Eco-Innovation Articles From Around the World
IBM Solar Collector Magnifies Sun By 2,000x (Without Cooking Itself), Costs 3x Less Than Similar Systems
Source: treehugger.com Published: April 23, 2013 © IBM Michael Graham Richard Michael_GR Cleverly combining solar PV with solar thermal to reach 80% conversion efficiency Concentrating the sun’s ray onto solar photovoltaic (PV) modules requires walking the fine line...
101 Uses for Beeswax
Source: mallorymarket.com Published: April 25, 2013 Thank you Crafting Montana for coming up with this great list 1) lubricant for very old furniture joints. 2) Smooth movement for doors and windows. 3) Component for mustache creams. 4) Prevents bronze items from...
Are These ‘The Most Efficient Vehicles on The Planet’?
Source: mnn.com Published: April 22, 2013 This electric-assist tricycle is ready to win hearts and take on the city streets. Here's how a veteran of the luxury car market is making his vision a reality. Photo: Organic Transit By Sami Grover Walking into the...
Exhibit – Earth Day San Francisco
Source: matteroftrust.org Published: April 22, 2013 A huge thank you to all the schools who sent in art to Earth Day San Francisco 2013 at Civic Center Plaza! Shout out to Saint Thomas the Apostle School in San Francisco for sending in the most art work!...
Artificial Leaf Produces Energy from Dirty Water
Source: treehugger.com Published: April 15, 2013 © Dominick Reuter / MIT News Megan Treacy mtreacy Back in 2011, researchers at MIT developed an artificial leaf technology that could produce energy from water and sunlight. The artificial leaf is essentially a silicon...
D.C. Union Station Now Powered by 100 Percent Wind Energy
Source: sustainablecitiescollective.com Published: April 16, 2013 Author grmeyers @gbelements Union Station, Wash D.C. shuttestock__685100 Strengthening its dedication to environmental sustainability, Union Station in Washington, D.C., has signed a three-year contract...
Solarcopter: World’s First Solar-Powered Helicopter Takes Off on First Flight
Source: fastcoexist.com Published: April 12, 2013 A team of masters students from the U.K. have built what they call the world’s first solar copter. All right, it’s just a remote-controlled helicopter. But the SolarCopter is still driving new technology that could add...
Affordable Bamboo Housing Floats When It Floods
Source: treehugger.com Published: April 11, 2013 © H&P Architects Creating dwellings that can stand up to the extreme forces of nature presents a challenging design problem, no matter the locale. Hoping to address the issue of extensive loss of homes and...
The World Sends Us Garbage. We Send Back Music. – Landfill Harmonic
Source: treehugger.com Published: April 4, 2013 © Landfill Harmonic Derek Markham derekmarkham When resourcefulness, creativity, passion, and inspiration meet, there is always the possibility that amazing things can happen, even in the most unlikely of spots. In a...
FreshWall – Eat, Breathe and Enjoy the Nature
Source: indiegogo.com Published: April 9, 2013 Niko Järvinen 1 Campaign | Jyväskylä, Finland Grow your own food and make your indoor air cleaner with FreshWall – vertically, year round with near zero maintenance. And it looks awesome! See FreshWall video at...
Scientists Create World’s Lightest Solid Material
Source: csglobe.com Published: March 27, 2013 By Kuma Chinese researchers showed off their graphene aerogel by balancing it on the petals of a cherry blossom The sponge-like matter is made of freeze-dried carbon and graphene oxide and is the lightest material ever...
Geometric Chic: Re Rag Rugs Made from Recycled Textiles
Source: treehugger.com Published: April 3, 2013 © Re Rag Rug Kimberley Mok kimberleymok Handwoven from fabric scraps, rag rugs were once commonplace in thrifty North American households until the mid-twentieth century, ostensibly as a way to upcycle old clothing and...
Magic, Smog-Gobbling Tiles?
Source: vice.com Published: March 29, 2013 Mexico City is the latest to show off a building that sucks up pollution. Behold: The great smog-gobbling hospital of Mexico City, also known as the Torre de Especialidadesis by Adam Clark Estes We've seen some pretty sick...
Solar Power in Africa Helps Villages Meet Basic Needs
Source: nationalgeographic.com Published: March 21, 2013 Solar panels also power the water pump to supply water for domestic use. This reservoir is connected to six water taps. (image via Chad Lipton/National Geographic Society) Less than 25 percent of the population...
