Category Archives: Green-tech

China, Chinese circle, Environment, Green-tech, News

China calls for submission of applicable technologies for contest

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Stockholm, Aug.26 (Greenpost)–China is calling for submission of applicable technologies for technologies contest in environmental protection.

The news was released by the delegation from Ministry of Environment Protection of China  during the ongoing  World Water Week in Stockholm during Aug. 23-28, 2015.

The details is as the following:

Dear Distinguished Partner/Counterpart/Expert/Resource Person,

 

FIRST 3IPET TOP 100 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

TECHNOLOGIES CONTEST

CALL FOR SUBMISSION OF APPLICABLE TECHNOLOGIES

 

As part of efforts to protect the environment and address the challenges of air, water and soil pollution through appropriate prevention and control strategies, the Foreign Economic Cooperation Office (FECO), with the support of the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) of China, established the Integrated, Intelligent, and International Platform for Environmental Technology (3iPET). 3iPET aims at taking advantages of the technologies and cooperation network of governments, companies, and private organizations in China and other countries to provide both online and offline services to showcase and promote Chinese and foreign environmental technologies to solve the environmental problems locally and globally.

FECO is organizing the first ever 3iPET contest to select the top 100 environmental protection technologies in each of the areas of air, water and soil (including solid waste) pollution prevention and control. The contest will be organized between August and October 2015, and the best 100 adjudged technologies in each of the three categories will be published in the “Top 100 technologies for 3iPET” for Air, Water and Soil (including solid waste) pollution prevention and control. The selected technologies will be promoted through the 3iPET platform.

In recognition of the expertise and active involvement of your organization in the promotion of environmentally sound technologies (ESTs) and the global network of your programmes and activities we hereby solicit for your support and assistance in disseminating the information about the contest within and outside China to environmental technology suppliers and promoters. Please find attached information materials and guidelines on the contest. The electronic copies of the information materials and guidelines can be downloaded from the official FECO website at www.mepfeco.gov.cn

It will be appreciated if you can kindly assist in publicizing the contest by disseminating the attached information and materials. Please revert in case you need additional information or further clarifications.

We thank you for your support and cooperation.

(signed)

Chen Liang

Director General

Foreign Economic Cooperation Office

Ministry of Environmental Protection of China

 

To whom it may concern:

Call for Participation in 3iPET Cooperation Hubs

In order to advance environmental protection in China, the development and adoption of advanced and practical environmental technologies are an important means to improve environmental quality. At the same time, China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” promotes the continuing trend for Chinese environmental technologies and industries to “go out” to promote clean development globally. To support China’s efforts in the “three battles” of preventing and controlling water, air and soil pollution, and its implementation of the “Belt and Road Initiative”, the Foreign Economic Cooperation Office of Ministry of Environment Cooperation (MEP/FECO) developed the International, Intelligent and Integrated Platform for Environmental Technologies (3iPET), relying on its advantages in international cooperation in environmental protection. 3iPET was officially launched in June 8th, 2015.

 

3iPET relies on the Internet and powerful database, and combines online and offline service. Its functions include integration and exhibition, evaluation and screening, matchmaking and promotion of environmental technologies, technology services, which serves as an exchange and communication platform. Its goals include promoting domestic and foreign exchange and cooperation with respect to environmental technologies, facilitating import and export of environmental technologies, and providing technical support for China’s efforts in pollution control. The organizational structure of 3iPET includes a steering committee, strategic partners, technology service alliances, a domestic and international cooperation hub platform, and expert consultancy teams. For further information, please visit http://3ipet.mepfeco.org.cn.

 

We now sincerely call for your joining 3iPET as an international cooperation hub. The international cooperation hubs will conduct information exchange with 3iPET. Through 3iPET, international hubs can obtain information about domestic and international environmental protection policies, global environmental technologies, domestic and international projects, and industrial cooperation opportunities, and will be responsible for providing information about international environmental protection policies, advanced abroad environmental technologies providers, international technological mergers & acquisitions and related projects abroad on a regular basis. Additionally, 3iPET will cooperate with hubs to support technology matchmaking, technology promotion, industrial incubation, project demonstration, financial and business combination opportunities, and policy dissemination.

