Crisp Green

Green Gadget Update: BioLite Camp Stove

Karen MacKay — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:42:13 +0000

After two years of development, the BioLite stove is in production, with a more compact and easy-to-use design.

We first we told you about the BioLite stove in July 2011, but just in time for the 2012 camping season, BioLite is making headlines again.

After extensive user testing and field research, the BioLite team has redesigned the camp stove unit to be smaller, easier to light and more durable. The BioLite stove burns wood or other small combustible materials. Using energy captured from the fire, the stove can power or charge small gadgets and cell phones. Currently in production, the BioLite camp stove will be available in the coming months but is ready for pre-purchase now.

In addition the BioLite camp stove, BioLite also developed a home stove for use in developing countries, to address the hazardous health issue of smoke inhalation. The BioLite home stove removes 90 percent of the dangerous smoke found in wood-burning stoves, providing clean and efficient cooking. In 2012, BioLite will be starting a large scale pilot program with the home stoves in Ghana, Uganda, India and Kenya.

To learn more about BioLite visit their website or to purchase click here.

Source: BioLite

DIY Solar Panels Made From Grass Clippings

Krystal Persaud — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:39:13 +0000

MIT research scientist Andreas Mershin is on a mission to make solar power inexpensive and accessible to the masses, especially developing countries.

After years of research, Mershin and his team at MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms, along with University of Tennessee biochemist Barry Bruce, have worked out a process that extracts photosynthetic molecules from common agricultural waste.

How would this DIY solar kit work? Ideally, Mershin wants people to be able to gather up a pile of grass clippings, mix it with a blend of inexpensive chemicals, and paint it on your roof to begin harvesting electricity.

Mershin explains, "Leaves and plants are nature's solar panels… if we manage to somehow hijack the molecules that are responsible for photosynthesis in plants and other photosynthetic organisms, and use them to generate electricity for our own needs, this would represent a fantastic and disruptive new step in the way that we generate solar power or electricity in general."

Check out the video below to learn more:

One of the team's biggest challenges was figuring out how to preserve the light-gathering molecules they extracted from plants so that they still functioned outside of a cellular environment. Eventually, they were able to stabilize the chlorophyll-rich extract, also known as Photosystem I.

Here’s a breakdown of how the technology works: Mershin and his team have fabricated teeny tiny forest-like structures made of zinc oxide nanowires scattered with titanium dioxide "sponge” components. Then, the structures are coated with the plant extract, Photosystem I. When the coated structure is placed in direct sunlight, the harvested electricity can be stored and put to work.

Currently, the efficiency of these experimental cells is very low at 0.1%. With research groups like Mershin’s, the efficiency of biophotovoltaics is expected to rise to commercially viable levels (at least 1-2%) soon.

For more details, the team's findings are detailed in the paper Self-assembled Photosystem-I Biophotovoltaics on Nanostructured TiO2 and ZnO which is available at Nature.com.

Sources: Gizmag & MIT

Header Image: Best Design Options

Occupy Wall Street Group To Build ‘Farm In The Sky’

Beth Buczynski — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:49:53 +0000

Guest post by Seismologik

Organizers of Occupy Wall Street Sustainability Working group in concert with Eco Station NY are creating a 16,000 sq foot Roof Top Farm in Bushwick Brooklyn, and we need your help.

Bushwick, Brooklyn, is home to a population of 130,000 people, many of whom reside in neighborhoods that have been designated as food deserts.

We assert that access to natural, nutrient dense, real food is a basic human right.

This spring, as an affinity project of the OWS Sustainability movement group, members will collaborate to build, design and farm a 16,000 sq. foot organic Roof Farm, utilizing smart and sustainable permaculture design techniques to grow food which will be supplied to area restaurants, local schools, farmers markets, and CSA's.

There will also be a ‘by donation’ farm to communal dining pantry, planned as a companion project.

In addition to serving the community by providing freshly grown GM free food, we will also be re-skilling individuals who will participate in our volunteer work/learn days.

We have achievable goals ahead of us: to educate under served communities on gardening, farming, nutrition, and the various ways to reclaim control of our food system is just a few of the ideas bubbling to the fore.

Our hopes of creating the change we wish to see in this world will require support from crowdfunders.

The "Farm In The Sky" will be made open source as a replicable and scaleable model for anyone who wishes to grow their own.

We urge all of you to consider making a modest gift to the first phase of our Spring crowdfunding campaign:

https://www.wepay.com/x2e7mcl/donations/occupy_wall_street_sustainability

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Post originally published on FoodFreedom

New Mobile Apps Help Consumers Shop Smarter

Karen MacKay — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:58:18 +0000

Clorox and Virtual Water are two apps that make it easy for consumers to see what goes into the products they purchase.

As iPhones become ubiquitous in the consumer market, making informed decisions about product purchases is becoming easier with new mobile applications.

Clorox announced last week a new app and mobile website that will provide easy access to their product's ingredients. The new smartphone app lets U.S. and Canadian customers scan the UPC code of many of the Clorox home cleaning products, instantly revealing an ingredient list for that product. To download the about the app, click here.

