Iceland has a stunning landscape with glaciers galore … but is more properly fire island. Lava, earthquakes eruptions and volcanoes dominate life and world headlines.

Around Christmas 2023, an eruption forced people from their homes in the fishing port of Grindavik. One year and six eruptions later – the townspeople are back. But another eruption nearby is spewing lava into the car park of the famous Blue Lagoon. By the time you hear this podcast, that eruption could be over… or much worse.

Yet despite all the risk and uncertainty, many Icelanders would say they live here because of their volcanoes not despite them. Why? That’s what this podcast is all about.

Credits

Thanks to Easyjet for flights – direct to Reykjavik each weekday from Edinburgh. 

I travelled to the Westman Islands in a Europcar vehicle (complete with winter tyres) from Keflavik airport, took the dual fuel Herjolfur ferry (government owned and council run) courtesy of Business Iceland and stayed at the family run Hotel Vestmannaeyjar thanks to Visit South Iceland.

Accommodation in Reykjavik was kindly provided by podcast listener Scott Riddell. 

Big thanks also to interviewees – 

Laufey Sif Lárusdóttir who runs a pizzeria and Ölverk brewery using geothermal steam in Hveragerði with husband Elvar. She's also mum to three small boys. Respect.

Páll Zóphóníasson was once Mayor of Heimaey (main town on Westman Islands) and town engineer at the time of the 1973 eruption. Tax office staff, Jóhanna Kristín Gunnlaugsdóttir and Ròsa Sveinsdòttir were just children back then.

Kári Valgeirsson is Science Communicator at the Hellisheiði power plant – one of the largest single-site geothermal power plants on the planet. Daily tours available.

Thanks also to Limma and Gudrun Hannesdottir, 

Researched, recorded and produced by Lesley Riddoch

Edited by Pat Joyce

Gothenburg in Sweden once boasted the world's largest shipyards, but in the face of Japanese and Korean competition, the oil crisis and a world economic downturn, the city was brought to its knees in the 1980s, with 5 kms of empty dockland and 20 thousand people without jobs. So far, so very like the Clyde.

But though shipbuilding was down, Gothenburg was not out.

The City Council bought the empty shipyards for one Swedish krona – that’s 2 pence - financed new house-building, new secondary schools and linked up with Chalmers University to set up Lindholmen Science Park. It attracted the Swedish mobile phone maker, Ericsson who created a cluster of ten thousand people in other IT companies around its new HQ. This inter-dependency helped the sector survive the dot.com crash.

The biggest advance though, followed the biggest setback, when Sweden’s innovation agency, rejected a big bid for an open research area at Lindholmen. Undaunted, the Science Park owners (council and business) went ahead without state funds, seconding thirty people for one year to fine tune their plans. 

Now, 375 companies operate on dockland that wasn’t worth tuppence thirty years ago, Gothenburg has become Sweden's R&D capital and more people are employed today in tech jobs on the docklands than ever worked in the shipyards.  Local car-maker Volvo is planning to go fully electric by 2030 and 100 billion Euros is being invested to connect both banks of the river. As the city shapes up to celebrate its 400th anniversary this year, recalling the part played by Scots in its phenomenal success, the excitement is almost palpable.

Nordic Horizons Director Lesley Riddoch visited the city in May 2023 to find out how Gothenburg has turned itself around.
More info https://goteborgco.se

Thanks to

Christian Borg of Business Region Gothenburg 

Jonas Eriksson Head of Gothenburg Green City zone

Jessica Vialleton, Hotel Eggers

Hjördis Fohrman, Jonsered Museum

Stepping up Sustainability West Sweden

Eva Lehman Goteborg.com