Mother Nature doesn't negotiate

"We humans are entirely dependent upon the quality of what is provided by the ecosystem; air, water, climate and food. Industrialism and urbanisation, with their increasing pressure, are not long term sustainable systems in their present form," states Per Carstedt, GreenZone initiator, when asked to describe how the project concept arose.

"A hundred years ago the Earth's population was one and a half billion and around 15 percent lived in urban areas. Today, we are six billion people and half of us live in cities. The urban lifestyle of the western world retains its attraction and cities continue to grow. In fifty years we can expect the global population to be around ten billion with 70-75 percent living in cities. The number of vehicles is increasing at an even faster rate. These numbers are compelling. Our lifestyle is putting more and more pressure on the ecosystem we are totally dependent upon. In the end, our mistakes will be corrected by the forces of nature. We must adapt," Carstedt continues.

"Therefore we're faced with a major system change where the true challenge lies in how we can muster new driving forces that lead to long-term, sustainable development. Simply put, we must satisfy our need for water, energy, material and transportation in a new and sustainable manner. It is the responsibility of we in the industrialised world, as well as being in own interests, to speedily develop the requisite solutions."