The Virtual Water Project is aimed at helping consumers understand the amount of fresh water used to grow and process different kinds of food and food products. The iPhone app is essentially an interactive infographic. Using a minimalistic design style, the information is easy to digest and easy on the eyes. The app provides the water used per kilogram of product.

I currently have the app on my phone. I find it incredibly easy to use and quite informative. Unfortunately, as a chocolate lover, one of the worst offenders on the list is chocolate at 1458 gallons of water per 8 oz of chocolate. Learn more about the project a the Virtual Water Project website and to download the app visit the iTunes app store here.

Source: Sustainable Brands and The Virtual Water Project

The Toyota NS4: Prius Of The Future? [Video]

Beth Buczynski — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:29:12 +0000

We recently published our picks for the top 3 green cars at the 2012 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. But it appears that we may have chosen too quickly! Leave it to Toyota to blast through the ho-hum reputation (and style) of the Prius with a sleek new hybrid loaded with all the latest technologies.

The NS4 advanced concept is a dedicated plug-in hybrid, separate from the Prius family, designed with future mobility requirements in mind.

“In this digital age, cars are becoming another spoke in the wheel of our electronic connectivity,” said Jim Lentz, TMS president and chief operating officer. “NS4 demonstrates Toyota’s take on the human connection to the car with technology that considers both emotional and rational relationships, person-to-car and car-to-society.”

The NS4's advanced powertrain targets a next-generation Hybrid Synergy Drive plug-in system featuring reductions in component size and weight with improved overall fuel economy, better acceleration and longer all-electric range, while maintaining a short charge time.

The car also features a next generation Pre-Collision System (PCS) with lane departure, rear-end and pedestrian collision avoidance technologies designed to predict and avoid collisions, Adaptive Driving Beam (ADB) headlights to prevent vision-impairing glare to oncoming drivers and pedestrians, and four new glass technologies to improve driver visibility, gas mileage and electric driving mode mileage efficiency.

Take a mini-tour of the amazing NS4 by clicking on the thumbnails below!

All images used with permission via Toyota Pressroom

Looking Shady: Could Tinted Windows Reduce Your Energy Costs?

LiveOAK Staff — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:54:09 +0000

Looking for a way to reduce your energy consumption as well as your carbon footprint? It might be time to think about tinting your windows.

Guest Post by Jared Diamond

When window tinting is applied to a home or building, it provides UV protection as well as absorbing thermal heat.

When interior thermal heat is reduced, the amount of energy needed to cool a home or building is reduced in kind. Less air conditioning usage requires less energy, and less energy consumption translates to reduced emissions and air pollution.

While most environmental incentives require self-sacrifice (an important characteristic in itself), window tinting is an almost no-effort lifestyle alteration that accomplishes that results in drastic and almost instant cost reductions.

By urging environmental action that is duly financially enticing, it may be possible to encourage eco-friendly action by those who may never previously considered doing so.

Many world governments have taken note of the double benefits of window tinting.. In fact, the IRS calls for a 10 percent tax deduction (up to $500) on window tint product costs. Many international, state and local jurisdictions also provide tax incentives for tinting home (and commercial) windows.

It may be true that window tinting in itself may not be enough to save our planet on its own. But what is absolutely certain is this: Our planet is in need of environmental restoration in every facet imaginable. If tinting were to be universally adopted, consider the environmental benefit that would impart? What if we could promote 2-3 more similar activities that could be taken up to promote environmental stability?

It goes without saying that effective emission reduction can only be satisfied in the form of collective action. By pressing the incentive buttons of human behavior (such as promoting activities that entail both environmental and financial benefits), it may be possible to catch up with our goals of environmental restoration sooner than we may have thought.

Jared Diamond is a content contributor at Detail Wiz. On top of being a car aficionado, he also enjoys promoting environmental awareness. Jared also writes on topics such as window tinting prices as well as automotive technology.

A Small New York Landfill Hits The Big Screen

Karen MacKay — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:23:14 +0000

Renowned documentarians Gary Hustwit and Jessica Edwards have created a short-film starring a sustainably run Upstate New York landfill.

Gary Hustwit is best known for his film trilogy centered around design which includes the films Helvetica, Objectified and Urbanized. As a designer, I have seen the full trilogy and keep a close eye on Hustwit's projects. Collaborating with Jessica Edwards, who is gaining recognition for her recent film, Seltzer Works, this duo created a 3-minute short showcasing a landfill that is breaking the mold when it comes to waste disposal.

As part of the Focus Forward Film Challenge, "The Landfill" is a short film that gives viewers a quick glimpse behind the scenes at a unique and innovative landfill. Using a special system of composting, recycling and methane capture, the landfill is able to provide energy for 5,000 local homes. The film reminds viewers, that we have to begin seeing solid waste as not just trash but a resource. Watch the full film below.

Check out more films from the Focus Forward Challenge here, including another waste treatment plant powering homes and one man's fight for safe sanitation.