What happens when Norway’s leading life cycle assessment (LCA) experts meet a rapidly changing market?
Forskningsinstituttet NORSUS applies LCA to a broad range of clients – from construction and infrastructure to food, textiles and transport – and is becoming increasingly aware of how the entire sustainability agenda shapes future development.
Also read: NORSUS and LCA.no on research, tools and sustainability
Resources, technology and a holistic view
As we move from fossil energy to renewable solutions, we face a new type of resource challenge. Where the focus was once on reducing the use of coal, oil and gas, we must now analyse and understand the consequences of the materials needed to build the green transition.
– We are shifting from fossil energy to technologies that require specific and often rare materials, explains Kari-Anne Lyng, director of research in NORSUS.
– Solar panels, batteries, electric vehicles and digital infrastructure all depend on metals and minerals with unique properties. Many of these are scarce, and that places new demands on how we assess resource use and availability in life cycle assessments.
Forsberg points out that the challenges go beyond the technical:
– Many of these raw materials are extracted in unstable or geopolitically vulnerable regions. This brings both environmental and social consequences that must be taken into account when developing new solutions.
She highlights that methods for incorporating such factors into LCA are still evolving:
– There are still no standardised indicators for all of these aspects. That’s why we at NORSUS are actively developing methods to highlight both the risks associated with resource extraction and the long-term consequences of technology choices.
Lyng concludes with an important point:
– When we replace one scarce resource with another, we must ask ourselves: What does it cost – not just economically, but for nature, society and future generations?
Consumption, culture and everyday choices
Sustainability is not only about technology and politics – it’s also about us as consumers, and how our attitudes and choices change over time. The conversation between NORSUS and LCA.no turns to everyday matters: clothes, food, use and reuse.
– The elephant in the room is our consumption, emphasises Forsberg.
– It’s not a popular thing to say, but we actually have to consume less. Technology alone won’t save us. We need systems for reuse, repair and longer product life – and we need to change our expectations of what constitutes “normal” consumption.
Kari-Anne Lyng points out that much of the knowledge about resource use has been lost in our generation:
– Our grandparents could sew, repair, read care labels and recognise quality materials. Today, many don’t even know what their clothes are made of. To make good choices, we need to know what we’re buying – and how to take care of it.
At the same time, there are signs of positive change. Terese Troy Prebensen, CFO at LCA.no, shares her own observations:
– What used to be embarrassing – like taking leftovers from a restaurant or wearing hand-me-downs – is now completely normal. Young people today browse Finn.no and Tise looking for second-hand bargains. They’re proud to buy used, and many have blacklisted fast fashion chains. That gives me hope.
Several point out that such changes are also influenced by what is “cool” and socially acceptable – and that generations are shaped by both values and aesthetics.
Forsberg notes that cultural shifts often happen slowly – but dramatically nonetheless:
– If we look back to the 1950s and Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring, there’s been a huge shift in how we as a society understand and talk about the environment. That gives us hope – even though there’s still a long way to go in practice.
A necessary distinction: from research to tools
LCA.no was originally part of Østfoldforskning, which later became NORSUS.
– LCA.no was a natural extension of the work done at Østfoldforskning, says Forsberg.
– We developed the methods and the research, as well as more digital solutions. To commercialise these as tools and services, LCA.no was established as a separate company.
The future is complex – and full of opportunities
– What characterises the people we work with is that they want to be ahead of the curve, says Forsberg.
– We probably don’t work with the most conservative players in the market. We collaborate with those who want to move forward and see sustainability and documentation not just as a requirement, but as an opportunity to improve, innovate and build trust. That gives us the space to develop and test new methods, and help shape the direction of entire industries.
Lyng nods:
– So much has changed in just the past decade. Ten years ago, we spent a lot of time explaining what an LCA was – but knowledge has grown significantly since then. Now it’s more about how to do it with high quality, and in line with standards and the best available research. It’s been a huge leap forward – and we believe progress will only accelerate.
Prebensen smiles:
– It’s incredibly inspiring to hear you talk about this. It makes you want to go out and fix the world.