Is Copenhagen the World's Most Sustainable City?

00:05:49
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUbHGI-kHsU

Zusammenfassung

TLDRCopenhagen, Denmark, is on a mission to become the first carbon-neutral capital city by 2025, amidst global urbanization and climate challenges. The city is focusing on sustainable growth through innovative transportation solutions, with over 62% of residents using bicycles for daily commutes thanks to nearly $300 million invested in biking infrastructure. A major component of its carbon neutrality plan involves an efficient district heating system that supplies warmth to homes by utilizing excess heat from electricity production, while also introducing district cooling systems. Copenhagen actively engages its citizens in sustainability initiatives, witnessing a growth of 20% in population while cutting emissions by 42%. The city’s comprehensive approach, including smart technology applications for air quality monitoring and pollution management, seeks to provide a scalable model for urban development globally, emphasizing the importance of community involvement in achieving a greener future.

Mitbringsel

  • 🌍 More than 50% of the world's population now lives in cities.
  • 🚲 In Copenhagen, 62% of citizens use bikes for daily transport.
  • 💡 The city aims to be carbon-neutral by 2025.
  • 📉 Copenhagen has reduced emissions by 42% since 2010.
  • 🏙️ District heating covers 99% of homes in Copenhagen.
  • 🌊 The harbor has been transformed from polluted to swimmable.
  • 🤝 Citizen involvement is key to sustainable city efforts.
  • 📊 Copenhagen Solutions Lab tests technology for urban issues.
  • 🌱 The city balances growth with green transformation.
  • 🌈 Copenhagen serves as a global model for sustainable cities.

Zeitleiste

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:49

    As urbanization increases, over half of the global population now lives in cities, a number expected to rise to nearly 70% by 2050. This necessitates sustainable city growth, accentuated by the climate crisis. Copenhagen aims to diversify its approach to sustainability by becoming the first carbon-neutral capital by 2025. Two-thirds of global carbon emissions originate from cities, highlighting the urgent need for solutions, which Copenhagen is actively pursuing.

Mind Map

Video-Fragen und Antworten

  • What is Copenhagen's carbon neutrality goal?

    Copenhagen aims to become the first carbon-neutral capital city by 2025.

  • How is Copenhagen improving its transportation?

    Copenhagen has invested nearly $300 million to improve bike infrastructure, leading to increased biking as a primary mode of transportation.

  • What is the district heating system?

    Copenhagen's district heating system captures leftover heat from electricity production and distributes it to homes, serving 99% of households in the city.

  • How is the city addressing air quality issues?

    Copenhagen is utilizing sensors to monitor air quality and identify pollution sources, while also implementing technologies in real urban environments to test solutions.

  • What role do citizens play in Copenhagen's transformation?

    Residents are actively involved in sustainability efforts, demanding high urban living standards and contributing to waste management and biking initiatives.

  • How much has Copenhagen cut its emissions?

    Copenhagen has reduced its emissions by 42% since 2010, despite a 20% growth in its population.

  • What challenges does Copenhagen face in its transformation?

    Copenhagen's transformation has dependencies on its size and wealth, but entails efforts for adaptation and sustainability that can serve as a model for other cities.

  • What future goals does Copenhagen have beyond carbon neutrality?

    Copenhagen aims to serve as an example for cities worldwide regarding sustainable urban transformation and livability.