 

If you are interested, please complete the information form of 3iPET International Cooperation Hub in the attached Annex, and send it via email to FECO by August 31st, 2015. My colleagues Ms. Tang Lu and Ms. Li Haoting will be at your disposal if you have any question, and you can reach them through:

Tel: 010-82268877, 010-82268880

Fax: 010-82200586

E-mail: tang.lu@mepfeco.org.cn, li.haoting@mepfeco.org.cn

Annex: Information Form for 3iPET International Cooperation Hub

 

We warmly welcome your participation and contribution. It is our sincere hope that we could achieve win-win cooperation through 3iPET cooperation hubs.

 

Chen Liang

Director General

Foreign Economic Cooperation Center

Ministry of Environment Cooperation of China

 

Attachment: Information Form for 3iPET International Cooperation Hub

 

 

Attachment

Information Form for 3iPET International Cooperation Hub

Name:
Address:
Contact person: Telephone:
Fax: E-mai:
Introduction:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Business, Environment, Green-tech, News

Zurich invests USD 10million to drive innovation in flood resilience

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Stockholm, August 25(Greenpost)– Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) has joined efforts with the Global Resilience Partnership to launch the Global Resilience Challenge Water Window.

  The Water Window is a grant-based competition focused on building resilience to different water challenges, including floods. 

Zurich is the first private sector member of the Resilience Partnership and provides a USD 10 million investment to fund solutions to build flood resilience. The Global Resilience Partnership and Zurich call on other corporations to join them so that all can better realize a resilience dividend.

 Zurich will invest USD 10 million as part of its long-term commitment to the Global Resilience Partnership (the Resilience Partnership), convened by The Rockefeller Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). The Resilience Partnership is driving a shared global resilience agenda, where humanitarian and development planning is better aligned, deploying precious resources to support innovations, which will build stronger communities that are able to overcome chronic stresses and better handle inevitable shocks.

 The Global Resilience Challenge Water Window (the Water Window) invites submissions that will build resilience to different water challenges and which stand to benefit of millions of people. The Water Window will seek to support innovative solutions – or to scale up those that are already working – that fall within one or more focus areas of the Resilience Partnership overall:   technology; innovative financing, including risk transfer mechanisms; measurement & diagnostics (e.g.  tools that enable better understanding problems and risk caused by water); policy; and learning & innovation (including   community practices that enhance awareness, education, engagement, female empowerment, and action orientation).  Zurich will look specifically for innovations aimed at enhancing flood resilience in line with its global flood resilience program launched in 2013. The funding is provided by the Z Zurich Foundation.

 The Water Window’s goal is to identify and realize strong solutions that will be shared through an open learning platform. Zurich and other corporations joining the Water Window will be part of the challenge’s assessment, selection and development processes. KPMG East Africa Limited, the implementing partner of the first Global Resilience Challenge, will also be the implementing partner of the Water Window, handling all administrative and operational issues.

 Beyond the Water Window, Zurich will play an active role in the Resilience Partnership by contributing its market-leading resilience measurement expertise, engaging on finding optimal financing solutions, or supporting the development and implementation of public policy.

 Chief Executive Officer Martin Senn said: “Water is one of the most critical development challenges we face today. Tens of millions of people struggle to gain access to clean drinking water every day; a shortage of water is limiting economic growth in many countries, while flooding affects more people each year than any other form of natural disaster. At Zurich, we believe we have a responsibility to use our expertise in insurance and risk management to help communities and households build resilience against such globally interconnected risks. With the commitment of USD 10 million we will build on the progress of our flood resilience program. We invite other companies to join us in the water resilience challenge, where there are a host of issues to focus on beyond floods.”

 “Crisis is the new normal, and with so much of the world’s population living on or near water, flooding is often the source of crises,” said Dr. Judith Rodin, president of The Rockefeller Foundation.

“The Global Resilience Partnership is leading the charge to build resilience across the Sahel, the Horn of Africa, and South and Southeast Asia, and Zurich is an excellent addition because of the expertise they can lend to spur innovation in building resilience to flooding. We look forward to welcoming other corporations to the Resilience Partnership, because when communities are resilient, so too are businesses. That’s part of the dividend of investing in resilience.”

 P.S.

To get instant access to Zurich’s news releases, calendar and other corporate publications on your iPad, iPhone or Android phone please go to your App Store and get the free Zurich Investors and Media App.

For broadcast-standard and streaming-quality video and/or high resolution pictures supporting this news release, please visit our Multimedia Pressroom.

Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) is a leading multi-line insurer that serves its customers in global and local markets. With more than 55,000 employees, it provides a wide range of general insurance and life insurance products and services. Zurich’s customers include individuals, small businesses, and mid-sized and large companies, including multinational corporations, in more than 170 countries. The Group is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, where it was founded in 1872. The holding company, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd (ZURN), is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange and has a level I American Depositary Receipt (ZURVY) program, which is traded over-the-counter on OTCQX. Further information about Zurich is available at www.zurich.com.

Corporate responsibility is a key part of Zurich’s strategy and supports its mission to help its customers understand and protect themselves from risk.  Zurich is focusing on its strengths as a business, and on key enablers of success – actions it needs to take to achieve its strategic objectives. Zurich thinks about corporate responsibility in the same way, focusing on seven areas that either make use of its insurance, risk management and investment expertise, or are enablers of Zurich’s success. They are:

• Enhancing community flood resilience (see more on Zurich’s global flood resilience program)

• Investing our Group assets responsibly [Zurich is a signatory of the Principles of Responsible Investment (PRI)]

• Working with Zurich corporate customers to help them understand and manage their corporate responsibility risks

• Community investment locally and through the Z Zurich Foundation

• Environmental performance, and health and safety management in its office buildings

• Diversity and inclusion in its workforce

• Responsible supply chain management

Zurich participates in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI), FTSE4Good and CDP.

Zurich has been a signatory of the UN Global Compact since 2011 and is committed to making the Global Compact and its principles part of Zurich’s strategy, culture and day-to-day operations.

 

Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News, World News

Managing Water Resources for Green Growth and Equity

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STOCKHOLM, Aug. 25 (Greenpost)– The workshop  “Managing Water Resources for Green Growth and Equity” was held on Tuesday at the ongoing World Water Week in Stockholm.

Director-General of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), Ms. Charlotte Petri Gornitzka, delivered a keynote speech on green growth and equity.

Practitioners and analysts have given the distinctive development trajectories of countries and regions, the pathways through which water can contribute to green growth and equity.

Dr. Akissa Bahri (African Development Bank), Mr. Dhesigen Naidoo (Water Research Commission, RSA), Ms. Sofia Ahlroth (World Bank Group), Mr. Dammika Sirinesa (National Development Bank PLC) and Dr. Casey Brown (University of Massachusetts) have been the panelists.

Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News, World News

Sweden’s view of the new climate agreement

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Stockholm, Aug. 21(Greenpost)–From 30 November to 11 December, the world’s leaders will gather in Paris for the twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The session is particularly important since the countries are to agree on a new global climate agreement that will apply from 2020.

The Government wants to see a global, fair and legally binding climate agreement that will help keep global warming as far below two degrees Celsius as possible. The agreement must allow countries to take ever more ambitious emission reduction measures over time.

Sweden wants to see legally binding emissions limitation commitments for all countries. All countries should contribute according to their responsibilities and respective capabilities. Sweden also wants the agreement to cover support to low-income countries’ implementation of measures for both emission reductions and adaptation. Support should cover financing, technology diffusion and capacity-building. In particular, support is needed to strengthen efforts in the poorest and most vulnerable countries.

Being able to measure, report and verify countries’ emissions is a prerequisite for stronger commitments over time. The agreement must therefore contain fundamental principles for a common regulatory framework for transparency and monitoring of countries’ commitments and implementation.

All countries should present their contributions to the new agreement in good time before the Paris session. The EU’s decision to reduce emissions by at least 40 per cent by 2030 is an important step, but a higher level of ambition is needed from both the EU and other parties that have submitted their bids.

The Government considers that a higher level of ambition prior to 2020 is important, both to close the gap between what countries are doing and necessary emission reductions, and to build confidence in the negotiations.

Much work remains before a new agreement can be put into place

Many difficult issues remain to be solved before and during the session in Paris, including what parts of the new agreement should be legally binding, how adaptation and emission reductions can be given equal political importance in the agreement, how climate financing can increase and which countries should contribute.

Reaching a global climate agreement in Paris is expected to be a major challenge, and even if an agreement is reached it will not provide a complete solution to the problem of climate change. The new agreement is needed to create a platform for more ambitious climate commitments and enhanced global action in the years ahead. However, a number of political and technical issues will remain after Paris, for example the detailed reporting regulations and market mechanisms under the new agreement.

Energy, Environment, Green-tech, Indepth, News

Sweden’s strategy ahead of COP21

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Stockholm, Aug.19(Greenpost)–Sweden has drawn up a strategy that is to guide Sweden’s work ahead of the climate change conference, COP21, in Paris later this year, according to a statement published in the government website.

