Sustainable
One of the key factors in running a successful charity is helping the donors feel as connected as possible to the communities they're assisting, and see the difference they can help create. It's part of the feel-good cycle and evidence that the money is going to good use - which is why this is such a fascinating idea: The Kopernik is a next-gen online charity initiative that lets you choose exactly which projects and technologies you wish to put your money towards, then shows you the results in video form as projects are completed. It's also quite an amazing repository of emerging survival and sustainable living technology - from self-adjustable eyeglasses to clean drinking water devices and much more. Read More
Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP (SOM) has just unveiled details of the first phase for the expansion and redevelopment of three business districts in China's capital city, Beijing. Key to the success of the project is the installation of a Central Park area which will help to heat and cool energy efficient buildings in the Dawangjing District by geothermal exchange instead of relying on energy-intensive cooling towers. Read More
Compostable plastics breakthrough sounds sweet
Traditional environmental enemies food packaging and other disposable plastic items could soon be composted at home along with organic waste and not collected for landfill thanks to a new sugar-based polymer being developed at Imperial College London. The degradable polymer is made from sugars known as lignocellulosic biomass, which come from non-food crops like fast-growing trees and grasses, or renewable biomass from agricultural or food waste. Read More
Winter Olympics gets a touch of greenery
When Vancouver won the competition to host the 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games thoughts immediately turned to construction, and one of the most awe-inspiring initiatives has to be the redesign of the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Center (VCAEC). Currently hosting the international broadcasting and media hub for the Winter Olympics, this waterfront building is not only beautiful and functional but is environmentally sustainable, boasting a green electricity program, a seawater heating and cooling system and the largest "living roof" in Canada populated with 40,000 plants and grasses. Read More
Solar Decathlon hits the road to catch some Spanish sun
Madrid will host the first European version of the Solar Decathlon competition this summer which sees teams from universities throughout the world designing, building and displaying efficient and sustainable solar homes. The overall competition winner being decided after the completion of ten trials aimed at gauging each entry's energy efficiency and sustainability credentials. Read More
Honda has begun work on a smaller solar hydrogen station prototype intended for use as a home refueling appliance. Capable of an overnight refill of fuel cell electric vehicles it is designed to be a single, integrated unit that will fit in the user's garage. Honda's next generation Solar Hydrogen Station, though not as big as the previous systems, will still produce enough hydrogen (0.5kg) via an eight-hour overnight fill for daily commuting (10,000 miles per year) for a fuel cell electric vehicle. Read More
Aside from tragic loss of life and incomprehensible destruction, events like last week’s devastating earthquake in Haiti create a myriad of problems in their wake, not least of which is homelessness. With over 30 million shipping containers the world over currently lying dormant, a team of researchers at Clemson University in South Carolina are working to help solve the issue of accommodation in disaster affected areas by developing a method to convert the unused containers into sustainable emergency housing. Read More
KLM conducts Europe's first biofuel-powered passenger flight
Commercial aircraft are a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, but manufacturers and operators are taking steps to tackle the problem. Operators such as Virgin Atlantic have conducted demonstration flights using biofuel, and now KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has completed its first ever passenger flight powered by sustainable kerosene. Using a 50 percent biokerosene/50 percent normal jet fuel mix to power one of its four engines, a Boeing 747 carrying 40 select passengers last week circled the Netherlands for an hour in what KLM claims is the first flight of its kind in Europe. Read More
The world's first osmotic power plant from Statkraft
The principle of harnessing osmosis has the potential to produce enormous amounts of energy anywhere that salt water and fresh water meet. We looked at some of the approaches to turning this theory into reality earlier this year, including Statkraft's plans to build a prototype power plant. The company's plans are now coming to fruition with Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway officially opening the world's first osmotic power plant prototype on November 24. Read More
Ford Flex 2010 to feature wheat-straw reinforced plastic
Ford is the first automaker to develop and implement environmentally-friendly wheat straw-reinforced plastic in a vehicle. Before you get carried away, the car itself, a Ford Flex, isn’t made of plastic, instead, it’s just the third-row interior storage bins made from the natural fiber-based plastic that contains 20 percent wheat straw bio-filler. Surprisingly though, Ford says this application alone reduces petroleum usage by some 20,000lbs per year, cuts CO2 emissions by 30,000lbs per year, and represents a smart, sustainable usage for wheat straw, the waste byproduct of wheat. Read More
