Norway – green and gender equal

Norway – green and gender equal

Norway is a Scandinavian country which has borders with Sweden, Finland and Russia. Since the discovery of oil and natural gas under the North Sea in the 1960s, it has tried to find a balance between profiting from these reserves, and protecting the environment.

As a result, Norway is one of only five countries making sufficient progress toward their target for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions under the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the only legally binding international agreement to combat climate change. The country generates 98-99% of its electricity from hydroelectric power.

With a population of just over 5 million, Norway enjoys almost full employment, so much so that young people from neighbouring Sweden often cross the border in search of jobs. The unskilled worker can usually pick up work in Norway much more easily than in Sweden where low-skilled posts are not common. It is also easier to climb the promotion ladder in Norway.

Norway probably boasts one of the most gender-equal economies in the world: it was the first country in the world to appoint a ‘Gender Equality Ombudsman’ back in the 1980s and a great deal of legislation has been passed to ensure equal representation and pay for women in both state-run and private business. Foreign business women are therefore welcomed and can expect to be judged on their professional competence.

A little known fact is that Norway introduced salmon to the Japanese for sushi. Japan had been using tuna and sea bream for sushi and considered salmon unsuitable to be consumed raw. Then a Norwegian seafood delegation took salmon to Japan in the 1980s and by 1995 it had become the fish of choice for sushi and sashimi.

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Sources: Wikipedia, Toronto Star, Business Day Live, World Business Culture