The Ocean Race 2022 – 23 will see teams of intrepid ocean explorers embark on a 32 000 nautical mile yacht race around the world, visiting nine stunning countries over six months.

It’s not a journey to be taken lightly, which is rather ironic, given that the first ever Ocean Race back in 1973 was born out of a bet in a pub.
In the late 90s, though, it was bought by the Volvo Group (which at the time included Volvo Cars) who hosted the iconic race until 2018, when we stepped down as owners. Despite that change in ownership, Volvo Cars’s commitment to the race remains, and the company is proud to be premier partners of the 2023 edition.
Since its inception, The Ocean Race has focused on ocean sustainability, both from the perspective of organising a sustainable event (no small feat for an event of its size and spread), and in terms of the education spread throughout the race. Moreover, Ocean Summits are organised during the stopovers to discuss how to improve ocean health, and the boats themselves are used for scientific ocean health research. This edition will showcase the <a href="https://www.onebluevoice.net/">One Blue Voice campaign</a> to drive support for a Universal Declaration of Ocean Rights. The campaign aims to get public to sign an online petition that will be presented in collaboration with the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September 2023.
The petition will be presented together with a catalogue of draft principles covering clear pathways and actions on how to improve ocean health. These principles are the culmination of <a href="https://www.theoceanrace.com/en/racing-with-purpose/summits-and-policy">12 Ocean Race Summits</a> created to drive change and implement policies to around the major issues affecting our oceans.
It’s no secret that Volvo Cars is committed to a sustainable future, with its sights firmly set on being fully electric by 2030 and a carbon neutral company by 2040. So, at each of the nine global race stopovers, Volvo Cars will set up interactive booths to display the latest cars, talk about the company’s electric future and share its sustainability journey with every race attendee.

“The Race is a great tool for building our customer relationships, strengthening the Volvo Cars brand, and presenting our company and our products to a global audience.”
The last race gathered a race village audience of 2.66 million, and the 2022 – 2023 race represents a hugely exciting opportunity to reach more and more people with the Volvo Cars sustainability message.
The all-electric XC40 Recharge and C40 Recharge will be on show in all stopover locations, sharing Volvo Car innovations to an audience who already believe in our values and share our drive for adventure.
“Volvo Cars has a long connection with The Ocean Race, and it’s right that this is continued given we both have a strong focus on sustainability,” says Stuart Templar, director of sustainability at Volvo Cars.
“We look forward to using the unique platform and reach of The Race to highlight our commitment and progress, including in helping reduce the impacts of climate change and plastic pollution on our oceans.”
If you’d like to know more about the race, you can have a look at <a href="https://www.theoceanrace.com/en/home">The Ocean Race homepage</a> or download The Ocean Race app to get to know the teams and follow their journey. It’s a brand new era for both Volvo Cars and The Ocean Race and everyone is invited

The Ocean Race 2022 – 23 will see teams of intrepid ocean explorers embark on a 32 000 nautical mile yacht race around the world, visiting nine stunning countries over six months. 

The Ocean Race 2023: Sustainability Sets Sail

We’re one of 150 organisations calling on governments to act on decarbonising international shipping by 2050 – an initiative that supports our aim to become climate neutral by 2040.

Sea transport is a key enabler for ensuring that our cars reach our customers all over the globe, and it’s also a vital part of our supply chain.
&quot;We can't become truly carbon neutral without access to zero-emission sea transports. Eliminating tailpipe emissions from our cars and manufacturing operations will go a long way, but the big challenge lies in decarbonising logistics,&quot; said Martin Corner, head of Supply Chain Management (SCM).
“As a large buyer of shipping, joining this call to action is a logical step to push the development in the right direction,&quot; Martin said.

The Call to Action for Shipping Decarbonisation will be delivered to the world's governments ahead of the climate negotiations at COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2021.
The initiative – developed by a multi-stakeholder taskforce with members from the entire maritime ecosystem including shipping, chartering, finance, ports, and fuel production – is based on the view that full decarbonisation of international shipping is urgent and achievable.
Staffan Johannesson, Sustainability Manager at SCM, said: &quot;As one of the signatories to the call to action, we are joining forces with some of the world's largest actors in global trade. We want governments to work together with the industry to deliver the policies and investments needed to reach critical tipping points in decarbonising global supply chains.&quot;

Joining the call to action to decarbonise shipping

We’re moving away from leather interiors, in favour of other sustainable materials. In doing so, we’re right on par with ongoing trends in material design.

