Name

Erling Fjeldaas

Location

Oslo, Norway

What was your ‘eureka’ moment for getting into sustainability?

After high school I studied music for two years. In those days I became increasingly interested in sustainability. After reading a lot about Norwegian oil policy, which I do not approve, I realized that I wanted to do something about it. Consequently, I finished my music study and started at the Faculty of Law at the University of Oslo in 2013. One of the reasons for this decision was to meet other students with sharing interests. Luckily, after two weeks I also got in contact with our inspiring professor, Beate Sjåfjell, who is the leader of Concerned Scientists Norway. Together with another law student, I established Concerned Students Norway to create a vital network for discussing sustainability issues among students studying different scientific topics.

What have you been doing on sustainability since?

Today, I have been the leader of Concerned Students Norway for almost three years. The organization has been a success, now counting active members in Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim and Tromsø. We organize interdisciplinary student circles, symposia, debates and supplement lectures, and occasionally we visit sustainable future employees. I am also a substitute member in an action group planning to take the Norwegian State to court for allowing oil companies to drill for oil in the Arctic. To my knowledge, this may be the first time that a government is sued for active counteracting the global fight for sustainability.

What’s your vision for reaching a sustainable future?

The climate issues are only one of many bad consequences of the modern human mentality – very short thinking in time and in the circle of people. I think we need more composure in our society. A contribution could be cities with cleaner air, warmer lights, more trees, slower speed and less noise. At present, young generations grow up with more knowledge about nature than our parents had the opportunity to obtain. I hope that future parents will spend more time with their children out in the forests, mountains and the ocean. This will hopefully make them love and understand many of the complex details of the flora and fauna that we may lose without actions for a sustainable environment.

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