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The United Kingdom has a very close and special relationship with Formula 1, thanks to the circuit of Silverstone, one of the most mythical and has curves that have witnessed historic moments in motorsports. However, for a historic milestone, the one that has been achieved just 23 km from the circuit and 8 km northeast of Oxford, in Bicester.
In this city of just over 30,000 inhabitants is the first eco-city in the United Kingdom, baptized as ElmsBrook. Life there is a little more efficient than in, practically, the rest of the world and it is because they have managed to achieve net zero emissions in his community of 400 energy-efficient homes.
If you walk through its well-kept streets you can see a life dedicated to caring for the planet: solar panels in all its buildings, electric buses, sustainable mobility with the bicycle as the main means of transport…
And yes, this model of life has become a mirror to look at for an industry as powerful as Formula 1, thanks to the alliance of Santander Bank with Ferrari and the collaboration with Formula One Management (FOM)owner of F1.
In its commitment to the fight against climate change and sustainable mobility, since the return of the banking entity to the F1 circus, one of its main objectives is to support the Italian brand to achieve its goal of being carbon neutral by 2030, something that the entity already achieved two years ago. To do this, it makes a wide range of solutions available to the Scuderia to develop technological advances, such as those already achieved by the sector such as the most efficient cars in terms of fuel consumption or a new carbon-neutral engine in all Grand Prix.
All with the aim of contributing to the sustainability of an industry, that of Formula 1, which since its inception has served as a test bed for its innovation and development, which is making it possible to promote the change towards a sustainable model, helping to reduce CO2 emissions. In this line, the president of Banco Santander, Ana Botinhas ensured that, through this sponsorship, “We are very excited to work with Ferrari again and support them in their green transition. Santander is committed to fighting climate change and, as Europe’s leading car financier, we want to help make the car industry sustainable. This alliance with Ferrari will accelerate the development of both companies in this area.”
From the Italian team they are also convinced that an increasingly green Formula 1 is also possible: “We thank Banco Santander for its support in achieving our priority goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2030. The great innovations and technological advances of F1 are transferred to the entire industry, which benefits society as a whole”in the words of John Elkann, Ferrari president.
Making the world a little greener is a challenge that concerns us all and examples such as the ElmsBrook eco-city show that it is possible. Banco Santander, Ferrari and Formula 1 have also gotten into the car of this ambitious challenge and they already see that checkered flag that will proclaim a single winner: the planet.
*This content sponsored by SANTANDER has been prepared by Diario AS.