“Oh, green world/ Don’t desert me now/ Bring me back to fallen town/ Where someone is still alive…” Never have these words felt more fitting than when belted out by Damon Albarn during a rallying rendition of Gorillaz’ 2005 hit “O Green World” at Norway’s Øya Festival. The music event – back in Oslo this year after a three-year hiatus – is the greenest in the world.
Øya, which earned that accolade at the 2020 A Greener Festival Awards, is a trailblazer. It has been running on renewable energy for over a decade. More than 90 per cent of all food served on the site is organic, and almost 40 per cent of it is meat-free. All meals are served in compostable packaging – some of the plates are even edible – and all waste is hand-sorted, with more than 60 per cent of it being recycled.
