-Anna
Follow my tweets @herringbonefm. #InnovativeSweden
Check out photos on Herringbone’s Facebook page.
Innovative Sweden is livestreamed here.
