Sweden is the most sustainable country in the world. For decades they have been paving the way for environmental action. In fact, they were the first country to pass an Environmental Protection Act back in 1967. They are also the highest recyclers in the world - read more about that here. 

I was more than ecstatic to hear all of this - first coming from America where it took so much effort to do your best for the environment and secondly with this new US administration cutting back so many environmental regulations. I thought it would be enlightening to hear about somewhere that heavily prioritizes the environment. 

So how did this Scandinavian country become the sustainable country in the world? I believe there are two HUGE factors that play a major role: culture and policy.

I do also want to point out that Sweden is an incredibly rich country with the world's 14th highest GDP per capita. It is a welfare country that provides many social services to its people including environmental infrastructure. Therefore, the start-up costs for various technologies and infrastructure isn’t a hurdle as it might be for other countries. BUT as mentioned before, the richest countries are the ones polluting the most, so it’s a matter of priority.