Welcome to my personal lawn rightly inside my apartment! Never doubt your own eyes, and I’m not kidding, my lawn is really inside the room rather than outside of it. Why? You need to ask Haiko Cornelissen Architecten, who created the sod-covered aluminum table to bring the outdoorsy experience into city apartments.
Though claimed “zero waste” or “no waste”, these earthCell batteries actually are not something decomposing completely in the earth and leaving no footprint to the environment. Instead, they’re introducing to us a new way of selling and using batteries: since the used earthCell batteries can be returned to the company where they may get re-used again, the company and consumers would cooperate to reduce the amount of throw-away batteries, and thus to ensure the environmental friendliness. On the other hand, the earthCell features a good performance of rechargeable, as each pre-charged LSD-NiMH battery can last 30-50% longer than alkalines, even in high-power devices.
Green Mailbox is a wall-mounted mailbox that features a special roof to collect water and irrigate plants automatically. It is a really simple idea but indeed fantastic for those who cares about the environment.
Nature is where we get most things used in daily life, and thus they’re expected to go back to the nature world once they’re not in use. The “To Be Nature Wood Chopstick” is just a good example that turns the waste into valuable things again. When you’re done with the chopsticks, stick its starch end into the ground, and a seed will come out to grow into a green plant gradually. Don’t believe that? Wait for the concept to turn into real product and you can then try it.
It is reported that every year about 1.3 billion trees worldwide are used to make various types of paper products and nearly every minute a forest that has the size of a football field is destroyed. So what should we do to protect the trees? Recently a designer Sangbyum Kim has created these Melt Tags to take the place of common paper tags on clothes. It will disappear in water, and more importantly the tag can clean your new clothes too. [Read the rest of this entry...]
The U.S. military recently developed a new Solar-powered Tent that uses a-Si thin film solar cells instead of conventional solar panels to produce electricity energy. Its hourly power generation ranges from 800watt to 3000watt, and the larger the tent is, the more energy it offers. [Read the rest of this entry...]
With such interesting leaf shirts on, can we humans become Adam and Eve again and then live in a new Garden of Eden? But that’s just what I thought as I saw these shirts. And designer Dave Rittinger actually aimed to embrace ecological consciousness with these “zero footprint shirts”. So do you have in mind? Share them with us. [Read the rest of this entry...]
We’ll never suggest you go to a restaurant that is constructed from bamboo for dinner, because no buildings would be much solider and safer than one that is made from concrete. But the Indonesian Bamboo Restaurant is so extraordinary that we would really like you to have a try. Designed by DSA+s, the restaurant is mainly made from bamboo and coupled together with ijuk, which is a rope made from sugar palm fiber. Concrete is also used for the stair, patio, and house base. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Have you ever realized how much biomass energy you’re wasting when throwing rubbish away? Let the trash bag designed by Ahhaproject tell you something: a full bag of rubbish is sufficient enough to boil 100 cups of tea, recharge cellphones 300 times or drive your car 16 miles. You see, even the trash can still do so many things, isn’t that amazing? Something more amazing is that these new trash bags can not only visualize the amount of energy contained, but leave no prints to the environment as they’re completely biodegradable PLA material. [Read the rest of this entry...]
The refreshing green color of the new tea bag always makes us think of one same word: healthy. And it is indeed something that can lead you a more healthy way of enjoying tea. Made from natural green tea leaves, these new packaging bags will change color to indicate how to correctly make a cup of tea. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Will human’s living environment get improved in the future if we build more and more gardens on the buses?! Designed by Marco Castro Cosio, these roof gardens are expected to absorb exhaust gas as the buses move around the city. Whatever the results may follow, we still think that’s a good try and welcome more and more cities adopting such Green Roofed Buses. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Guess what, the cool jacket is made from vegetable leather that is grown from a vat of green tea! That’s really incredible, but that’s just what the fashion designer Suzanna Lee has created in the “BioCouture” research project based at Central Saint Martin’s College.
Continue reading for a further explanation offered by Suzanna after the jump. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Taking the zero-emission vehicles to a new level, more and more automakers are developing vehicles that are powered by pedals, and one of the latest designs is the Human Powered Vehicle by Todd Dawson. It’s a double-duty vehicle, functioning as both a community car and a tradesman’s vehicle, and you can easily shift the vehicle between those two forms by moving and folding the seats in the back. The transformable seats also enable the vehicle to be used in different variants, ranging from a four person vehicle to a single person vehicle. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Who can tell me why the light concept is named as “SolarLight” but actually designed to harvest wind energy for power with its acrylic blades? But whatever, the “SolarLight” seems like a perfect alternative for the rural parts of the world, where large amounts of wind are available. [Read the rest of this entry...]