Solar Power in Africa Helps Villages Meet Basic Needs
Source: nationalgeographic.com Published: March 21, 2013 Solar panels also power the water pump to supply water for domestic use. This reservoir is connected to six water taps. (image via Chad Lipton/National Geographic Society) Less than 25 percent of the population...
Beaver Dams Block Chevron Oil Spill in Utah
Source: grist.org Published: March 20, 2013 By John Upton Beaver dams prevented diesel from reaching Willard Bay. Brian Yeung Chevron’s third pipeline spill in Utah in as many years on Monday released hundreds of barrels of diesel, polluting a river, coating beavers...
MIDWAY: A Film by Chris Jordan
Source: daneldon.org Published: March 19, 2013 Posted by admin The MIDWAY film project is a powerful visual journey into the heart of an astonishingly symbolic environmental tragedy. On one of the remotest islands on our planet, tens of thousands of baby albatrosses...
Vapur Unveils Water Filtering Anti-Bottles That Remove 99.99% of Bacteria
Source: inhabitat.com Published: March 11, 2013 by Lea Stewart vapur flat bottle Vapur introduced several new products at the 2013 International Home + Housewares Show that expand their line of BPA-free “Anti-Bottles” – including a new filtering technology that ...
Best Air-Filtering Houseplants, According to NASA
Source: mnn.com Published: March 12, 2013 Having good indoor air quality is very important, especially since many of us spend so much time inside. NASA did a study to find out which plants were best to filter the air of the space station, and the agency’s findings...
Trees Used to Create Recyclable, Efficient Solar Cell
Source: sciencedaily.com Published: March 26, 2013 Solar cells are just like leaves, capturing the sunlight and turning it into energy. It’s fitting that they can now be made partially from trees. Georgia Institute of Technology and Purdue University researchers have...
Ecover to Turn Sea Plastic into Bottles in Pioneering Recycling Scheme
Source: guardian.co.uk Published: March 7, 2013 By Rebecca Smithers, consumer affairs correspondent Green cleaning brand claims plastic trawled from the sea can be used to create fully sustainable and recyclable packaging ...
The InVaso Self-Watering Sponge Pot is Great for Forgetful Gardeners
Source: inhabitat.com Published: March 7, 2013 Even the most dedicated green thumbs may occasionally forget to water their plants. Enter InVaso — a self-watering sponge vase created by industrial designer Stefano Claudio Bison. Made from the same kind of porous ...
The Disappearing Package
Source: inhabitat.com Published: March 6, 2013 by Inhabitat Staff ...
Rotating, Sun-Tracking Solar Islands for Swiss Lake
Source: earthtechling.com Published: February 7, 2013 By Pete Danko Manmade islands for the production of renewable energy – they’re all the rage, suddenly. A few weeks ago we told you about Belgium’s plan to build an island in the North Sea with a below-sea-level...
Micro-Algae Lamp Absorbs 150-200 Times More CO2 than a Tree!
Source: treehugger.com Published: April 5, 2012 CleanTechnica/via Petz Scholtus petzdelux French biochemist and Shamengo pioneer Pierre Calleja has invented this impressive streetlight that is powered by algae which absorbs CO2 from the air. We have featured...
Bees and Math
Source: sites.google.com Published: February 26, 2013 Bees…by virtue of a certain geometrical forethought…know that the hexagon is greater than the square and the triangle, and will hold more honey for the same expenditure of material. — Pappus of Alexandria Bees have...
Garbage Homes – Bolivia
Source: aljazeera.com Published: February 5, 2013 We follow one woman who is on a mission to build homes for the poor from the only resource she can find in abundance. Ingrid Vaca Diez is on a mission to build better homes for the poor. With few funds and little...
Bottle Charger Turns a Plastic Bottle into an Off-Grid Cell Phone Charger
Source: inhabitat.com Published: February 19, 2013 by Lori Zimmer A group of designers in Nairobi, Kenya have created a way to charge your cell phone with green energy while recycling a plastic bottle! The Bottle Charger transforms any used plastic soda or water...
