What comes to mind when you think of royalty? Luxurious palaces, the Queen of England, and overused puns on Marie Antoinette's infamous one-liner?

How about chemical-free gardens, recycling, and sustainable seafood? Ruling families from around the globe are using their media magnetism and sovereign sway to draw attention to a variety of eco-causes, fighting climate change, greening their homelands, and making sure all that cake we're eating is organic too.

1. Prince Charles of England

An outspoken proponent of fighting climate change, Prince Charles has an across-the-board interest in environmental issues. He's advocated for tropical rainforest preservation through The Prince's Rainforests Project and brought attention to the rapid depletion of global fish stocks. After moving to the Highgrove country estate in Gloucestershire three decades ago, the prince took interest in back-to-basics farming and converted the Home Farm from conventional to organic food production. Deciding that this sustainable farming thing was a brilliant idea, he started Duchy Originals in 1992 to sell organic and sustainably produced goodies, from British tea classics to organic hair and body products.

2. Princess Basma bint Ali of Jordan

Princess Basma has earned a long list of awards and honors for her efforts to bring environmental issues into the limelight in Jordan. After becoming one of the first women in her country to earn navy diving certification, Princess Basma saw firsthand the damage that human waste and neglect have taken on the delicate coral reefs of Jordan's Red Sea coast. This inspired her to form the Jordan Royal Ecological Diving Society, which is focused on conserving Jordan's marine areas and educating citizens about the impacts of their activities on marine life. She also founded the Royal Botanic Garden, preserving the wide array of plants native to Jordan for generations to come. In recognition of these and many more initiatives, Princess Basma was honored with a spot on the U.N. Environment Program's Global 500 Roll of Honor.

3. Prince Albert II of Monaco

The website of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation declares that sustainability and protecting the environment are challenges that require "urgent and concrete action," and Prince Albert II tries to walk the talk, implementing sustainable practices in his own country and urging the world to do likewise. Monaco hosted the second international Ocean in a High-CO2 World symposium last October, during which the Monaco Declaration [PDF] on ocean acidification was drafted, calling for nations of the world to take immediate action to reduce CO2 emissions and thereby prevent damaging changes to ocean chemistry. Prince Albert wrote a foreword to the declaration, urging political leaders to get with the program. Recently, he called for removal of the over-fished bluefin tuna from the menus of all restaurants in the United Kingdom (it's already off all menus and shelves in Monaco). He has also promoted energy efficiency as a way to combat climate change. For efforts such as these, the U.N. named him a Champion of the Earth in 2008.

4. Princess Lalla Hasnaa of Morocco

As president of the Mohammed VI Foundation for the Protection of Environment, Princess Lalla Hasnaa has worked toward the revival of green spaces, better water management, and sweeping environmental education initiatives in Morocco. Cleaning up beaches, urging young people to report on environmental issues, and improving air quality are all in a day's work for this green princess. She says her "heart as a mother and as a Moroccan" is "worried when thinking that our sons and daughters do not have the right to live in a country respecting nature and its beauty." Thanks to her good work, all of Morocco's kids might inherit a greener nation.

Photo: Andrew Smith Lewis5. Princess Takamado of Japan

An avid bird enthusiast, Princess Takamado has championed the cause of avian conservation through her honorary presidency of BirdLife International, urging kids to get involved in the world of bird watching and establishing the Asia Bird Fund. In addition to her efforts on behalf of our feathered friends, she has spread the word about fragile ocean and Arctic environments through Lulie the Iceberg, a picture book for children about a breakaway iceberg's adventure from the Arctic to Antarctica--complete with a companion musical score featuring famed cellist Yo Yo Ma.

6. Princess Chulabhorn Walailak of Thailand

A chemist and medical researcher, Princess Chulabhorn has focused on genetic toxicology and the chemistry of natural products, studying, among other things, the health risks that air pollution poses to traffic police in Bangkok. She founded the International Center for Environmental and Industrial Toxicology, which was designated by the U.N. Environment Program as "a Center of Excellence," and the Chulabhorn Research Institute, which trains scientists and searches for solutions to problems related to the environment, agriculture, and health. In 2002, she was awarded the Environmental Mutagen Society Hollaender International Fellowship [PDF]. She has served as a special adviser to the U.N. Environment Program and was named by the U.N. to direct the Center of Excellence for Environmental and Industrial Toxicology.

