Sustainable Living in the Nordics

Sustainable Living is striving to make sustainable choices the new norm in the Nordic Region. Through our cross-sectoral programme consisting of six projects, we aim to simplify living in a climate-friendly way, provide concrete guidelines and tools, and inspire behavioral and cultural changes. Join us in creating a more integrated and sustainable Nordic region by 2030. Read more about the programme here.


News from the project

Norden Launches New Green Roadmap for Cultural Institutions

The Sustainable Living project Sustainable cultural experiences has rolled out a new green roadmap, aiming to set cultural institutions across the Nordic region on a path toward efficient resource use and achieving the necessary CO2 reductions by 2030. This tool is set to accelerate green development within these institutions, offering clear guidelines for action-based sustainability work at both operational and managerial levels.

With the goal of creating more sustainable cultural experiences and meeting the EU’s Green Deal and the Paris Agreement targets by 2030 and 2050, every organization is encouraged to participate in this green shift. Cultural institutions, being cornerstones in their communities and countries, will play a crucial role in implementing and promoting sustainability measures.

The roadmap is designed to support cultural institutions through practical and strategic measures, aiming to not only reduce emissions related to the sector but also to minimize environmental impact. Achieving this requires setting clear goals, taking bold actions, and thinking long-term. The roadmap addresses six main areas, providing concrete introductions to the issues and specific action points for the strategy, management, and operation of cultural institutions.

The roadmap is publicly available, free of charge, and all cultural institutions and similar organizations are encouraged to utilize this tool. It is planned to be presented at relevant organizations and cultural meeting places in the Nordic countries throughout the fall.

Norden’s House in the Faroe Islands has served as the secretariat for the roadmap project, with the secretariat of the roadmap project led by project owner Inger Smærup Sørensen (DK/FO) and project manager Linnéa E. Vågen Svensson (NO/SE).

The roadmap can be found here.

Nordic Food Waste Summit 2023 – setting the stage for greater collaboration

For two days, ministers, entrepreneurs, activists, and royalty stood side by side at the Nordic Food Waste Summit 2023 in the common battle against wasted resources − through political panel discussions, visionary keynotes, coffee-fueled networking, and concrete business cases.

This brief provides a summary of some of the discussions and conclusions that arose from the summit and the action needed ahead. Access the publication here.

Hard to get. Easy to choose.

That is the tagline for the first cross-Nordic campaign of the Nordic Swan Ecolabel. Raising awareness of the Nordic Swan Ecolabel as a tool for Nordic consumers and businesses to make sustainable choices is an important part of the Nordic Swan Ecolabel project within the Sustainable Living programme. The ecolabel is continuously raising the bar for companies applying to get the label – to ensure that the Nordic Swan Ecolabel is the strictest ecolabel in the Nordics.

Read more about the project here.

Foto: Fotograf Sigurjón Ragnar / norden.org

Sustainable education on the agenda at ministerial meeting in Iceland

Teaching sustainability is crucial to prepare our kids for the challenges of the future. From preschool to adult learning, the Nordic school system is working to raise awareness, empower students, and counter climate angst. Through Nordic collaboration on methods and tools, all countries can move forward faster. How to make this happen was high on the agenda of the first-ever joint meeting of Nordic Ministers of Education and the Chairs of the National Teachers’ Associations in the countries. The meeting was hosted by the Icelandic Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers and the project Education for Sustainable Living.


Read more about the project here.
Read an article about the meeting at Norden.org here.