Quetsol: Working to Bring Clean Solar Power to Guatemala’s Rural Poor
Source: mnn.com Published: February 19, 2013 Shea Gunther Social entrepreneur Juan Fermín Rodriguez needs your help to bring his innovative solar technology and business model to poor rural Guatemalan families. Photo: Quetsol I am a fan of environmental initiatives...
GMO Fail: Monsanto Foiled by Feds, Supreme Court, And Science
Source: grist.org Published: February 15, 2013 By Tom Laskawy Shutterstock It’s been a good week if you enjoy a little GMO schadenfreude. The FDA has reportedly bowed to public pressure to extend the comment period on its approval of genetically engineered salmon, and...
Colourful ‘Solar Glass’ Means Entire Buildings Can Generate Clean Power
Source: guardian.co.uk Published: February 14, 2013 British firm develops colourful, transparent solar cells that will add just 10% to glass buildings' cost Oxford Photovoltaics uses non-toxic organic solar cell materials printed directly on to glass to produce clean...
Beverage-Powered Charger Promises Phone Immortality
Source: earthtechling.com Published: February 14, 2013 By Beth Buczynski If, like me, you’re seated in front of a computer right now, you, like me, probably have a beverage within arm’s reach. Something about the presence of a hot thermos full of tea says “it’s time...
BioBot 20: A Biodiesel Plant for Your Kitchen Counter
Source: earthtechling.com Published: February 13, 2013 By Beth Buczynski I love eating bacon, but hate making it. Not only does that smell seem to permeate every inch of the house for hours after, but there’s always the question of what to do with the leftover grease....
Hexagonal Bee Hotel Aims to Boost Declining Wild Bee Populations
Source: treehugger.com Published: February 7, 2013 © AtelierD Kimberley Mok kimberleymok In...
UNEP & TreeHugger Launch Blogging Contest for World Environment Day
Source: treehugger.com Published: February 7, 2013 © UNEP Chris Tackett ChrisTackett It is estimated that forty to fifty percent of the food produced each year goes to waste. Thankfully, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and TreeHugger are partnering to...
Solar Bus Stops Light the Way in Perris, California
Source: earthtechling.com Published: February 5, 2013 By Beth Buczynski Image via City of Perris/Solar Feeds With an abundance of sunshine, it’s no wonder that some of the most innovative and successful solar power installations are found in California. Recently, the...
FISCAL SPONSORSHIP – Chitapampa Alpaca Fleece Factory – Renewable Resources – 2012 – 2015
Matter of Trust has partnered with Dr. Rosa Ten to assist this small learning factory in the mountains of Peru. Come into our eco-center to learn more about this exciting program and to see how you can get involved. Peruse the beautiful goods produced by the talented...
The Voltmaker Charges Your Gadgets Off-Grid with Kinetic Energy
Source: inhabitat.com Published: January 30, 2013 by Inhabitat Staff Sick of your batteries dying at the very moment you need to make a call, flick on a flashlight, or find your position on a GPS when you are lost in the outdoors? Introducing the Voltmaker–...
ECO-CENTER – Matter of Trust Eco-Center 2013 – 2016
Matter of Trust is proud to have had an Eco-Center in San Francisco! Located in the vibrant Mission District neighborhood with a mix of cultures, long-time San Francisco established and new trendy shops and restaurants as well as homes and apartments. The center was...
FESTIVAL – Earth Day SF – 2012 – 2015
Matter of Trust participated in 2011--2015 Civic Center and 22nd Street Earth Day San Francisco celebrations providing youth activities, eco-art exhibits, and installations for the 2011--2015 events. Earth Day San Francisco 2011 - School of Fish Awareness Art Earth...
Indian Researchers Create Low-Cost Bricks from Recycled Paper Mill Waste
Source: inhabitat.com Published: January 31, 2013 by Inhabitat Staff VNIT Recycled Paper Bricks While recycling trash is preferable to simply chucking refuse into the dump, the process still creates tons of byproducts that end up making their way to the landfill....
Teen Convinces Gatorade to Remove Additive
Source: good news network Published: January 30, 2013 By Good News Network A 16-year-old from Mississippi fought one of the largest beverage companies — and won. The young vegan researched an ingredient in Gatorade to...
All-Bamboo Smartphone Concept Reinvents Simplicity
Source: earthtechling.com Published: January 28, 2013 By Beth Buczynski Tired of the same old plastic-sheathed smartphones? Wish you didn’t have to buy expensive cases and covers just to protect your investment? ADZero, billed as the ‘world’s first bamboo smartphone,’...