The C40 Recharge is an important car in terms of our electric and commercial future, as you could read <a href="https://www.volvocars.com/intl/news/articles/our-brand-new-pure-electric-C40-recharge">earlier this year</a>. But there’s another area in which our new pure electric crossover represents our future: it’s the first Volvo to be fully leather-free inside. As such, the C40 is a hallmark of our commitment that going forward, every fully electric Volvo will be free of leather.
While the raw hides supplied to Volvo Cars today are responsibly sourced as by-products from the beef industry, we want to support animal welfare by contributing to a reduced demand of leather.
Our move towards leather-free interiors is also driven by a concern about the negative environmental impacts of cattle farming, including greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation.
In addition to going leather-free, we also aim to continuously reduce the use of certain materials containing animal products inside our cars – think of certain plastics, rubbers, lubricants and adhesives, which often contain residual products from livestock.
“Finding products and materials that support animal welfare will be challenging, but that is no reason to avoid this important issue,” said Stuart Templar, one of our sustainability experts. “This is a journey worth taking. Having a truly progressive and sustainable mindset means that we need to ask ourselves difficult questions and actively try and find the answers.”
Of course we’ll continue to provide our customers with classy interiors. So instead of leather, we’re actively looking for high-quality and sustainable sources for many materials. In our new electric cars, Volvo drivers will be offered high-quality interior options based on bio-attributed and recycled materials, as well as different types of premium textiles and wool blends with responsibly sourced wool.

The thing is that the definition of premium and luxury is changing. The design world as a whole is moving towards something called Conscious Design, whereby sustainability and responsible sourcing plays an ever-increasing role in creating materials and products. Customer research also shows that for them, sustainability plays a growing role when selecting a brand’s products.
As a new <a href="https://www.media.volvocars.com/global/en-gb/media/documentfile/285907/the-rise-of-conscious-design-full-report">trend report</a> from Volvo Cars and The Future Laboratory shows, designers around the world are actively sourcing high-quality, sustainable and responsibly-sourced materials as they strive to create the luxury products of the future. That fits well with our focus on the circular economy and creating more sustainable products.
A good example is a new, Volvo-created interior material called Nordico that will make its debut in our next generation of fully electric cars. It consists of textiles made from recycled material such as PET bottles, bio-attributed material from sustainable forests in Sweden and Finland, and corks recycled from the wine industry. In other words: very sustainable and yet of the highest quality.
By 2025, we aim for 25 per cent of the material in new Volvo cars to consist of recycled and bio-based content, as part of our ambition to be a fully circular business by 2040. We also aim for all our immediate suppliers, including material suppliers, to use 100 per cent renewable energy by 2025.
So, as with everything, the development of future materials remains a work in progress. But we can rest assured that we’re at the forefront of this development and living up to our ambition of being a company that takes sustainability as seriously as safety.

The future of luxury materials is natural, sustainable and responsible

Volvo Cars is one of the most innovative companies and electrification is crucial to innovate and transform automotive industry. Learn more  here.

Innovation News | Volvo Cars

Discover the latest corporate news, press releases and articles from Volvo Cars. Learn more Volvo work culture, employees and managers here.

Corporate and Culture News | Volvo Cars 

Volvo leads inventions of car safety features. Discover how we keep pushing up standards to save lives, breaking paradigms to ensure safe mobility.


Car Safety News | Volvo Cars

The future of mobility faces enormous challenges. Electrification is a crucial player in to fight against climate change. Learn more here.


Electrification News | Volvo Cars

Discover the latest corporate news and press releases from Volvo. Learn more about company announcements here.


Corporate News| Volvo Cars

News and articles about daily life at Volvo Cars, as employee, manager or consultant. Learn more Volvo work culture and people working experiences here.


Work Culture News | Volvo Cars

All the latest news and corporate updates about electrification strategy, safety innovations, sustainability roadmap, automotive industry, and work culture.


Volvo News and latest updates | Volvo Cars 

Technology to create products and services for a better future makes Volvo one of the most innovative companies. Find out our last news here.

Technology and Innovations News | Volvo Cars

Take a tour to Volvo Cars industry news and how we are transforming automotive industry by creating new ways of industrial production. 


Automotive Industry News | Volvo Cars

Learn more about how Volvo is working to decrease its carbon footprint by researching new production techniques and creating innovative materials.


Our News

The Ocean Race 2023: Sustainability Sets Sail

Joining the call to action to decarbonise shipping

The future of luxury materials is natural, sustainable and responsible