The strategy identifies priorities and positions in the Government’s climate policy at national, EU and international level.

The objectives and parts of the strategy

The overarching objective of the strategy is for the UN climate change conference in Paris in 2015 to result in a global, fair and legally binding climate agreement that helps to keep global warming as far below two degrees as possible over time. The strategy rests on three pillars:

  • Sweden is to be a leading country and tighten its national climate policy. Sweden is also pushing for the EU to raise its ambitions in terms of emissions reductions.
  • The new climate agreement needs to be dynamic so that countries’ binding emissions targets can be subsequently raised.
  • A good agreement will only be achieved if willing countries cooperate. Sweden is to prioritise cooperation with the countries that are also pushing for an ambitious agreement and that are most vulnerable to      the effects of climate change.

Climate change hits the already vulnerable the hardest

The effects of climate change affect all countries, but poor and vulnerable countries that do not have the resources to adapt to the changes are particularly hard hit. All countries must make the transition to a sustainable society with low emissions and high resilience to the effects of climate change. If done properly, a transition of this kind also has positive effects on economic development and poverty reduction, energy security and improved health, as well as important environmental targets such as clean air.

It is also important to take account of the challenges that come with such a transition. Sweden is encouraging a broader discussion on how the global investment flows can be aligned so that they support socially, economically and environmentally sustainable development with a considerably smaller prevalence of fossil fuels. Important global components include putting a price on carbon dioxide and not subsidising fossil energy.

Raised climate ambitions needed

A new climate agreement under the UN is crucial for international climate efforts. The agreement should be guided by science and include emissions commitments that, over time, can limit global warming to a level as far below two degrees as possible. This will require a higher level of climate ambition as well as new, enhanced initiatives in every country of the world and among central actors, including Sweden and the EU.

COP 21 can provide the political momentum to push forward a higher level of ambition concerning emission reductions also in the EU. Progress is needed regarding both emissions reductions and climate adaptation. Climate financing is important to strengthen climate action. Other tools and instruments for implementation, such as technology development, technology diffusion and capacity development, are also key to achieving the higher climate ambitions. Climate financing will be a crucial issue for whether the world can agree on a new climate agreement in Paris.

Energy, Environment, Green-tech

VeloCity 2015: 7,000 cyclists and SMARTSET in the middle

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The Velo-city is the annual global summit on cycling and the conference series serves as the major global platform for the exchange of visions, knowledge, expertise skills and good practice on cycling as part of daily transport and recreation and on cycling related policies. More specifically, Velo-city promotes the integration of urban cycle planning into all the relevant public policy sectors, including transport planning, land development, public health, education, environment, economy, energy and human rights. – See more at: http://smartset-project.eu/news/velocity-2015-7000-cyclists-and-smartset-middle#sthash.a1fOONFR.dpuf

This year’s Velo-city took place in Nantes, France, from the 02-05 June and brought together more than 1500 participants from over 80 countries all over the world! One of the highlights was the vélo-parade on 03 June with more than 7,000 cyclists!

As one of the pillars of SMARTSET is the integration of cleaner vehicles in urban freight transport, such as cargo-bikes, the SMARTSET project was presented by the City of Gothenburg, as well as Austrian Mobility Research, FGM-AMOR.

– See more at: http://smartset-project.eu/news/velocity-2015-7000-cyclists-and-smartset-middle#sthash.HS9MsYJT.dpuf

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, News

Top story: China,Belt & Road partners more cooperation on new energy

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BEIJING, Aug. 13 (Greenpost) — The Sixth China (Gansu) International New Energy Expo held in China’s wind power base Jiuquan city of Gansu on August 8-9 drew 36 counties around the world to seek opportunities to cooperate with China on new energy development.

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With energy self-sufficiency rate being at only 55 percent, Belarus hopes to bring in Chinese technology and investment to develop wind power, solar power and biomass energy to raise ratio of renewable energy in the energy structure, according to Belarusian First Deputy Energy Minister Leonid Shenets, reported China Securities Journal.

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Pakistan is actively developing solar energy and plans to launch 3 GW solar PV power projects in 2016 for which Pakistan hopes to utilize Chinese new energy technology, according to State Minister for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali.

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Several other countries of Central Asia, West Asia, South Asia, Africa, Oceania, as well as European Union have also expressed intent on cooperation with China on new energy development.

download (2)   China’s new energy had stepped on fast development since 2005 and has topped the world in terms of wind power installed capacity, according to Liang Zhipeng, deputy director with department of new energy and renewable energy under the National Energy Administration (NEA), noting that China has ranked the second globally in terms of solar PV installed capacity. Chinese-made solar PV panels took up about 67 percent of the world’s total as of the end of 2014, Liang said.