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Untertitel
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Automatisches Blättern:
  • 00:00:00
    - Cities all over the world
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    are bursting with people.
  • 00:00:02
    More than half of us live in cities now,
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    and by 2050 that number jumps to nearly 70%.
  • 00:00:08
    That's a lot of people.
  • 00:00:09
    So how do we grow cities sustainably?
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    And with the climate crisis,
  • 00:00:13
    figuring out how we do that
  • 00:00:14
    is more important than ever before.
  • 00:00:16
    But there's one city that may be doing it better
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    than any other place on earth.
  • 00:00:20
    - We want to become the first
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    carbon-neutral capital city by 2025.
  • 00:00:26
    - So we packed up our gear
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    and headed here to Copenhagen, Denmark to find out how.
  • 00:00:30
    (upbeat music)
  • 00:00:36
    It's not surprising to learn
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    that two-thirds of the world's carbon emissions
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    come from cities.
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    That number is getting worse
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    as more of us move into cities,
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    which means a higher demand on infrastructure and resources.
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    So Copenhagen is on a mission to cancel out
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    all of their carbon emissions.
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    - My name is Frank Jenson,
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    and I'm the Lord Mayor of Copenhagen.
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    When I became mayor we started this process,
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    we decided that we want to become the first
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    carbon neutral capital city by 2025.
  • 00:01:01
    - What is carbon neutrality actually mean?
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    For a city, it's creating more renewable energy
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    than the dirty energy it uses.
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    It's all about achieving a net zero.
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    And their plan is focusing
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    on mobility, pollution, and energy.
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    - We have introduced a lot of new solutions
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    in Copenhagen.
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    Our bicycle infrastructure is world famous
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    because today 62% of the Copenhagener's use the bike
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    for daily transportation.
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    - Everyone in Copenhagen bikes.
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    And I mean everyone.
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    So the city is leaning into that.
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    In the last 10 years it has invested nearly $300 million
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    to improve biking infrastructure.
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    All that money has paid off.
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    There are more than five times the amount of bikes
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    than cars in the city.
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    That goes a long way when cutting down on carbon emissions.
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    But the effort doesn't stop there.
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    Copenhagen has totally transformed their waterways too.
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    Only a few decades ago, the harbor was contaminated
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    with industrial waste, oil spills, even dead fish.
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    - When I moved to Copenhagen back in 1987,
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    this harbor was so polluted,
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    you could never dream to have a swim in this harbor.
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    But today you can swim.
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    We have a harbor bath where people can have a swim
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    with their kids after school or after job.
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    - Though Copenhagen has made huge strides
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    with their mobility and pollution efforts,
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    by far their biggest focus is on energy use.
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    It makes up about 80% of their carbon neutral plan.
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    To cut down on their consumption,
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    Copenhagen uses one of the world's largest
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    and most successful district heating systems.
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    It works by using a network of pipes
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    to capture left over heat from electricity production,
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    then delivers that heat to homes across the city.
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    - 99% of all households in Copenhagen are linked
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    to our very efficient district heating system.
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    We have also introduced district cooling,
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    where we take the cold out of the water in the harbor
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    and distribute cold in pipes
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    beside the district heating pipes.
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    So you can reduce temperature in buildings,
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    in server rooms, in factories.
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    We can reduce electricity use for cooling down buildings
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    for 70%.
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    - To come up with these kinds of sustainable solutions,
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    Copenhagen collaborates with partners across the city.
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    Like Copenhagen Solutions Lab.
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    An incubator for smart city initiatives.
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    - What Copenhagen Solutions Lab does
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    is actually solving some of the bigger problems
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    in the world by using technologies
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    in order to accelerate this transition
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    into a carbon free economy.
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    So for instance, a problem of air quality,
  • 00:03:11
    people in cities are dying too early
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    because of bad air.
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    And that is a global problem,
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    not just here in Copenhagen.
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    Getting rid of our waste, measuring air quality,
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    managing traffic, we're trying to solve
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    these problems down in Street Lab.
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    - Contrary to how it sounds,
  • 00:03:26
    the Street Lab really isn't a laboratory.
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    It's a two kilometer long chunk of downtown Copenhagen
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    that serves as a testing area.
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    - Placing a lab such as this downtown,
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    in a real urban environment,
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    makes it very realistic.
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    Everything we're testing here
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    will be able to survive in other parts of the city
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    and will be able to be scaled to a city-wide level.
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    This is a new generation of technology
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    that makes it possible to measure air quality
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    by a sensor.
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    And now we're looking into mounting sensors
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    actually on a Google Street View car
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    to make it possible to measure each and every street
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    of Copenhagen.
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    - With these sensors, the city can better locate
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    the source of pollutants
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    to help improve overall air quality.
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    The technology has already proved so useful,
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    that Marius and his team are shipping sensors
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    to countries like Norway, Mexico, Austria, Greece,
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    and the US.
  • 00:04:12
    Though Copenhagen is leading the way
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    in sustainable smart city solutions,
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    experts and policy makers will tell you
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    that the true secret to the city's transformation
  • 00:04:20
    is the people.
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    The residents here actually want to help
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    build a sustainable city and are willing to work for it.
  • 00:04:26
    - The citizens of Copenhagen,
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    they demand a high quality of urban life.
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    They are willing to do a lot themselves.
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    They want to sort their own garbage,
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    they want to bike to work.
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    Citizens involvement is key to the way we think
  • 00:04:39
    in Denmark and in the Nordic countries.
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    And that's a huge driving force behind
  • 00:04:44
    being a carbon neutral city by 2025.
  • 00:04:48
    - Since I became mayor in 2010,
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    we have had a growth rate in the number
  • 00:04:52
    of citizens with 20%.
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    And even that, we have cut our emissions with 42%
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    in the same period.
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    So we show that you can have growth
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    with green transformation if you do the right investments
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    in the city.
  • 00:05:05
    - Copenhagen's transformation hasn't been easy.
  • 00:05:07
    And of course their size and wealth helps.
  • 00:05:10
    But they've made it work for their city.
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    Regardless if they hit their carbon neutral deadline,
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    their ultimate goal is to serve as an example
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    for cities everywhere.
  • 00:05:18
    - The green transformation of cities and livability
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    and also very important, good economy.
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    Goes hand in hand.
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    I see Copenhagen as a front runner
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    to show for my colleagues and decision-makers,
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    you must go green.
  • 00:05:34
    Thanks for watching. If you enjoyed our series about the Future of Cities,
  • 00:05:37
    check out our website for even more content.
  • 00:05:39
    And don't forget to subscribe to Freethink.
Tags
  • Copenhagen
  • sustainability
  • carbon neutrality
  • urban growth
  • district heating
  • biking infrastructure
  • air quality
  • citizen involvement
  • smart city solutions
  • climate change