7. Prince Hassan Bin Talal of Jordan

A supporter of the DESERTEC Foundation, which promotes massive solar power projects in North Africa, Prince Hassan (brother to Princess Basma) is a staunch advocate of clean, renewable energy. He delivered a swift kick (ahem) to fossil fuels by declaring that they are "a threat to our natural living conditions." Last year he gave a speech [PDF] before the United Nations General Assembly explaining how environmental issues relate to human security. For his efforts on behalf of the environment, this anti-petroleum prince was recognized as a 2007 Champion of the Earth by the U.N. Environment Program.

8. Queen Elizabeth II of England

Earlier this year, Queen Elizabeth (mother of Prince Charles) planted a chemical-free vegetable garden on a patch of the Buckingham Palace grounds--land that hasn't seen food production since the Victory Garden days of World War II. The queen has also expressed concerns about the effects of climate change on the poor and made the royal palaces more Earth-friendly by installing energy-efficient light bulbs and even a mini hydroelectric power plant for Windsor Castle.

Photo: Kanaka

9. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand

Princess Sirindhorn (sister to Princess Chulabhorn) has been involved in projects ranging from preserving the biodiversity of plant life in her country to improving water management. In an address on World Food Day in 2004, she spoke of how "biodiversity plays a key role in sustainable development and poverty alleviation." Recently she visited the Heliocentris headquarters in Berlin to talk about the future of renewable energy.

Photo: Milton Correa 10. King Carl Gustaf of Sweden

What do you have in common with the King of Sweden? If you recycle, then you'd feel right at home in his private kitchen, separating your imperial plastics from your aristocratic cans. King Carl Gustaf attributes his love for the environment to time spent outdoors with his nature-loving mother, but was inspired to take action against climate change after a voyage on an icebreaker with international climate scientists in 2004. He has since installed a pellet-fired boiler at Drottningholm Palace and launched a campaign to raise global awareness about climate change, an effort that won him special recognition in the U.N.-HABITAT Scroll of Honor in 2006. The king reconciles his love for cars with his concern for the environment by advocating for alternative fuels.

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First Things First: The Washington-to-Beijing diplomatic shuttle shows no sign of slowing down. Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke visited China this week to prod collaboration on clean energy technology. Chu announced the U.S. would contribute $15 million to a partnership that will study how to capture carbon dioxide emissions and trap them underground. The Wall Street Journal’s “Environmental Capital” blogger Keith Johnson sums up mutual perceptions nicely by citing headlines in his paper (“Chu Warns China on Emissions”) and the China Daily (”Steven Chu: U.S. Ready to Lead on Climate Change”).

The New York Times reports that China is taking the lead on clean energy. The Washington Post surveys business trends there and in other Asian nations, places that “could outpace the programs in Obama’s economic stimulus package or in the House climate bill.” A Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory official agrees that the U.S. is already left behind in some areas. And the number of U.S. “green jobs” is on the uptick–thanks to enterprising foreign firms.

The U.S. energy industry delivered a surprise this week. Exxon announced a plan to spend $600 million on research into fuel manufactured from algae. These simple plants, which include pond scum and seaweed, are a darling of many scientists and venture capital firms. Exxon’s investment further boosts the fortunes of maverick scientist Craig Venter, whose Synthetic Genomics is a partner in the project. Just a few years ago, Exxon’s previous CEO called ethanol “moonshine,” denigrating such projects, although it should be pointed out that moonshine is largely ethanol.

Count your carbs, count your carbon: Sweden assumed the presidency of the European Union earlier this month. The nation has had a carbon tax since the early 1990s, and continues to take the climate initiative, which now extends to food labeling.

With food or anything else, counting carbs is tricky business. Every facet of the climate story this week demonstrates why. In perhaps the most direct example, the Securities and Exchange Commission will take “a very serious look” at if or how to mandate that publicly traded companies disclose their climate risks.

Elsewhere, economic modeling spats continue. In California, small-business groups funded a study that suggests that, uh, small businesses will lose more than $180 billion in output –10 percent of the total–as a result of the state’s climate law. The California Air Resources Board says the study posits the climate law would bring no savings from increased efficiency or benefits from innovation and entrepreneurship, a supposition that “contradicts the track record of three decades” of state history.