Spin Cell Cones
Source: inhabitat.com Published: January 29, 2013 by Charley Cameron Via Clean Technica When V3Solar released information about their Spin Cell photovoltaic cones last year, the details already looked remarkably impressive; they have a smaller physical footprint than...
Growing Up, Growing Food: A Teenage Farmer to Watch
Source: grist.org Published: October 12, 2012 By Darcy Smit Sara Dent Think you don’t regret all those high school afternoons wasted at the mall or the skate park? Just wait till you meet Sophia Vartanian, a Vancouver, B.C.-based urban farmer. At 16 years old, her...
RESEARCH – Well, Hemph! Renewable Resources (now Hemp, Hemp, Horay! Eco-Home Exhibit) – 2013 – 2014
Since 2013, Matter of Trust has been into the research of the practical uses of the male hemp plant (not the female cannabis plant) and how we can move towards the sensible use of this naturally abundant and very useful, practical material.
Fiji Boat Made from Plastic Bottles
Source: ippinka.com Published: November 4, 2012 by Jerry Chang 600 littered plastic bottles were used by Tom Davies, a New Zealand native living in Fiji, to create this boat. It measures 4.5 metres long and 1.4 metres wide. All the 600ml bottles used are glued...
Seattle Unveils the World’s Greenest Office Building
Source: takepart.com Published: January 23, 2013 The 50,000-square-foot building will generate all of its energy using solar panels, and all of its water will be provided by harvested rainwater. There will be indoor composting toilets, a system of geothermal wells for...
How Algae Biodiesel Works
Source: science.howstuffworks.com Published: January 22, 2013 by Stefani Newman Pretty, isn't it? Although this looks like abstract art, this stuff could be fueling our cars and...
North Shore Community College’s Solar-Powered Health Professions Center Achieves Zero Net Energy
Source: inhabitat.com Published: January 18, 2013 by Inhabitat Staff In 2012, the Danvers, Massachusetts North Shore Community College (NSCC) campus opened its new 58,000 square-foot Health Professions/Student Services Building. Designed by Boston/Seattle-based...
Inside the Empowerhouse
Source: fastcoexist.com Published: December 20, 2012 The design debuted at the government’s Solar Decathalon, but instead of just being a show piece, new versions of it are being installed around Washington by Habitat for Humanity. By Zak Stone The Department of...
Woodpecker Inspires Cardboard Bike Helmet
Source: bbc.com Published: January 16, 2013 Many cyclists wouldn’t leave home without a helmet – but it’s a piece of kit that doesn’t offer as much protection as some cyclists might think. The way a woodpecker is able to protect itself from long bouts of head banging...
Thermal Glass Igloos Offer Views of the Northern Lights at Finland’s Hotel Kakslauttanen
Source: inhabitat.com Published: January 15, 2013 by Inhabitat Staff Images by Hotel Kakslauttanen A romantic night under the stars is one thing, but a crystal clear view of the Northern Lights from your own private igloo is definitely another treat entirely. The...
EXHIBIT – Earth Day San Francisco – School of Fish Awareness Art – 2011
School Of Fish (awareness about plastics in our Oceans) Our waterways are becoming increasingly polluted and much of that pollution comes from plastic products that degrade dangerously and kill fish. By reducing and changing the materials we work with each day, we can...
Dresses Made from Thousands of Recycled Rubber Bands
Source: treehugger.com Published: January 11, 2013 © Margarita Mileva Kimberley Mok kimberleymok There’s no shortage of architects moonlighting as fashion designers nowadays. Bulgarian, New York-based Margarita Mileva is one of them, but instead of churning out...
Disaster-Resistant Earthbag Homes for Post-Earthquake Haiti
Source: treehugger.com Published: January 9, 2013 © Konbit Shelter Kimberley Mok kimberleymok Coverage of Haiti's 2010 earthquake disaster may have dwindled in the news, but rebuilding efforts are still slowly continuing, running the gamut from shelters made from...
Shanghai Organic Farm Made From 78 Recycled Shipping Containers
Source: earthtechling.com Published: January 9, 2013 By Randy Woods Another day, another shipping container reuse, right? That’s how it seems sometimes with a lot of architecture firms that want to play with these modular boxes like they were pieces of Lego. While...