We need lamps everywhere, in the rooms, in the cars, in dark streets…Point is that too much fuel has been consumed to power the lamps, and we do need to find some alternatives for coal and electricity. According to a scientific breakthrough made by scientists from Yansei and Stanford university earlier this year, algae can produce electrical current during photosynthesis. So Mike Thompson created a hanging lamp that uses living algae as its power source. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Welcome to World One, the world’s tallest residential tower in the future. It is a 450 meters tall building that will be built on a 17-acre site in Mumbai, India, by Mumbai-based Lodha Developers, New York-based Pei Cobb Free & Partners and Leslie E Robertson Associates. The 117-story skyscraper will include two more towers, 300 exclusive flats, lavish villas and a few duplex suites as well. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Foldable, portable and also durable, the Planet Earth Reusable Shopping Bag is an ideal alternative to the common plastic shopping bags. When folded inside-out into a small ball, the bag looks just like the Earth we’re living on. And by that means, the manufactures aim to call for everybody not to use the plastic bags, in order to protect our earth. Okay, I’ll get one, and you? [Read the rest of this entry...]
Excited about the cool Renault 2010 Sand Jumper? Well, continue reading then, coz the following information is much more exciting. [Read the rest of this entry...]
The future of home decorations has arrived! Try the Glass² tiles and go for a greener life at once. These tiles are made from 99% recycled glass, having no glue or chemicals, and therefore they’re totally environmentally friendly. Heat-resistant, scratch-resistant and easy to fabricate, Glass² would fit in perfect to your living rooms, kitchens, and bathrooms. Also, they can be used for outdoors, since they could be easily cut into different shapes. So in a word, this is really a good step towards tomorrow’s green homes. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Made from 100% recycled paper, these pencils, with environment protection as the main concept, aims to enlighten the kids to live harmoniously with the nature. [Read the rest of this entry...]
What’s cardboard plus originality? It’s the Cardboard Baggage, which also doubles as a multi-functional rack to keep your shoes, books and other items when reassembled. One would expect it a rigid and fragile container, but the baggage is actually quite elegant and durable. And, the most important thing is that the paper luggage is more eco-friendly than those made from plastic and other materials. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Robert Cannon comes out with a new series of sculptures, something that cleverly present the connection between art and the nature. Apart from home decorations, these creative sculptures also work as garden pots, growing moss on them. [Read the rest of this entry...]
I cannot think of a rational reason why I want the magic straws, and the only reason may be that’s really cool. Made from 100% natural strawberry, vanilla and cocoa powder, the straws will release flavor and dissolve as the milk goes through them, offering you a definitely different way to enjoy the milk. So you like them? Only pay $3.99, you can get one flavor pack that includes 6 straws. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Welcome to the magnificent-looking Aptera Motor. It’s white, it’s cool, it’s powered by electricity and it has three wheels. That’s for real, and the Aptera 2E will hit the market sometime this year. But before you see them in stores, you should firstly get a thorough understanding of them. Executed by a boat builder and a biotechnology engineer, the car focuses on aerodynamics to realize a greater speed and effectiveness. The vehicle also has an electric engine that has the ability to accelerate from 0-100 km/h in less than 10 seconds and reach a top speed of 137km/h. On the roof, there’s also a solar panel, which is used to run the heat pump. Another point worthy mentioning is the materials used in the interior, which is made from recycled materials and organic dyes to make the Aptera 2E an eco-car. According to the manufactures, they’ll also adopt a plug-in hybrid engine to lower the cost so as to make the motors available to everyone. [Read the rest of this entry...]