Scientists are in the profession of keeping other scientists honest, theoretically. Computer simulations are such an easy activity to squawk at, scientists themselves do, in the most rarefied places, when they see less-than-rigorous studies published. As commentary on niche modeling, Nature publishes this paper that simulates the effects of climate change on Bigfoot habitats in North America.

The Washington Post runs another op-ed that pretends that climate change does not exist. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin pens this op-ed. She writes, “Westerners literally sit on mountains of oil and gas.” Climate Post usually thinks of mountains as solid, oil as liquid, and gas as gas. The latter two phases of matter seem harder to sit on.

Palin quotes Warren Buffett, the famed investor, describing predicted burdens the bill will have on low-income Americans. Buffett himself comes under scrutiny elsewhere. Bloomberg Columnist Eric Pooley untangles the assumptions in Buffett’s statements and those of David Sokol, chairman of MidAmerican Energy Holdings.

The next day, the WP ran an editorial supportive of the G8 summit in L’Aquila, Italy, last week, possibly to balance the decision to run Palin’s op-ed the day before.  Guardian columnist, and now backseat economist, George Monbiot takes a calculator to the aspirational agreements struck last week among G8 nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050 and prevent more than two degrees C of warming. The developed world would meet their targets in part by offseting their emissions with credits generated by projects in the developing world. To generate enough offset credits, Monbiot calculates, developing nations would have to reduce their emissions by 125 percent.

Climate legislation allows regulated firms to meet their carbon caps by “offsetting” emissions–buying pollution credits generated by (mostly) forestry and agriculture projects. A comprehensive Greenwire article places offsets within the wider context of how markets can find efficient ways to protect ecosystem services–the many natural processes that clean water, or air, shuttle nutrients about, or cool the climate. Two Nicholas Institute colleagues are cited in the piece.

Summer Days: “Exceptional drought” sears central and southern Texas, draining crops and straining herds. Just one of 12 boat ramps at Lake Travis, near Austin, can reach water, which is down 40 feet. Plus side: Young children can wade safely in nearby river.

Officials, scientists, and at least one reporter in Macon, Georgia, have read the White House’s June report, Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States, which predicts a future of twice as many 90-degree days, with the hottest days 10 degrees hotter than usual. “When I read those numbers, I think about what that means to me and my family and my lifestyle, and that’s a very different picture of the South than what I grew up with,” a Georgia Tech scientist said.

The summer sun has desiccated San Joaquin Valley in California, and the U.S. need only look south to consider the effects of poorly managed water.

Dryness is crippling farming in India’s massive farming sector. Bhopal residents, all 1.8 million of them, are allowed 30 minutes of water every other day, in rationing undertaken in October. Downpours and flooding in Mumbai couldn’t help Mumbai, where officials cut water use by 30 percent given a drop in lake levels.

BBC reports from Char Atra, a beleaguered island in the Ganges, where “hardcore poor” residents cope as they can with natural hydrology. Villagers have rebuilt one woman’s home because last year, “there was so much water in her hut that she had to tie her children to their bed at night to stop them from rolling and drowning.”

Does he still count?: Love him or hate him, leading NASA climatologist James Hansen has become an embattled figure. ClimateWire turns in a thoughtful analysis of just how relevant the grandfather of global warming is or isn’t in his activist period, a skeptical complement to the lighter fare published by the New Yorker recently.

Hansen and Al Gore held a colloquium in Hell, which itself, apparently, has seen a 3.8 degree average temperature rise since 1955. “[O]ccupants of Hell who in 1955 were standing night and day in boiling pitch up to their knees report that, owing to the expansion of pitch at higher temperatures, they now must endure the torment all the way up to mid-thigh, or even higher, during Hell’s warmer seasons,” writes Ian Frazier, a satirist, the New Yorker’s tongue-in-cheek “Shouts and Murmurs column.”

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City preps and countries posture ahead of Copenhagen talks

STOCKHOLM—Sweden’s government on Wednesday presented what it described as Europe’s “most ambitious” strategy to improve energy efficiency and cut greenhouse gas emissions.

  “As the first industrialized country, we are presenting a concrete plan towards becoming independent of fossil fuels and reducing emissions to a level that the climate requires,” Environment Minister Andreas Carlgren said.

  The government said it now aims by 2020 for renewable energy to comprise 50 percent of all energy produced, for the Swedish car fleet to be independent of fossil fuels 10 years later and for the country to be carbon neutral by 2050.

