Two distilleries in Islay implement eco-friendly energy systems
By Cristina Guardamino
The Isle of Islay, in the west coast of Scotland, is home to some of the best-known Scots whiskies. However, recent news and reports point out Islay for different reasons. The island is considered ideally placed to experiment with renewable energy, especially tidal power. Distilleries are not left behind. A trip to the heart of the island shows us the whisky industry’s growing concern over its product’s carbon footprint.

Sahara solar power is catching the eyes of investors around the world
By: Heather Moore
April 9, 2010
First Solar Inc. has become the first pure photovoltaic company and the first company based in North America to join the green energy cooperative Desertec Industrial Initiative.
The Desertec Industrial Initiative is a group of companies interested in utilizing the Sahara’s sun and wind energy sources to power 15% of Europe by 2050 and a substantial part of the energy needs of the Middle East and …

Malaga: Getting Smarter?
With Malaga recently adopted into the internationally known Smart City project, I look into how the funding is beginning to help move the coastal city to a new, greener path.
By Aaron Bennett
Lights lead the way for Malaga’s smart city project
For one of Spain’s biggest tourism hot spots, you’d expect the majority of its energy to be used on more exciting needs than keeping the city bright, but for the capital of the Costa Del Sol, the cost of …

After equipping the city with solar panels, setting up educational programmes and promoting green energy, Barcelona now sets a new goal for the coming ten years: changing people’s lifestyle.

For the very first time in the Olympic Games history, this term, that refears to an environmentally friendly policy towards the construction of infrastructures, appears in scene. By Jorge Moro Deiguesca.

The previous Olympic Games of 2008 in Beijing, were the very first inflection point that would change the policy towards environment to determinate the requirements for the International Olympic Committee. Nowadays, the cities that are interested on holding the Games have to develop their facilities in terms of sustainability.
Concerns about …

A call for more “sustainable” and enviromentally-friendly tourism was the message from a mass protest against building a hotel on a beach in Vejer de La Frontera last week. The hotel, scheduled to open in 2012, will sit 400 metres from the El Palmar beach.

Tourism is the foundation of Spain’s economy.
But for a country that is the world’s second most popular tourist destination, the impacts of the industry can strain the nation’s resources.

“We Have to Make Green Mainstream”
Any event starts with the venue. Central London offers the world’s first sustainable nightclub, Surya, that generates parts of its own electricity. Its owner Andrew Charalambous wants to spread green ideas among the masses.
A portrait by Tina Friedrich

The renovation of the notorious Angell Town Estate in London’s south is promoted as a success story. Sustainability is said to be the key for succcess to tackle social problems like fuel poverty and crime there.  Being on the spot shows a different perspective.

Wind turbines are increasingly becoming a popular form of renewable green energy to combat the global climate change problem; however some of its critics claim that it actually does more harm to the environment than good.

By: Saravanan Sugumaran

BY FRUD BEZHAN

Scene of construction at HafenCity, Hamburg, one of the largest inner-city development projects in the world

HafenCity, Hamburg- The waterfront in Germany’s second-largest city is a sea of construction, filled with concrete grids, huge cranes and trucks. Glazed office towers and massive shells of buildings mark the skyline of HafenCity, Hamburg, Europe’s largest development programme.
The ambitious project, which will be completed by 2025, will add 12,000 new apartments to Hamburg’s city-centre as well as vast quantities of new …

Scotland is Europe’s windiest country, holding over 25% of the European wind capacity. Nevertheless, until 2001 the Scottish government didn’t put much effort in exploiting its biggest natural resource. Grid structure and planning process still cause problems in the Scottish on-shore wind sector. Nevertheless, Scotland is on its way to energy self-sufficiency with supplies only from renewable sources.

More than 29 million passengers a year, 26.000 jobs and 210 destinations: the Manchester Airports Group (MAG) plays a big role in the Northern English economy and society, but also in the environmental condition of the area. In the coming years, the airport wants to expand with a 100 percent and at the same time become carbon neutral. Therefore help from the passengers and employees is needed; they pollute the most.

Catalonia, Barcelona: On top of a mountain just outside Barcelona stands the Sakya Tashi Ling Buddhist Monastery. Secluded from the rest of the Castelldefels community the monks, nuns and volunteers strive to combat climate change.
By: Kirsty Wilson

25 per cent of Europe’s wind capacity can be found in Scotland – good conditions for energy companies to make some profit. Now the UK government wants the wide public as well to have a piece of this cake. A new subsidy scheme for small-scale generators of renewable energy is supposed to facilitate the installation of smaller wind turbines for communities and private households. But although Scotland offers the best conditions for residential wind turbines in the UK, if you …

TEXT and PHOTO Charlotte Boström
Tidal water has existed longer than mankind. Nevertheless it is unexposed for commercial use so far. Now big money is being put into projects to make Scotland world leading in the ancient renewable energy.
Compared to other renewable energy sources tidal power has many advantages. Unlike wind and wave power it is very predictable and it is possible to make exact calculations of how much energy the tidal streams will generate.
Another advantage is that the devices …

TEXT, PHOTO and VIDEO Charlotte Boström
Scotland is described as the Saudi Arabia of marine energy. The goal is to become world famous for tidal and wave power. Outside the isle of Islay the biggest tidal energy projects ever are just about to be installed.

“The beauty of tidal is that it is so predictable. It is more reliable than other renewable energy sources and you cannot see them above the water surface,” Andrew McDonald states as the most unique advantage of …

Facts about the capital’s latest project to fight against carbon emissions.

By Lisa-Maria Kretschmer
Lambeth/London – London’s Low Carbon Zones sprang into life this March. Last autumn, Mayor Boris Johnson announced the ten boroughs in Britain’s capital which now get funding in order to reduce their carbon emissions about 20 percent within the next two years. The local authorities aim to engage the community and encourage businesses as well as every single resident to change to a “greener” lifestyle. Thereby, not only the environment is in the focus. The projects are also …

APRIL 2010
Photos and text by Roos Mulders and Teresa Smith

EDINBURGH – The Scottish government has vowed to create 60,000 new green jobs by 2020 and they’re rounding up industry and education to help them reach that goal.  But, the workforce isn’t jumping on board as quickly as necessary.  There are employee shortages from electricians and plumbers to engineers and outfitters.

The discussion paper mentioned by Colin Imrie, Head of Energy, Markets Division, projects 26,000 jobs in renewable energy, 26,000 in emerging …

Text, photos and video by Thomas Bay Estrup
HafenCity’s green profile has helped Hamburg earn the title of European Green Capital 2011. Yet the people who live in HafenCity are not particularly concerned about saving the planet from global warming. Hamburg still faces major challenges to supply the city with energy and cut CO2 emissions.