Norway’s  "Ecological Prison”
Norway recently introduced the "world's first ecological prison" — a facility powered by solar energy that puts its inmates to work coordinating daily operations, such as recycling and food production and learning their part to protect the environment. 
 

 

The facility is located on Bastoey Island and has place for 115 inmates. Justice Minister Knut Storberget explained that "from a social and economic perspective, this is cheapest for society for this type of ‘low security prison’.” The idea of the ecological prison is to develop a sense of responsibility among the inmates and to prepare them better for an eco-conscious life once they leave the prison. ’" 
 
Running costs at the Bastoey facility are lower than at most traditional prisons. The prison produces its own high-quality organic food with the help of grants from several environmental organizations. Its solar panels cut its electricity needs by about 70% and it recycles everything it can to reduce its carbon footprint. Inmates live in normal houses, without being locked in, and are responsible for the care of about 200 chickens, eight horses, 40 sheep, and 20 cows, tending the fields, picking berries and fishing for food from the prison's 9.3 meter boat. All of the prison's agricultural products are raised without artificial chemicals, such as insecticide or man-made fertilizers, and with humane treatment of livestock. 
 
The inmates have few complaints: An inmate stated that, "This is like a holiday camp compared to a closed facility." Because of that, the inmates said very few of them abused the authorities' trust. Anyone who breaks the prison rules is sent straight back to a closed prison.
 
Bastoey prison states at its website that its philosophy comes from an old Indian saying: "We don't own nature. We borrow and manage it in our lives, thinking about our descendants."