  “The proposal we are presenting is as a whole the most ambitious climate and energy policy presented by any European country,” the statement said.

  The centre-right coalition said it would among other things hike taxes on cars related to carbon dioxide emissions, reduce taxes on clean-fuel cars and increase investments in carbon offset projects in developing countries.

  The government will double its annual contribution to energy efficiency measures to SEK300 million (€27 million, $34 million) between 2010 and 2014.

  The targets presented Wednesday were bolder than those set last year when the European Commission presented individual targets for reducing CO2 emissions for each of the 27 members, handing Sweden one of the heaviest burdens in its aim to cut the E.U.‘s overall emissions by 20 percent from 1990 levels by 2020.

  Sweden, which now plans to slash its greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent from its 1990 levels within the next 11 years, was asked to cut CO2 output by just 17 percent.

  “We are now raising our ambition level and increasing our climate policy pace,” Carlgren said, adding that “Swedish businesses can become world leaders in the transformation of transportation and housing.”

  Sweden, which will take over the EU presidency in July, wants to secure its leadership on the issue ahead of the signing of a new global pact on climate change in Copenhagen in December, he said.

source:

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STOCKHOLM—The ozone layer over Sweden was thicker in February than it has been in decades, the Swedish meteorological institute SMHI said on Tuesday.

Measurements taken at SMHI’s station in Norrkoeping, just south of Stockholm, showed the ozone layer was at its thickest in February since recordings there began in 1988, with a measurement of 426 Dobson units.

At the Vindeln station in northern Sweden, where measurements started in 1991, a record high of 437 DU was recorded.

“We have to go as far back to the measurements taken in Uppsala between 1951 and 1966” to find levels that high, SMHI said in a statement.

There, the highest level for February was in 1957, when a value of 439 DU was recorded.

The circumpolar whirl over the Arctic—a polar high pressure system formed of a distinct column of cold air that develops during the long polar night—disappeared very quickly in mid-January, and the stratosphere warmed up quickly in the space of a few days, SMHI explained.

As a result, “the low temperatures that usually cause rapid depletion of the ozone layer did not take place,” it said.

The institute, which only a year ago recorded the second-thinnest levels of ozone ever, said it was too early to tell whether the ozone layer was improving in general.

“We would need to see more high values before we can say with certainty that the ozone layer is growing thicker. However we are now in a period where the decrease appears to have halted and we expect to see a thickening,” it said.

The ozone layer over Sweden usually reaches its thickest level during the spring, before thinning during the summer and reaching a minimum during the winter, according to SMHI.

Ozone provides a natural protective filter against harmful ultra-violet rays from the sun, which can cause sunburn, cataracts and skin cancer and damage vegetation.

Its depletion is caused by extreme cold temperatures at high altitude and a particular type of pollution, from chemicals often used in refrigeration, some plastic foams, or aerosol sprays, which have accumulated in the atmosphere.

Most of these chemicals, chlorofluorocarbons, are being phased out under the 1987 Montreal Protocol, but they linger in the atmosphere for many years.

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A crematorium in the Swedish town of Halmstad, which has been criticized for its heavy pollution, has announced plans to use the waste heat from its body-burning operations to heat its own facilities and eventually also heat other buildings in town. Cemetery director Lennart Andersson said of the plan, “Of course it’s possible that there will be some discussion about the ethics of this, but from our side, this is a purely environmental idea. There will be no difference in the ashes.”

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Obama headed to Copenhagen, sets the bar for success

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Industrialized countries have promised to put more than $6.1 billion in the World Bank's Climate Investment Funds, which aim to boost clean technologies and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions in developing countries. On Friday, the United States pledged $2 billion over three years; Britain will chip in $1.47 billion and Japan $1.2 billion, with contributions from Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland making up the rest. Two trust funds will be created under the Climate Investment Fund umbrella: The Clean Technology Fund will invest in projects that "contribute to the demonstration, deployment, and transfer of low-carbon technologies" and "have a significant potential for long-term greenhouse-gas savings"; the Strategic Climate Fund will "serve as an overarching fund for various programs to test innovative approaches to climate change." The World Bank will announce the first beneficiaries of the funds in early 2009.

