&#145;Green&#146; prison

last updated 8 January 2015

Bastoey, Norway

Norway has opened the world’s first environmentally friendly prison. Bastoey Prison, on Bastoey Island, uses solar panels to generate electricity and burns scrap wood rather than oil to generate heat. It produces almost all of its food organically, with the prisoners serving as farmers, fishermen, and herdsmen. When they’re not working on the farms, the convicted rapists, murderers, and other inmates can stroll along the beach or wander through the nature reserve. “You can either make prison pure punishment or you can try to make inmates into good neighbors, to do something positive,” said deputy warden Per Eirik Lund.