Lisa Ekstrand is Head of Sustainability at Vestas, the world’s largest manufacturer of wind turbine components. Not only does Vestas help create renewable energy, but it aims to do so in the greenest way possible with an all-electric fleet by 2025 and zero-waste turbines by 2040. Under Ekstrand’s leadership, this year Vestas announced a first-ever commercial partnership with Danish energy provider Ørsted to supply the company with low-carbon steel turbine towers and blades made from recycled materials. Also in 2023, Vestas announced that, in collaboration with Aarhus University, Danish Technological Institute, and epoxy maker Olin, it had developed a new material that will chemically recycle old turbine blades, including those already in landfill. “This signals a new era for the wind industry,” Ekstrand said of the news, “and accelerates our journey towards achieving circularity.”
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