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Heading to IKEA for some meatballs and easy-to-assemble furniture? You may soon be able to pick up solar panels as well. The Swedish manufacturer plans to invest some $75 million in a handful of cleantech startups, focusing on the areas of solar energy, lighting, sustainable materials, energy efficiency, and water conservation. Ultimately, IKEA has a goal of stocking its shelves with products like ABBA smart meters and Ace of Base solar panels (OK, we made up the names). Any cleantech products offered by IKEA, which hosts half a billion shoppers in its 270 stores in 35 countries each year, will meet the company motto of "affordable solutions for better living," assures the company's Johan Stenebo. And what you come across at your hometown IKEA could be dependent on location, says Stenebo: "It's quite natural that, for instance, solar panels are more interesting to Spaniards and Californians and so forth than they would be to Swedes."

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Swedish biofuel company SEKAB says it will become the first company to vend ethanol verified to be environmentally and socially sustainable. The company is partnering with Brazilian producers to develop criteria for the full lifecycle of fuel-bound sugarcane, verifying that the fuel was not produced through child or slave labor, was processed in fair working conditions for fair wages, and did not contribute to rainforest destruction. "This initiative is the first of its kind in the world and a major step for speeding up the replacement of gasoline and diesel," says Anders Fredriksson of SEKAB. "The criteria will gradually be developed over the coming years and synchronized with international regulations when these are in place." In the meantime, flex-fuel vehicle drivers in Sweden should be able to fill up on SEKAB's sustainable ethanol by August.

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Sweden hosts Chinese president, global environment ministers

What we learned today: while researching eco-news from Sweden, you might stumble upon some juicy tidbits. Like the fact that tennis player Björn Borg was severely bitten by a dog this weekend, or that the organizers of a future museum dedicated to ABBA have found a location in Stockholm! But since you are a professional, you will not let such news distract you from your purpose. Which is to report that Chinese President Hu Jintao has just wrapped up a three-day visit to Sweden, during which he affirmed his country's commitment to battling global warming and supporting sustainable development. Among several pacts signed by the two countries was an agreement to share information on environmental technologies. The same day Jintao departed, 30 environment ministers from around the globe descended for the "Midnight Sun summit," an informal chat about climate-change strategies. The meeting, expected to address emissions trading, technology, and deforestation, will take place behind closed doors.

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Green by design.

Photo: IKEA

Last week, IKEA U.S. announced a "bag the plastic bag" initiative: the retailer will charge a nickel for plastic bags to discourage their use, donating all revenue to the nonprofit conservation group American Forests. The store will also let shoppers walk away with one of its iconic reusable blue bags for 59 cents. Pleasant enough news, but it struck me as somewhat cosmetic. Hadn't I heard that IKEA's commitment to sustainability went much further than this?

A little poking around on the IKEA website uncovered a set of practices that puts every big U.S. retailer to shame. From the wood in its products to the factory conditions of its suppliers to the energy efficiency of its distribution network, IKEA has outlined tough, progressive standards almost unheard of in the U.S. Now it's working to move all its stores to completely renewable energy.

Why not brag about that stuff instead of the bags? I contacted IKEA's head of social and environmental responsibility, Thomas Bergmark, at the company's headquarters in Sweden to find out the details behind this unassuming approach.

Tell me a little bit about this initiative in the U.S. with the plastic bags.

Thomas Bergmark.

It might be the first campaign where we are more on the offense. The basic strategy not only in the U.S. but in all our markets has been to be quiet, low-key. We should first do and then talk. We have from time to time been a bit criticized because we have been too quiet. Different stakeholders have realized that we try hard and we do a lot -- so why don't we talk about it? We have now for three years issued a yearly social and environmental report on the web. We communicate more in different kinds of media, of course in the catalogue and in IKEA family magazines for our customer club and so forth. This campaign is one step in that direction, to be more aggressive and more transparent in these issues.

How does IKEA view its obligation to the environment?

We have a vision for business that was written more than 30 years ago. It's about creating a better everyday life for the people. Today, it's obvious to care about the people, you have to care about the environment.

The starting point for our sustainability is the people and the culture. We have a very strong company culture. One of the cornerstones since IKEA was founded more than 60 years ago is to care about resources -- we are clever with resources. For the first 20 years, this was only about turning and twisting the materials to utilize them in the best possible way, to save on material and thereby save on costs. But today we know it's a perfect win-win also for the environment. You save on the resources, you save on the environment. That has evolved over the decades.