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The Belt and Road initiative has brought new cooperation opportunities for China and other countries worldwide on renewable energy development, said Wang Sicheng a researcher with the Energy Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), noting that more and more domestic new energy companies such as wind power enterprises will “go out” and explore international opportunities.

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China had five wind turbine manufacturers export 189 wind turbines totally 368.75MW overseas in 2014, bringing total export capacity to 1.76125GW by the end of 2014, according to statistics by the Chinese Wind Energy Association. Enditem

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Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News

Top story: Consumers prefer plug-in hybrid electric vehicles to BEVs

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BEIJING, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) — Chinese consumers prefer plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) to blade electric vehicles (BEV), according to a report released by the country’s automobile guild and a leading global marketing research firm on Tuesday.

images (2)    About 14 percent of respondents would prefer to buy a PHEV for its longer run time and lower reliance on charging facilities, while only 8 percent prefer BEVs, despite the fact that sales of BEVs almost doubled those of PHEVs in the first half of 2015, according to a report released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) and Nielsen.

ChineseGreenCar-5-25-12  Sales of new energy vehicles in H1 more than doubled those in the first half of last year, and China is likely to become the world’s largest electric vehicle market, according to CAAM.

images (4)   The report also said short run times, long charging times and too few maintenance stations are major barriers to growth of China’s electric vehicle market and revealed that consumers expect more preferential policies for buying and using new energy cars. Enditem

 

Business, China, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News

Top Story: China to become world’s largest NEV market: report

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BEIJING, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) — China’s new energy vehicle (NEV) market is stepping into the growth stage from the demonstration stage and will become the largest NEV market in the world, according to a report released by the country’s automobile guild and a leading global marketing research firm on Tuesday.

images (1)The report, which was released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) and Nielsen, attributes the NEV sales surge in the first half of 2015 to China’s policy supports.

It said Chinese government released and implemented more than ten NEV-related supportive policies and standards in the first six months of this year and the number of NEV demonstrative cities increased to 89.

However, only 53.9 percent respondents participated in a survey know about the NEV subsidy policies, and only Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen have higher proportion rates.

The report also said short run times, long charging times and too few maintenance stations are major barriers to China’s NEV industry development.

NEV sales in China in July surged 3.3-fold year on year to total 16,884 units, according to a CAAM press release on Tuesday. In the first half of 2015, NEV sales jumped 2.4-fold year on year. In a breakdown, the sales of pure electric cars and plug-in hybrid power cars hiked 2.9-fold and 1.9-fold year on year, respectively. Enditem

 

Business, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News

Gothenburg wins the Logistics Municipality of the Year 2015

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By Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Stockholm, Aug. 12(Greenpost)–Gothernburg, the second largest city in Sweden, has won the “Logistics Municipality of the Year” award for 2015.

Magnus JÄDERBERG, City of Gothenburg

Photo from http://smartset-project.eu/news/gothenburg-swedish-logistics-municipality-2015

The presentation was made at Logistik & Transport, the trade fair held at the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre in Gothenburg, according to a report from http://smartset-project.eu/news/gothenburg-swedish-logistics-municipality-2015. Four cities – Gothenburg, Malmo, Eskilstuna and Stockholm – made up the finalists and the prize was awarded by the trade journal, Intelligent Logistik.

One of the reasons why Gothenburg was awarded the prize was the scale of its innovative City Delivery (Stadsleveransen) concept, along with associated benefits to the local community and economy. City Delivery is a ground-breaking development found in only a few cities in Europe. It involves the operation of small, electric-powered vehicles in Gothenburg’s narrow, city-centre streets to make deliveries in a coordinated system of goods distribution.

The reasons for Gothenburg’s win

The city of Gothenburg has been working with the issue of goods transport for a long time in different forums.  A particular strength of the projects and processes here lies in the  extensive local transport and logistics networks and the way different groups of stakeholders work together. One example is Gothenburg’s freight network, where stakeholders from local government, business and academia collaborate to develop logistics in the city. The network was established in 2006, and remains one of the few of its kind in Europe.