Coral Fights Back Against Warming Seas
Source: motherjones.com Published: January 8, 2013 Tim McDonnell Different colonies of Acropora hyacinthus, one species examined by the Stanford team,...
PROGRAM – IN-KIND Eye Glasses Donation Drive – Looking Glass – 2011 – 2014
Over 153 million people worldwide suffer from vision problems, limiting their potential to read, learn, and work. Matter of Trust is proud to partner with Dr. Rosa Ten and her medical missions. We collect used eyeglasses for those in need, such as the people she...
Timber Shoffice is a Naturally Daylit Garden Shed and Office Combo in London
Source: inhabitat.com Published: December 22, 2012 by Bridgette Meinhold The UK has a thing for garden sheds and backyard offices and the new Shoffice is a brilliant example. Combination shed + office, the Shoffice is the handiwork of London firm, Platform 5...
ECO-CENTER – Music Matters – 2013 – 2016
Combining music education, environmental awareness, and creativity, Music Matters gives students the tools and instruction to build their own playable instruments out of reuse materials. Since instruments can be very expensive and music classes have been victim to...
Researchers Develop a Self-Filling Water Bottle that Harvests Water from the Air
Sources: bigthink.com; inhabitat.com Published: November 22, 2012 Scientist Deckard Sorensen used nanotechnology to create a vessel that mimics the water collection and storage capabilities of the Namib desert beetle. Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com By Kecia Lynn...
The Gingerbread Movement: The Greenest Building Material
Source: treehugger.com Published: December 19, 2012 Architizer/via Lloyd Alter lloydalter Everything in a healthy home should be non-toxic, from the building materials to the finishes. Think gingerbread. The other great thing is that gingerbread structures tend...
WakaWaka Solar Light A Brilliant Idea for Off-Grid Communities
Source: earthtechling.com Published: December 15, 2012 By Beth Buczynski Surviving without electrical power isn’t something we’re very good at any more. Here in the U.S., if you don’t have electricity at home, it’s usually because of a storm or your roommate forgot to...
Students Build Bike-Powered Charging Station from Scratch
Source: treehugger.com Published: December 13, 2012 © Christina Woodward/NAU Megan Treacy mtreacy As we become more and more dependent on our gadgets, we also are continually seeking out better ways to power them, from solar-powered chargers to human-powered...
Foldaboat!
Source: yankodesign.com Published: July 19, 2011 By Long Tran Fold-a-boat is a seamless, hard shell, folding boat made from one single sheet of plastic. The objective is to create an accessible flat-pack leisure boat designed for flat water environments. The 2.5m...
Nebula 12: A Lamp for All Seasons (And Weather Conditions)
Source: mnn.com Published: December 10, 2012 For those who prefer their meteorological forecasts to be startlingly literal, check out this WiFi-enabled chandelier that magically produces indoor clouds based on weather conditions. Image: Micasa12 Matt Hickman Over the...
‘Bite Me’ LED Desk Lamp Looks Good Enough to Eat
Source: earthtechling.com Published: December 4, 2012 By Beth Buczynski You know that scene in Charlie and The Chocolate Factory where the golden-ticket holders step inside the waterfall room and Wonka tells them everything they see is edible? (If you don’t know what...
Small Charity Beats Oil Giant, Becomes Largest Seller of Solar Lights in Africa
Source: treehugger.com Published: December 13, 2012 © Solar-Aid Sami Grover samigrover Solar lights save lives in Africa. They improve school performance. They reduce respiratory diseases. And they provide a scalable model for micro-enterprises and economic stimulus....
Solar-Powered Plane Can Fly All Day — And All Night
Source: mnn.com Published: December 5, 2012 By John Platt Solar Impulse will circle the globe in 2015, a journey that will take 20 days and 20 nights broken up over several months. Photo: © Solar Impulse/Jean Revillard Airplanes don’t come much more innovative than...
Real Wood iPad Cover Doubles as Roll-Top ‘Desk’
Source: earthtechling.com Published: December 4, 2012 Image via Miniot By Beth Buczynski Today’s technology is all chrome and LEDs. Sometimes, a geek feels a gentle yearning for the way gadgets used to be: handmade, from materials found in nature. Although today’s...
