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The working group on Sustainable Consumption and Production, under the Nordic Council of Ministers requested consultants from Gaia to identify and write out best Nordic practice cases of sustainable consumption and production to be shared internationally within the UNEP SCP Clearinghouse. This report is the third part of three reports and covers 15 examples of two particular themes on: 1) Sustainable Buildings and Constructions 2) Sustainable Food Systems The cases have also been added into the UNEP’s 10 Year Frame-work Program (10YFP) information platform, the SCP Clearinghouse. The objective is to enhance international cooperation in order to accelerate a shift towards sustainable consumption and production in developed and developing countries. The SCP Clearinghouse is a web-based information sharing tool, which can be used as an inspiration for advancing SCP worldwide.

The 2030 Agenda, adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 2015, outlines an ambitious and universal plan of action for people, planet and prosperity as it seeks to strengthen universal peace and freedom. This report presents national and Nordic action on Agenda 2030 with the aim to inform and support the Nordic Council of Ministers in formulating a new Nordic Sustainable Development Programme. All Nordic countries are engaged and strongly committed to implementing Agenda 2030 and there is a broad societal interest in joint Nordic action. The existing Nordic Strategy for Sustainable Development and several other key initiatives within Nordic cooperation already contribute to the goals of Agenda 2030. A new Nordic Sustainable Development Programme can build upon a strong foundation and add further value to the national and international work done by the Nordic countries.

The working group on Sustainable Consumption and Production, under the Nordic Council of Ministers requested consultants from Gaia to identify, write out and publish best practice cases of sustainable consumption and production on the UNEP SCP Clearinghouse. This report presents nineteen initiatives that cover two particular themes: 1) Sustainable Lifestyles and Education and 2) Sustainable Public Procurement. The cases have also been added into the UNEP’s 10 Year Frame-work Program (10YFP) information platform, the SCP Clearinghouse which is a concrete result of Rio+20. The objective is to enhance international cooperation in order to accelerate a shift towards sustainable consumption and production in developed and developing countries. The SCP Clearinghouse is a web-based information sharing tool, which can be used by different actors as an inspiration for advancing SCP worldwide.

The study assesses to what extent the production and use of advanced sustainable jet fuel may contribute to GHG reduction and mitigation, and identifies the commercial potential for initiating and scaling up advanced sustainable jet fuel production at a Nordic level. The report explores as well on how to most efficiently use the available Nordic know-how, feedstock and production facilities. The report draws on the latest available reports and statistics, as well as interviews with stakeholders and experts across the Nordic countries, concludes on identifying the most matured technologies, the Nordic opportunities and challenges, and ideas to mitigate the barriers within the Nordic private and public sectors.

The working group on Sustainable Consumption and Production, under the Nordic Council of Ministers requested consultants from Gaia to identify and write out best Nordic practice cases of sustainable consumption and production to be shared internationally within the UNEP SCP Clearinghouse. This report is the second part and covers in total 19 examples of two particular themes on: 1) Sustainable Tourism 2) Consumer Information The cases have also been added into the UNEP’s 10 Year Frame-work Program (10YFP) information platform, the SCP Clearinghouse. The objective is to enhance international cooperation in order to accelerate a shift towards sustainable consumption and production in developed and developing countries. The SCP Clearinghouse is a web-based information sharing tool, which can be used by different actors as an inspiration for advancing SCP worldwide.

The EU’s Directive 2012/27/EU on energy efficiency obliges Member States to develop programmes to encourage small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to improve energy efficiency by implementing energy audits and the recommendations that stem from these audits. This study looks at the barriers that SMEs face and the existing policy instruments in more detail and analyses which practices are working. The study concludes that SMEs cannot be effectively targeted with solely uniform solutions even within the same country and even though many of them face similar barriers. More emphasis is needed on sharing information and best practices and guiding SMEs to implement energy efficiency improvements after having identified the opportunities. The good news is that many good practices already exist and there is potential to improve. Now it is just a question of taking action.