The city has two full-time logistics specialists at  Gothenburg Urban Transport Administration.  They act as project leaders and participate in working groups and  various other  projects, which cover everything from city planning to operational solutions. In addition to these full-time employees, three senior consultants have been employed by Urban Transport Administration on different assignments, making the equivalent of an additional one and a half full-time posts.

Smart deliveries and urban development

The concept of Smart Deliveries was introduced in 2014. It is based on the long-term continuous development of  innovative, sustainable solutions for last-mile distribution. The cornerstones are shared loading, and the use of clean and energy-efficient vehicles.  The major operator is currently City Delivery, which co-ordinates the loading and final delivery of goods to businesses in the city centre. City Delivery is the product of a long collaborative relationship between carriers, property owners, shops and other stakeholders in the city centre. The main partner in this joint venture is Innerstaden Göteborg AB. In 2014, City Delivery made over 400 deliveries a day, and currently the business uses two electric-driven vehicles and two delivery bikes. But further development is under way,  both in extending the catchment area and  in increasing the number of parties involved.

Two other components of the Smart Deliveries package are Feskeleveransen (Fish deliveries)  and Lindholmsleveransen (the Lindholmen connection). They will be described more fully at a later stage.

Infrastructure

The whole network of streets in the heart of the city has changed  – from traditional streets with pavements, traffic lanes and street parking, to pedestrian areas and streets where traffic speeds are limited to walking pace. This work was carried out over a number of years and was completed in 2014.

These developments have helped create a more pleasant and attractive urban environment, greatly facilitated goods distribution and significantly reduced congestion, as  conventional loading zones are no longer required. New regulations governing, for example, pedestrian areas and  parking times,  have been crucial in the establishment of City Delivery.

Strategy

A new traffic strategy for the city of Gothenburg was adopted in 2014. One of its three main sections  were about creating functional, sustainable and effective solutions for the large amount of freight flowing into and out of the Gothenburg region and included the questions of  the location of freight terminals etc. A shared loading system and the use of clean vehicles are both important components in the creation of an attractive city environment and a sustainable urban transport system.

 

See www.scbr.se too.

– See more at: http://smartset-project.eu/news/gothenburg-swedish-logistics-municipality-2015#sthash.CLTllQ80.dpuf

Business, China, Green-tech

China’s homegrown smart phone brands own over 70 pct share in domestic market: MIIT

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China’s homegrown smart phone brands own over 70 pct share in domestic market: MIIT

 

BEIJING, July 22 (Xinhua) — China’s homegrown smart phone brands boasted over 70 percent share in domestic market, noted Zhang Feng, spokesman of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).

Zhang made the remarks on a Wednesday-held news briefing to introduce industrial and telecommunication industry development in the first half year.

So far, MIIT has kicked off a batch of programs for strengthening the industry basis and approved and implemented 94 special intelligent projects.

As a result, the proportion of advanced production capacity in China’s key industries rose sharply, with output value of high-end equipment manufacturing fields such as intelligent manufacturing, high-speed rail transportation, and marine engineering in gross output value of equipment manufacturing exceeding 10 percent.

In the meantime, MIIT worked actively on industrial energy saving, clean production and comprehensive utilization of resources, leading to more than nine percent drop in large enterprises’ unit added-value energy consumption in the first half year and a joint working mechanism for resources utilization in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Province as well as surrounding areas. Enditem

 

 

   MIIT to boost construction of industrial cloud, big data centers

 

BEIJING, July 22 (Xinhua) — China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) will boost the construction of key industrial clouds and big data centers in the future, said the ministry’s spokesperson and chief engineer Zhang Feng on Wednesday.

He said the ministry will release guidance on integration of Internet and industry, service-oriented manufacturing, industrial cloud and big data.

Zhang added the ministry will also take intelligent manufacturing as a starting point to boost Internet Plus manufacturing. He said the ministry will develop intelligent equipment, organize the implementation of major intelligent manufacturing projects, accelerate the construction of intelligent factories and workshops, organize the implementation of national manufacturing innovation center and build a group of Internet Plus public service platforms.

Besides, the ministry will establish an alliance to boost the standardization of Internet Plus and launch a comprehensive standard system for intelligent manufacturing. Enditem

 

 

   MIIT plans to establish industrial Internet industry alliance

 

BEIJING, July 22 (Xinhua) — China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) will make studies on the deployment of industrial Internet and establish an industrial Internet industry alliance, said Zhang Feng, spokesperson and chief engineer of the MIIT, on Wednesday.

Zhang said the ministry will build an experimental network for industrial Internet and formulate a network structure scheme and infrastructure construction plan.