50 Creative Ways to Repurpose, Reuse and Upcycle Old Things
Source: twistedsifter.com Published: June 12, 2012 You probably have a lot of old stuff just lying around your house. It’s not doing anything but taking up space, but you’re either too busy (or lazy), sentimental or just have more important things to deal with. Well...
Why Alpaca Beats Wool for Eco Friendliness
Source: mnn.com Published: November 28, 2012 Alpaca accessories and sweaters are popping up everywhere this year. Here’s why this trend has a lighter footprint (literally). Starre Vartan Recently, the Higg Index rated a number of fabrics for sustainability the...
Eco Friendly Furniture to Provide Illumination Using Solar Energy
Source: ecochunk.com Published: November 27, 2012 solar powered illuminating furniture_1 The most recent advancements in solar energy generating technology have enabled designers to think about new means to integrate photovoltaic panels in everything possible. We’ve...
High Line-Style Project for Sydney Aims to Deliver the Goods
Source: earthtechling.com Published: November 22, 2012 By Susan DeFreitas Old railroads are all the rage when it comes to adaptive reuse. New York City kicked off the trend with its High Line park, which officially opened to the public last year. Now we’ve got...
N.J. Man Powers House with Hybrid Car
Source: nbcnewyork.com Published: November 8, 2012 By Pat Battle and Katie Honan "The neighbors kept saying, 'Does Bob have a generator?' No, it's the Prius. It's a spaceship," he said Some tri-state residents who lost power during Sandy found temporary refuge from...
Four African Teens Create Pee-Powered Energy Generator
Source: bellanaija.com Published: November 9, 2012 By Adeola Adeyemo Photo/News Credit: Maker Faire Africa Yes that’s right! Using a resource that everyone has, the girls developed a generator that produces six hour of power for one liter of urine. The...
Dyson Award-Winning SafetyNet Prevents Overfishing by Guiding Small Fish to Freedom with LED Lights
Source: inhabitat.com Published: November 12, 2012 by Inhabitat Staff Royal College of Arts graduate Dan Watson has developed a brilliant sustainable fishing net with luminous exit portals that allow endangered and young fish to escape so that they can fully mature....
Piezoelectric Systems for Green Environment
Source: ecofriend.com Published: November 9, 2012 Electricity, as we all know, isn’t easy to generate and even the power that reaches our wall sockets isn’t always green. In an era where everybody seems to be getting interested about renewable energy, there is no...
Are ‘Smart Bulbs’ the Next Bright Idea in Energy Efficiency?
Source: earthtechling.com Published: November 8, 2012 The Spark Socket is among a wave of new “smart bulb” products that are about to hit the market. The devices promise to give customers better control over their lighting, as well as more information about their...
‘Kite Surfing’ Helps Generate Wind Power
Source: mnn.com Published: November 7, 2012 Compared to wind turbines, utilizing ‘kite surfing’ to harness wind power would yield more energy for much less money and could generate energy almost anywhere. This article no longer exists at the Source link above. It...
Can Kenaf the “Miracle” Plant Solve the World’s 3 Greatest Problems?
Source: mnn.com Published: February 27, 2009 Karl Burkart Kenaf, the carbon-sequestering monster plant, provides food, shelter and carbon credits. Photo: Stop-global-warming.org If someone were to tell you that they had a technology — a weed actually — that could...
Bike Power – Communities Gather Around Generators in New York
Source: beforeitsnews.com Published: November 1, 2012 People gather around a generator to charge their phones on Wednesday afternoon, just south of the intersection of Avenue C and East 10th Street, part of a large area of southern Manhattan that remained without...
Mexico City’s Rooftop Gardens
Source: mcclatchydc.com Published: October 31, 2012 In a program begun five years ago, Mexico City’s municipal government has given grants to 3,080 families to build gardens on their rooftops, sometimes sheltered by simple greenhouses to protect from nightly mountain...
10 Green-Tech City Solutions for Beating the Heat
Source: news.nationalgeographic.com Published: July 26, 2012 The Reichstag, Germany’s parliament building, was retrofitted in 1999 with a new dome that uses glass and mirrors to reflect daylight deep into the main chamber, reducing dependence on artificial...
British Firm Produces Liquid Fuel from Water and Thin Air
Source: independent.co.uk Published: October 19, 2012 Steve Connor @SteveAConnor Is scientific breakthrough a milestone on the road to clean energy? Tim Harrison in the only lab known to be working on the technology A small British company has produced the first...