The objectives of this study were to identify the innovation-oriented challenges as well as areas with high growth potential within the Nordic bioeconomy. The study produced background data concerning the volume and constituents of bioeconomy in the Nordic countries using NACE codes. According to the estimate, the total turnover of the key bioeconomy sectors in Nordic countries is roughly 184 000 M€, this is 10% of the total economy. Key findings from the business ecosystem analysis show that market access is the key step to successful bioeconomy innovation, along with end user involvement and utilization of existing infrastructure. Areas within bio-based chemicals, biomaterials, biofules and bioenergy, biorefineries, resource-efficiency and industrial symbiosis and services based on ecosystem services havehigh innovation and growth potential of bioeconomy. The obstacles of innovation in Nordic bioeconomy are lack of capital and funding, unstable operating environment due to changing regulation, market access and lack of number of actors involved in the ecosystems. Areas for further development to better tackle the identified obstacles include networking and developing a common understanding of the roles of different stakeholders, making processes for seeking support and financing easier for SMEs and promoting cross-sector transfer of existing or new applications for existing processes. Venture capitalists should be included in the networks to ensure they are better able to recognize the potential of commercial viable bioeconomy concepts. More focus may also be needed to link the support to finding commercially viable applications with the markets and customers.

Julkisten tietovarantojen mahdollisimman tehokkaan käytön on katsottu tuottavan uutta tietoa ja palveluita sekä lisäävän hyvinvointia. Kerätyn ympäristötiedon heikko hyödyntäminen yritystoiminnassa on kuitenkin jo pitkään tiedossa ollut ongelma. Syitä tähän voi etsiä ympäristötiedon epäkaupallisesta luonteesta, sen keräämistavoista ja saatavuudesta tai esimerkiksi julkisen sektorin vahvasta roolista toimialalla. Järvien vedenlaatupalvelu -hankkeessa (Tekes, 2009-2012) haluttiin edistää julkisen tiedon hyödyntämistä yksityisellä sektorilla sekä kehittää yhteistyötä eri toimijoiden välillä. Lähtökohtana oli paikallisen tutkimusinfrastruktuurin kehittäminen niin, että eri lähteistä kerätty vedenlaadun mittaustieto olisi tietokannan kautta helposti yritysten käytettävissä. Lisäksi hankkeessa tutkittiin eri käyttäjien tarpeita vedenlaatutiedolle, kehitettiin menetelmiä tiedon tarkkuuden parantamiseksi sekä luotiin muun muassa lyhyen aikavälin ennustemalleja. Konkreettinen tulos oli myös uuden “jokamiehen” vedenlaadun mittalaitteen kehittäminen. Tämä esimerkiksi matkapuhelimen kameran käyttöön perustuva mittalaite tuo uusia mahdollisuuksia edullisen vedenlaatutiedon keräämiseen, kansalaishavainnointiin ja samalla myös erilaiseen liiketoimintaan. Julkiseen ympäristötietoon perustuvaa liiketoimintaa pohdittiin kahdessa työpajassa. Työpajoissa keskusteltiin siihen liittyvistä haasteista ja mahdollisuuksista sekä myös ideoitiin uusia julkiseen ympäristötietoon perustuvia liiketoimintamahdollisuuksia. Tässä julkaisussa pohditaan julkisen ja yksityisen sektorin yhteistyön mahdollisuuksia Järvien vedenlaatupalvelu -hankkeen tulosten pohjalta.

The report reviews the different initiatives aiming to measure aspects of “green” sectors, jobs and technologies. The report discusses whether the statistics collected under the present initiatives aimed at measuring these aspects increase insights into the fundamental questions motivating the initiatives. An alternative framework is suggested, as it appears fundamentally impossible to make consistent frameworks for a division of the economy into “green” and “non-green” activities. The analysis has been carried out during the period September 2011 – March 2012 by Vista Analysis AS, Gaia Consulting Oy and University of Aarhus. Gaia Consulting Oy is responsible for the chapters 5.2., 5.3, 6.2, 6.3 and 7.2 only. The project was commissioned by the Working Group on Environment and Economy under the Nordic Council of Ministers.