Summer travel took me out of the US and back to Sweden for the first time in five years. While my initial reaction was that things seemed much the same, I quickly realized that the Swedes had quietly pushed forward a number of projects that, if located in the US, would be on the vanguard of sustainability. But over there it's just called urban planning.
Sweden
Facebook Building Server Farm in Sweden for Passive Cooling
Internet server farms suck up enormous amounts of energy keeping all those mainframes cool. So Facebook has announced it will build in Northern Sweden and use only the natural air to chill their facility.
The Telegraph
Stockholm's Transportation Remodel
In Stockholm, Sweden, planners are moving ahead with a broad central city redevelopment plan that seeks to continue the city's trend of reducing car traffic and congestion, and making it easier for bikers, walkers and transit takers to get around.
Citiwire
Learning From Sweden: Green Cars Don't Reduce Emissions
Despite having the world's most energy efficient, least polluting auto fleet, greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector continue to rise in Sweden.
Common Dreams
Transport is Key in Science Hub
A hub of information and communications technology known as Kista Science City in Stockholm, Sweden, has focused on intelligent transportation to fuel its success.
Next American City
The Solution for Helmet Hair
Two industrial design students at Lund University noticed that despite a new law requiring bike helmets in Sweden, many people refused to wear them. They've invented a stylish cowl that inflates on impact just like an airbag.
Core77
Multi-Family Housing to Cure Loneliness
The Swedish, apparently, long for community. Kjellgren Kaminsky Architecture has proposed a redesign for an abandoned sanitarium, turning it into a green, multi-family community.
Fast Company
Sweden Goes YIMBY
In Stockholm, Sweden, a new group calling themselves YIMBY 'Yes in My Backyard' is promoting a vision of a dense, dynamic city.
The Christian Science Monitor - Global News Blog
Stockholm's Congestion Pricing Cuts Traffic, Boosts Clean Vehicle Sales
Stockholm's congestion charge is not only reducing traffic and greenhouse gas emissions, it's also increasing sales of alternative fuel vehicles.
The New York Times
America's Killer Roads
This oped takes on American street design and blames it for causing countless road injuries and deaths.
The Boston Globe
Moving A City
This piece from Wired looks at the Swedish mining town of Kiruna that is literally picking itself up and moving.
Wired
Sweden Creates Sewage-Powered Cars, But Auto Industry Lags Behind
Household sewage is currently fueling cars in Sweden, and has for years. But Swedish industry has given up on the idea, investing in ethanol-based gasoline.
International Herald Tribune
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