Then of course there is the core business side as well. We are more than aware of that. We have to take responsibility for these issues if customers are to trust us today and in the future. We are convinced that if we work hard on sustainability and make progress, it will build trust in our consumers and with the IKEA brand. The culture issues and the business issues meet with the brand and the IKEA logo.

Has IKEA tried to make its stores green?

We're focusing more and more on that. First of all, we are setting up an IKEA standard, which includes the different steps in establishing a store. The first step is to look into a site, the land and such, to make sure we are not stepping into any sensitive areas that should be protected for biodiversity or other reasons. We consider the building materials we use when building new stores. Now we also consider environmental issues.

Then, of course, it's about operations -- energy, water issues related to the stores. We do a really good job on waste sorting and recycling compared to many other retailers. Then there's the maintenance of the stores. And at the end of the day, it's the products we put in the stores.

What we recently started up on an international level is an extra focus on energy. We have set a long-term direction to supply all IKEA buildings with renewable energy, which means electricity and heating. We're also working on energy efficiency, to get 25 percent more energy efficient.

Will the renewable-energy goal be met by buying offsets, or is there going to be on-site generation as well?

The basic idea is to, as far as possible, produce the energy ourselves, at the sites, with solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal heating/cooling. For new stores, we are looking to build it in. Then for all existing stores, we have to do analysis on the different options of retrofit. Some units might be tricky, and we'll have to see how to compensate that with carbon credits, or maybe by producing energy at another place and putting it back into the grid -- maybe creating a balance like that.

Do you have a specific deadline or target to get to completely renewable energy?

We have set the first step for 2009, where we're going to reach 60 percent renewable energy and 15 percent more energy efficient. Then, based on analysis we are doing right now, we will set the end goals, hopefully during this calendar year.

One traditional environmental objection to big-box chain stores is that shipping goods from all over the world is incredibly energy intensive. Is that on IKEA's radar?

Photo: IKEA

Yes, for sure. Distribution is one of the focus areas for IKEA, and has been for quite a few years. What we have done for more than 50 years, which we benefit from still, is the flat pack. We save volume, which is simple but important because it makes a big, big difference in transport work. We've had a [producers] code of conduct for more than six years now, about social, environmental, and working conditions. And we have a similar code of conduct now for our transport carriers -- one and a half years ago we put requirements in these fields.

Transport is a challenging area. I have to admit, it's one of the tougher ones to change, because it is a traditional business, where you don't see too many groundbreaking solutions. What is coming now is more biofuels, and we are supporting that -- hopefully we can use more and more biofuels for trucks, especially in the near future.

What about trying to source from local or regional suppliers?

Yes, for sure. One reason for having a trading organization in America is to supply North American stores. Our stores in America are still depending on imports from Europe and Asia, no question about that. But as the market grows and we build more stores, we'll also increase the possibilities for local sourcing and thereby reduce the shipping [impacts].

Have you encountered resistance from suppliers, or have you found that they're eager to work with you when you put these kind of social and environmental restrictions on how they operate?

It differs. You can say suppliers in Europe and the Americas are generally more positive. If we speak about Asia, it differs a lot. Some suppliers, they buy the concept right away. Others are very ... I would say not resistant but questioning -- why should we do this? It is a big job to convince them to start the process.

Some of these suppliers after a while think, no, it's too much, so they'll say, we are leaving IKEA. We have to live with that. Other suppliers, they go through a different journey. They explain it like this to me, that when they first got the requirements, they thought it was a lot, but since they had a good experience with IKEA for many years, they thought, these guys from IKEA, they're clever, so we'll give it a try. Then they get going. I have a couple of cases of suppliers I have met in Asia that tell me, "You know what happened next? I got a couple of new potential customers visiting my factory the other week, and they asked about code of conduct issues and environmental and working conditions. And I could show them what I have been doing so far together with IKEA. And I got new business."

It boils down to what it has to be about at the end of the day: business. It has to be about improving conditions in the factories, for people and the environment, and at the end of the day also improving the productivity and competitiveness of the suppliers.

Are you going to try to ramp up communications and PR around environmental issues?