According to Zhang, the MIIT will take the opportunity of high-speed broadband construction to improve IT infrastructure supporting level in the future. He said the ministry will implement the guidance on elevating Internet speed and lowering Internet service prices, boost the construction of full-optical network cities and 4G networks, strengthen 5G research and development, enhance and improve Internet governance, implement the safety entity responsibility of enterprises and create a safe network environment. Enditem

China, Chinese circle, culture, Exchange, Green-tech

Video chat with Mama in the countryside

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By Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Stockholm, July 28(Greenpost)–It was such an agony that one cannot see Mama that often, especially when Mama is getting old and difficult to see the numbers in the phone.

My brother bought a phone with audio service. With a preset of numbers and names, when Minsheng calls mama, the phone will speak loudly “Minsheng is calling, Minsheng is calling in Chinese” and it is easy for mama to hear it. But she cannot see Minsheng.

For me in Stockholm it is even more difficult to imagine how it works till one day Chen Gang called.

Chen Gang got a smart phone even though he lived in Dizangsi, the little village in Northeast China. He can give me a video call.

So he goes to my mama’s room and calls me. When I answered with the video, vow! I see my mother, my father, my brother and my sister in law.

With Wechat, Chinese version of skype, or facetime, facebook, I can talk with my mom.

The sound is even better than that when I call Beijing.  If I say what I feel with modern technology, that is the equality that brings to everybody as long as you have a smart phone.

Chen Gang, my nephew often filmed a short film about family reunion and send me the short video so I know how they gathered together and celebrate the New Year or Duanwu Festival.

It is amazing that we can talk and see each other.

Business, China, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, Indepth, News, Opinion

Roundup: China’s methanol car maker invests Iceland’s leading new energy producer

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REYKJAVIK, July 3 (Greenpost) — China’s Geely Holding Group, known as the world’s leading methanol vehicle manufacturer, inked a deal on Friday to make an investment of 45.5 million U.S. dollars in three years to Iceland’s Carbon Recycling International (CRI), known as the world leader in power to methanol technology.

Addressing the agreement signing ceremony, Li Shufu, founder and chairman of Geely Holding Group, said, “it is no doubt that methanol will be widely used as its advantages compared with gasoline fuel will be more and more prominent. I believe the cooperation with CRI will greatly promote Geely’s development in clean energy for vehicles.”

CRI produces renewable methanol, marketed under the Vulcanol brand, from carbon dioxide, hydrogen and electricity for energy storage, fuel applications and efficiency enhancement.

Methanol is a clean burning, high octane fuel that can be blended with gasoline for automobiles and used in the production of biodiesel or fuel ethers and reduces carbon emissions by more than 90 percent compared to fossil fuels.

“The investment of Geely to CRI will enable carbon recycling expand into China as well as into Europe. It will accelerate the deployment of our technology in China as well as in Europe. It will facilitate the development of methanol fuel cars,” said K-C Tran, chief executive officer of CRI.

Geely became the first auto manufacturer in China to begin conducting research and development into methanol vehicle solutions in 2005, and has since acquired dozens of patents.

It’s Englon SC7 sedan was the first methanol-fuelled car to receive approval from China’s ministry of industry and information technology.

Scientific studies indicate that methanol-fuelled cars generate as much as 80 percent fewer fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions than traditional gasoline-powered equivalent and cost an average of 40 to 50 percent less to fuel.

“In this sense, Geely group is a natural investment partner for CRI. With the deepening of this partnership, we will explore the possibility of promoting methanol vehicles that will meet local standards here in Iceland and other European countries,” Li added.

Describing Geely’s cooperation with CRI as an important practice to realize their commitment to the global sustainable development, Li said, “Geely is unique in researching and manufacturing methanol vehicles around the world, and so is CRI in converting carbon dioxide into methanol. The cooperation between these two companies will promote the development of the clean energy and the carbon cycle economy.” Enditem

 

Source Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

 

Business, Green-tech, News, World News

Insulin pump reduces mortality from cardiovascular disease by almost 50%

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Insulin pump reduces mortality from cardiovascular disease by almost 50%

Stockholm, July 6(Greenpost)–People with type 1 diabetes who use insulin pump therapy face almost 50% less risk of dying from cardiovascular disease than those who take insulin by multiple daily injections, according to a statement reaching here from Gothenburg.

The British Medical Journal has published the study conducted at Sahlgrenska Academy.