Recycling Mysteries: Candy Wrappers
Source: earth911.com Published: October 20, 2012 You’ve got a sweet tooth you need to satisfy, but did you know that most of our favorite candies are wrapped in what has somehow become the unwanted stepchildren of waste management? Tossed in the trash or in a recycle...
Luminous Laser-Cut Lamps Made Out of Kelp
Source: treehugger.com Published: October 24, 2012 Dezeen/via Kimberley Mok From biofuels to fish-free health supplements and interactive, energy-generating "cyber-gardens," there are a lot of potential green uses for algae. On the design side, we've previously seen...
A Tree House ‘Cocoon’ For Backyard Camping
Source: earthtechling.com Published: October 18, 2012 By Susan DeFreitas image via Inhabitat / Cocoon Dream of a stay in one of those Free Spirit Tree Spheres in the treetops of Vancouver, B.C., but lacking in time to travel? Consider the Cocoon Tree, a...
What If Your Footsteps Could Power Your City Sustainably?
Source: sustainablecitiescollective.com Published: October 19, 2012 Author Urban Times @urbantimes Pavegen Tiles in a Hallway A while back our Sci & Tech Correspondent Nathan Liu wrote a piece entitled "iPavement Connects People with Cities" about...
Will Algae Ever Power Our Cars?
Source: guardian.co.uk Published: October 15, 2012 Marc Gunther for Yale Environment 360, part of the Guardian Environment Network Earlier this year,...
The Return of Sailing Ships
Source: ecogeek.org Published: September 4, 2012 Written by Philip Proefrock With global production and distribution of goods a reality of 21st Century life, cargo ships are ubiquitous. They bring goods to consumers all over the world, and more and more ships are...
Making Renewable Energy Lemonade from Biomass Lemons
Source: renewableenergyworld.com Published: October 12, 2012 By Bruce Dorminey Lead image: Pine beetle damage via Shutterstock SEATTLE — At least one...
Method Debuts Bottle Made from Ocean Plastic
Source:: mnn.com Published: October 11, 2012 Melissa Hincha-Ownby The new bottles are available exclusively at Whole Foods. Photo: Method The Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch is a disgusting stew of plastic waste. There are a variety of educational efforts in effect...
UK’s First Building to Be Made Entirely from Waste – Video Animation
Source: guardian.co.uk Published: October 3, 2012 Courtesy of BBM Sustainable Design Ltd. All Rights Reserved Construction and industrial waste will be used to build ecohouse in Brighton city centre. The project is named “the house that Kevin built” and will have...
10 Innovative Ideas That Let Us Live on Water
Source: mnn.com Published: April 29, 2011 By: Laura Moss Photo: Vincent Callebaut Architecture Real-life ‘Waterworld’ The planet is warming, which is causing glaciers and ice sheets to melt and Earth's sea levels to rise. As the ocean makes inroads over the next...
An Israeli Water Heater Gathers Sun Like Bees Gather Honey, Retaining Enough Heat to Warm More Than Just Dishwater
Source: israel21c.org Published: August 19, 2012 An Israeli water heater gathers sun like bees gather honey, retaining enough heat to warm more than just dishwater. Tigi’s Honeycomb Collector keeps more heat inside. By Karin Kloosterman Israel is the land of milk and...
Green Housing for The Homeless Saves San Francisco Cash
Source: earthtechling.com Published: October 2, 2012 Is it a trend? We’ve seen green low-income housing the city of Rome, Ga., expected to earn LEED for Homes certification at the Silver level. We’ve seen solar installed across a wide range of...
French Student Team Rhône-Alpes Wins the 2012 Solar Decathlon Europe With Canopea House!
Source: inhabitat.com Published: October 1, 2012 by Tafline Laylin Big news out of Madrid, Spain: French university Team Rhône-Alpes has won the 2012 European Solar Decathlon with their stunning solar Canopea House! Leading the Solar Decathlon competition since...
Open Sesame – The Story of Seeds
Source: climatefilms.wordpress.com Published: September 12, 2012 Seeds are the foundation of our food supply. They are as critically important as the air we breathe, or the water we drink but given much less attention. Unfortunately seeds face serious dangers that...