World Design Impact Prize 2015-2016
by: Sustainable Design News, 2015-05-14 05:13:19 UTC
The World Design Impact Prize is seeking nominations for the 2015-2016 competition. The World Design Impact Prize is a biennial award created to celebrate, recognize, and encourage impact design projects from around the world.

The power of algae harnessed to light lamps
by: Ecofriend, 2015-05-28 07:54:51 UTC

Lamps, be indoor or outdoor, simply eliminate darkness or gloom from our life and brings a sense of bliss and joy. However, if we do not use our lighting resources properly, it can increase our carbon footprints and might be harmful for the environment. To our rescue as well as the environment, designers and scientists worldwide are looking to develop some green sources of energy, so that we can illuminate our lives in a sustainable manner. Algae is one such natural resource that can provide sustainable energy to power our day-to-day needs. Here we have listed some of the most creative algae-powered lamps to illuminate indoor as well as outdoor areas in a sustainable manner.

Latro Lamp:

Using natural algae as the source of power, the Latro lamp by Mike Thompson is a living lamp that does not require any external energy source and offer green lighting solution. The sustainable lamp features an algae compartment that contains water, carbon dioxide (CO2) and sunlight to produce energy. All the user need to do is keep the lamp outside and breathe into it to trigger the energy generation process. The energy that the lamp generates during the day stores in a built-in battery, which powers the lamp at night. The Latro lamp is truly a unique and environmentally friendly creation.

Living Microalgae Lamp:

Developed by French biochemist Pierre Calleja, the incredible Microalgae Lamp as the name suggests generates power from living algae stored in a glowing tube. Designed to generate energy through the photosynthesis process of algae, the eco-friendly lamp can be used to illuminate parking slots and streets while eliminating the carbon emissions. The lamp stores the energy within that we can use as and when required or even move to far-off areas.

Algae Powered LED Bulb:

Harnessing the energy of green algae to power a light bulb, designer Gyula Bodonyi has come up with a creative LED bulb that not just looks elegant but is easy to use in any setting as well. Looking like a drop of water, the sustainable bulb comprises a hidrophob container, air pump, PC Shell, LED and air vent. The pump at the top draws in the water and carbon dioxide to help grow the algae within that blow out the oxygen and thus, illuminate the tiny LED in during the photosynthesis process.

Biolamp:

Essentially a pipe like structure containing water and algae, the Biolamp sucks in carbon dioxide using a pump from the surroundings to help breed algae inside and produce energy through photosynthesis process. The eco-friendly light by Hungarian designer Peter Horvath will not just illuminate streets but also reduce smog from the environment.

Many may consider algae a mere accumulation of seaweed, but it has great natural properties to generate sustainable energy that we can use to light our homes and streets and even charge our gadgets.

5 Inspiring street light ideas powered by the sun, wind, and humans
by: The Design blog, 2015-05-16 10:28:18 UTC

An urban landscape can never be complete without street lights. However, of late, a lot of complaints have risen about how these lights tend to consume a lot of energy which can be otherwise be used for more important purposes. As such, a lot of initiatives have cropped up over the years with the aim of lighting up the streets with natural energy sources, namely the sun and wind.

Solar Tree

Designed by Ross Lovegrove, the Solar Tree is an LED light fixture that uses the sun’s rays to light up the streets. The structure consists of over 10 leaf shaped photovoltaic panels that face upwards. During the day, the panels soak up the sun’s energy and store it in inbuilt batteries. Built in light detectors sense when the sun is about to set and automatically switch on the lights, thus illuminating the streets at only a portion of the energy consumed by traditional street lights.

WindTulip

Designed by Mebrure Oral, the WindTulip is a wind powered street light that hardly looks like a wind turbine. The covert design looks like an art piece which in fact hides an in built turbine. The top of the WindTulip spins all day and stores the energy in an internal battery. At sunset, this energy is refueled to the lights to illuminate the streets.

EnergyMe

This clever initiative not only lights up the streets but encourages individuals to exercise. It runs purely on the energy derived from exercises like walking, running, pushing, pulling and pedaling. The energy accumulated from these activities is stored in internal batteries which then light up the streets in the night.

Combined Solar-Wind Powered Street Light

A design concept that shows great promise, the combined solar-wind powered street light is designed by a Spanish startup called Eolgreen in collaboration with the UniversitatPolitècnica de Catalunya. The fixture comes with photovoltaic panels to absorb solar power, a wind turbine to capture wind power, a battery pack, an array of LED lights and an electronic cooling component to balance both the sun and wind power generating components. The fixture will ensure that the lights keep on burning no matter how the weather remains outside.

Energy Seed

This innovative lighting concept utilizes the remnant charge remaining in used up batteries. Designed by Sungwoo Park and Sunhee Kim, the light uses these leftover batteries that need to be placed in a pot containing the light. The batteries are placed in receptacles that suck in the remaining power in these batteries to light up the streetlight.

A lot of companies are coming forward with their ideas to power streetlights with more abundant energy sources. From lights being powered by the sun and wind to those even powered by humans, these lights will surely help cities conserve plenty of energy to be used for other purposes.

This Gadget Washes Your Car With Less Water Than You Probably Use To Brush Your Teeth
by: Co.Exist, 2015-05-22 17:10:00 UTC

Send a few to California, please?

Washing a car in the driveway usually involves a bucket or two, a hose, and so much water that drought-stricken California started slapping $500 fines on anyone who does it wrong. Inspired to create an alternative, a former software entrepreneur designed a new device that uses less water than brushing your teeth.

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Kering Open-Sources EP&L Methodology
by: Environmental Leader, 2015-05-22 11:46:34 UTC
More than 93 percent of Kering’s environmental impact falls within its supply chain, according to its Environmental Profit & Loss (EP&L) Methodology and 2013 Group Results. The EP&L is the company’s monetary valuation of the environmental impacts across its operations and supply chains. Kering, the French luxury goods holding company owner of Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, […]

A Coffee Table that Transforms into a Dining Table
by: design milk, 2015-05-25 19:00:25 UTC

Spanish design studio OITO designed a table that performs double duty. The M-Table offers a solution for those who live in smaller spaces as it easily adapts to become a coffee table or a dining table.

The legs, with their rounded ends, pivot to lower or raise the table depending which position you want it in.

Reclaimed wood module combines lighting & furniture in one stackable unit
by: TreeHugger Design, 2015-05-21 16:20:06 UTC
Made with wood recycled from local boardwalks and construction sites, this flexible piece can double as both lighting and furniture.

Sustainable interior design highlights from ICFF
by: TreeHugger Design, 2015-05-22 17:36:46 UTC
Our favorite eco-friendly and ethical products from the 2015 International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York City.