Based on the Swedish National Diabetes Register, researchers monitored 18,168 Swedes with type 1 diabetes from 2005 to 2012. While 2,441 of the subjects used insulin pump therapy, the others relied on multiple daily injections.

The study found that insulin pump users had a substantially lower risk of dying of cardiovascular disease than the daily injection group. The correlation was statistically certain.

“We carefully analyzed the findings to eliminate the risk of bias or confounding and concluded that the effect had been fully verified,” says Isabelle Steineck, researcher at Sahlgrenska Academy.

The next step will be to identify the mechanisms that explain the extra benefits of insulin pump therapy. Dr. Steineck believes that one reason for the difference between the two therapies is that the insulin pump method is accompanied by more extensive patient training and more frequent blood glucose monitoring.

”There is a rationale for insulin pump treatment resulting in more stable blood glucose concentrations than multiple daily injections” she says. ”Previous studies have shown that insulin pump can reduce the frequencies of severe hypoglycemic episodes. Severe hypoglycaemia can be a risk factor for cardiovascular events, particularly among high risk individuals.”

”We evaluated the patients who used insulin pump therapy and do not know if the observed effect is attributable to continuous infusion of insulin or that some of the effect is attributable to intensified glucose monitoring, increased motivation to control blood glucose, or a better knowledge about having diabetes type 1”says Isabelle Steineck.

The researchers have concluded that insulin pumps not only make life easier for patients, but represent a safe and effective treatment method.

“This is good news for anyone with type 1 diabetes,” says Soffia Gudbjörnsdottir, diabetologist and director of the Swedish National Diabetes Register. “But not everybody wants to use a pump, and the biggest priority is still to optimize blood glucose monitoring.”

Approximately 20% of Swedish type 1 diabetes patients have access to insulin pump therapy. But earlier studies at Sahlgrenska Academy have demonstrated that hospitals vary greatly – anywhere from 12% to almost 30% of patients may receive pumps.

The article “Insulin Pump Therapy, Multiple Daily Injections and Cardiovascular Mortality in 18,168 People with Type 1 Diabetes: Observational Study” was published online by the British Medical Journal on June 22.

Link to article: http://www.bmj.com/content/350/bmj.h3234

 

Business, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, News

Regeringen stärker svenska företag inom miljöteknik

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Regeringen stärker svenska företag inom miljöteknik

Stockholm, July 5(Greenpost)–Många svenska företag ligger långt framme i arbetet med klimatsmarta lösningar och utvecklingen av ny miljöteknik.

Men trots att det offentliga gör upphandlingar för 600 miljarder kronor årligen har lagstiftning och riktlinjer hittills hindrat att man utnyttjar dess potential för att stärka utvecklingen av ny miljöteknik, en bättre miljö och en mer hållbar och effektiv användning av skattebetalarnas pengar.

Regeringen skapar nya förutsättningar genom offentliga upphandlingar för att förbättra Sveriges arbete med miljömålen och stimulera en växande framtidsbransch med stor exportpotential.

Det är bra för miljön, tillväxten och jobben. Regeringen har lagt fram en lagrådsremiss om en ny lag om offentlig upphandling som underlättar ställandet av miljökrav i offentlig upphandling.

Regeringen föreslår nu två nya reformer inom offentlig upphandling för att underlätta utvecklingen av ny miljöteknik: 1. Upphandlande myndigheter ska förbereda och genomföra dialoger med potentiella leverantörer i ett tidigt skede i upphandlingarna i syfte att utarbeta innovationsdrivande krav i miljöteknikupphandlingar.

2. Ett tydligt uppdrag till den nya Upphandlingsmyndigheten om att verka för att det generationsmål för miljöarbetet och de miljökvalitetsmål som riksdagen har fastställt nås.

Den nya upphandlingsmyndigheten kommer att få sin instruktion under sommaren och börjar sitt arbete redan i september. 2015-06-30 2 Detta öppnar för mer innovativa och effektiva lösningar och det skapar nya möjligheter för svenska företag och fler jobb.

Dialogen är också en möjlighet för innovativa småföretag att delta i upphandlingen. Genom dialog mellan parterna minskar också riskerna för att upphandlingen ska bli föremål för överprövning.

Möjligheterna är många, men några exempel på områden där miljöteknikupphandling är aktuell och kan stärka såväl miljöarbetet som svenska företags export är:

– Energieffektivisering –

Stadsplanering och hållbart byggande –

Vatten- och sanitetslösningar –

Avfallshantering