May it have you feel disappointed or not, I’d still like to declare that the ‘Sprout’ Pen is merely a concept from Igor Lobanov before we start the topic. But it’s really a refreshing idea, featuring a housed plant in the bulk. The containment plant lives on the ink, which means you will see the plant inflate and change color from yellow to vibrate green as the pen sits in the inkwell and takes in the ink. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Air Scale is an innovative design by Yasuhiro Akama. The concept is all about telling the users the quality of the air they’re breathing in. According to the amount of pollutants, Air Scale rates the air in three colors: red means ‘dirty’, white indicates ‘normal’ and green means ‘clean’. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Showcased at the Design Museum London, ‘Harvest’ is an installation of chairs and tables made of Gypsophila plant, which has a natural ability to interlock. All the flowers have been put into moulds and freeze-dried for weeks before they’re used to make up the furniture. It will remain on show in The Tank outside the museum until 15 March. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Swedish architects Tham & Videgård Hansson Arkitekter have collaborated to bring forward the ‘Tree Hotel’ concept. It is a 4m× 4m × 4m lightweight aluminum shelter built around a tree trunk. Its exterior is covered with mirrored glass, which reflects the surroundings and the sky to make the hotel become a part of the nature. And the interior is all made of plywood. Providing a comfortable environment for two people, each shelter comes with a double bed, a small kitchen and bathroom, a living room and a roof terrace. In case birds fly into the windows, transparent stickers (visible to birds) will be added to the facades. To get into the shelter, you need to use a rope ladder or a rope bridge. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Wall lizards are born to live on the wall and so do wall lamps. That’s why these wall lamps here are shaped like wall lizards, with the lampshade as its big head, metal wires as its four legs and the tail. And there’s more! The lamp is also an eco-friendly product as its lampshade is made of cocoa leaves. Unbelievable! [Read the rest of this entry...]
Made from squid skins, these bottle-shaped cans are possibly the most eco-friendly cans we’ve ever met. If you like them, you can also DIY some at home, too. Firstly, you have to prepare some squids, and stuff them with rice or grain; and then leave them under the sun until they’re totally dried to desired shapes. Hmmm, the rice stored by them also has a squid taste, and that’s really perfect for those who love fishy food.
Natural beauty is an all-pervading presence, and this time, you’ll find it just inside your house. Attach any reminders you need to the metal branch with magnetic leaves, what can you see then? It’s a tree blooming with multiple leaves, as if it is bringing you back to the forest. [Read the rest of this entry...]
In my opinion, there’s no pot on earth more eco-friendly or nutritious than average soil, oh wait, it is rightly where the plants are originally belongs. And that’s why I really intrigued by Strata Flower Pot. It is no different with normal flower pots except that it still supports the flower even when the flower is planted in the soil. That means, you can smash the Strata Flower Pot and bury it into the soil to supply the plants with needed elements. [Read the rest of this entry...]
As a practical usage of bamboo, the ‘Bamboo Slips For Picnic’ presents the collective wisdom of students from JiangNan University. It is a green collection of spoons, knives and forks, which all come inside a thin sheet. Exactly the type of thing you may need whenever go on a picnic.
Well-known for a sustainable use, Nokia has been widely popular all over the world. And the new product, a green phone that features a recyclable use, would make you love Nokia much more. Every part of the new phone is made from recycled Aluminum; A capacitive sensor is built onto the keyboard to simplify the phone; Electronic ink is adopted to display words so as to save more energy. In addition, the phone also uses silver-zinc batteries rather than the regular lithium batteries, to reduce electronic wastes. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Welcome to Seoul and take a walk on the bridge installed with Wind Lamps. Conceived by the designer Kyung Kuk Kim, Wind Lamp is built with LEDs and powered by a specialized wind-harnessing generator that also powers other street lamps. I must say, it’s really a good piece of work, which beautifies the river and the city in an eco-friendly way. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Bamboo is a kind of plant that could adapt to different climates. Generally, it could be harvested every five years, greatly saving the energy input. With the growing shortage of conventional building materials, bamboo is now considered as an ideal replacement of cement and wood. Far more than that, even the bag designers have adopted bamboo as a new material. The ‘Boo Bag’, made of highly sustainable bamboo fabric, is a most popular design during the “Green Life Competition” held in Korea. Not only eco-friendly and energy-saving, the bamboo also doubles a handle for an easy grip when you use the bag. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Seemingly the floor lamp is just a pot of flower, growing elegantly and vigorously. And it is really a good idea to create a natural design by combining lamps with trees, as you may no longer find the electrical equipments inanimate now. [Read the rest of this entry...]
Solar powered, window AC, obviously these characteristics are not deemed as strong points in the new product “Briz Window Air Conditioner”. Different from others, Briz uses water as a coolant, so that your room will naturally cool down as the water evaporates. And that’s just why Briz is called as a “natural AC”. [Read the rest of this entry...]
The innovative device is a new kind of floating island that is used to purify the water. Powered by exercise machines, it will begin to work as soon as several exercise machines are operated together. When the so-called “Synchronicity Island” works, it will firstly pump the water into the four tanks, and then start the whole purifying process. What a nice green machine!
Surprisingly, these ties are made from recycled cassette tape rather than fabric, which means your old walkman can also be sacrificed to the ties. Leaving aside its strange feeling, the tie really provides a perfect way to green products.