Yeah, communications and information. We're definitely not the company that wants to ring the big bell and do a lot of heavy marketing. Actions like the blue bag campaign, now, that's fine, but you will not see campaigns on billboards. We will make information about our sustainability efforts more easily available to different stakeholders, including the customers in our stores. That we are working on -- to be more transparent, to be more visible in these issues. It's expected from our customers.

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Sweden shuts down four nuke reactors after near-meltdown of one

The near-meltdown of one of Sweden's 10 nuclear reactors has resulted in the closure of three additional reactors over safety concerns. It's also fueled a raging debate in the country over the future of nuclear power. After a short-circuit of the national grid kept power from reaching a reactor at the Forsmark plant 125 miles north of Stockholm, only two of the four diesel generators meant to provide backup power for a safe shutdown came online -- barely enough to contain a disaster, critics said. Analysts say that without power, if none or even just one of the generators had come on, a meltdown was possible in some 90 minutes. "It's a bit like a lottery," said nuclear engineer and consultant Lars-Olov Hoglund. (Just what you like to hear from nuclear engineers!) In the 1980s, anti-nuke activism was all the rage in the country. Looks like that retro fashion may be back in style.

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Sweden aims to be oil-free in 15 years

It's official: Sweden is the coolest ... country ... evar. Already widely admired for meatballs, Ikea, and, um, other Swedish stuff, the country has now announced its aim to have an oil-free economy by 2020. The Swedes cut the percentage of their energy coming from oil from 77 percent in 1970 to 32 percent in 2003, and they're favoring biofuels over nuclear power to get them down to zero. Only 8 percent of Swedish homes are heated by oil today, and thanks to tax breaks, Swedes can fill their Saabs with ethanol-based fuel for a third less than they'd spend on ordinary gasoline. Upon hearing that President Bush had declared America addicted to oil, Swedish Prime Minister Goran Persson expressed relief that "at last there's one more who understands the problem." Guess he didn't get Bush's "didn't mean it" follow-up memo. Awkward! (Note that this blurb contained not a single Swedish Chef joke -- that's the kind of maturity we bring to environmental journalism.)

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Stockholm is second Euro capital to charge for driving into the city

All the cool cities are doing it! (Wait, is Stockholm cool?) This week, Sweden's capital began a trial run of a new system that will charge for the privilege of driving into the city, and officials have declared it a success so far. On the first day of the new fees -- which can run up to $7.50 a day -- the number of cars traveling into central Stockholm fell by a quarter, and commuters reported bigger crowds on public transit. The government hopes the congestion-charge system will reduce traffic on the busiest roads by 10 to 15 percent and improve air quality. Stockholmers have been polling squarely against the charges, even though they tend to agree that traffic jams are a real problem. They'll get to vote in September on whether to make the system permanent. In London, where congestion charges were established in 2001, traffic has gone down by 18 percent and the city now has plans to extend the zone in which drivers are charged.

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Sweden starts shutting down nuke plants, despite some reservations

At midnight last night, technicians at Sweden's Barseback-2 nuclear reactor hit the off button (or something), shutting down the country's oldest nuclear power plant for good. Vattenfall, the state-owned company that operated the facility, will now funnel $1 billion toward building northern Europe's biggest wind farm. The country's 10 remaining nuke facilities will be shut down in a few years. Is this some green's fevered fantasy? Nope -- it's real, and it's more complicated than it sounds. In a 1980 referendum, Swedes voted to phase out nuclear power in favor of renewables like wind and solar. That sounds peachy and all, but surveys show that some 80 percent are having second thoughts. Why? Well, it starts with "global" and ends with "warming." Clean energy won't be able to immediately fill the gap -- 40 percent of the country's power now comes from nuclear -- and some Swedes are worried that they'll end up importing energy from coal and gas plants elsewhere in Europe, thus generating more greenhouse gases. Quite a conundrum, bork bork bork!

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Sweden is setting the world's standard for balancing economic growth with environmental protections, according to a report released last week by the Swiss-based World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the Canadian International Development Research Center. The report used standards-of-living indicators such as quality of social services, infrastructure, education, and government, as well as assessing each country's financial well being. To gauge environmental success, the report looked at land use, water and air quality, biodiversity, and resource use. Scandinavia swept the rankings, with Finland and Norway placing second and third. The U.S., meanwhile, came in 27th out of 180, below Germany, Japan, and developing countries such as the Dominican Republic, Uruguay, and Surinam.

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