EMILY PILLOTON - Managing Editor Emily Pilloton is Inhabitat's Managing Editor, and Founder of Project H Design, a charitable organization that supports, inspires, and delivers product design initiatives for Humanity, Habitats, Health, and Happiness. She is also a freelance design writer, furniture designer, and nomad "based" in San Francisco. Trained in architecture with degrees from UC Berkeley and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, she has written for GOOD Magazine, Innovative Home, and ID, and has also taught design theory in Chicago. When she isn't traveling or emailing, Emily enjoys baking cupcakes and playing trivia board games.
Regular readers of Inhabitat are hopefully aware that of the exciting humanitarian design initiative called Project H Design, founded by our very own Emily Pilloton. Currently on the scene in South Africa right now, Project H has successfully delivered 75 ‘Hippo Rollers’ - an ingenious yet simple rolling barrel device that facilitates a more efficient and safer transport of daily water supply needs. The roller holds 3-4 days worth of water for a family of 7, about 5 times the amount of water that can be moved using traditional methods. It’s an amazing product and an amazing story of good design enabling communities. Inhabitat’s Emily Pilloton has just returned from delivering the Hippo Rollers to Kgautswane, and here’s what she has to say…
One part origami, one part architecture, pure genius, the brand new Bloxes system makes 2-dimensional pieces of interlocking cardboard come to life as expandable and continually adaptable structures. Because they’re so masterfully designed, Bloxes create structures strong enough to stand on, all assembled without tools. So they’re not just for room separating anymore- build a bench, a table, a wall, or even a full room!
If you thought rechargeable batteries were a good green idea, the USBCELL rechargeable battery will blow your mind- it plugs into any computer’s USB port to recharge. It’s a standard AA battery which will fit into all your every day uses. We’re not the only ones amped up about USBCELL- today at CEBIT, the green battery was awarded a Gold award at the IF Product Design ceremony. Produced by Moixa Energy, has a flip cap top that houses the USB port, and can be used like any regular AA battery. Not to mention, it cuts back on the nearly 15 billion Alkaline batteries made and thrown away each year.
If you’re a fan of the Mini Cooper but want something a little greener, the Norwegian THINK car might just be your answer. It’s compact, it’s electric, it’s a zero-emissions zippy little car that’s a feat of design and engineering. Topping out at 100 km/hr and running for 180 km on a single charge, THINK is a lot of power for such a tiny thing. All the other systems are well-thought out too, with 90% of the energy going straight to the engine, compared to traditional combustion engines that lose up to 70% of their energy to heat and friction.
Our friends at Ecolect, the go-to sustainable design and materials community, have launched a monthly spotlight on sustainable design called Limelight - and the first feature is tough act to follow. Teresita Cochran’s sustainable design group, SMIT (Sustainably Minded Interactive Technology) has a compelling new project called GROW that’s an innovative and aesthetically arresting solar and wind power solution. Combining the best of green tech and ecology, GROW draws inspiration from ivy growing on the side of a building - resulting in a hybrid energy delivery device of flexible, ivy-like fluttering solar leaves that provide power via both sun and wind.
H is for Humanity, Habitats, Health, Habitats, and HIPPO! Project H, an organization that promotes, inspires, and delivers humanitarian product design, is funding 50 Hippo Rollers for a series of 17 villages in Kgautswane in Northeastern South Africa. Hippo Rollers, if you haven’t seen them before, they are amazing barrel devices that allow the millions whose livelihoods depend on the daily fetching of water to more safely and efficiently access and transport water. The roller holds 3-4 days worth of water for a family of 7, about 5 times the amount of water that can be moved using traditional methods, which frees up time for more productive economic and educational activities. It’s an amazing product and an amazing story of good design enabling communities.
Simple, organic, and elegant, the Gina Lamp from Seascape is made from supple green materials like woven grass and bamboo. It’s a simple design that would dress up many a bedside table. We love both the natural materials and the way the light shines through it with soft organic elegance.
Today’s the day for love, and while pinks and reds tend to rule Valentine’s Day, we’re ushering in the green with these last-minute gifts. If you’re a procrastinator, or just not big on the big gestures, here are some small but very green ideas for your special sweetie. From organic chocolate to better flower options and socially-responsible greeting cards, we’ve got you covered. Also check out our Sustainable Skivvies and Splurges posts from earlier this week. Happy Valentine’s Day from Inhabitat!!
Following his inspiring keynote at the first ever Greener Gadgets Conference, we were lucky enough to sit down one-on-one with photographic artist Chris Jordan to talk about his work, e-waste, and the future of mass consumer culture. In his conversation here with Jill Fehrenbacher, Chris talks about whether or not we will be able to stem the growing tide of consumerism, and the issues of collective versus individual responsibility for environmental problems. Hear Chris Jordan’s provocative thoughts in this great interview video.
Let’s face it- Valentine’s Day isn’t really about the romance anymore- it’s about the chocolate, the Hallmark cards, and of course, the sexy lingerie. But sexy and sustainable aren’t mutually exclusive- in fact the most sexy skivvies are the ones that are so organic and natural they feel like a second skin. Here are a few tips to green your boudoir attire…
Your eco-cutie deserves only the best this Valentine’s Day. What better way to say I love you than with a sexy splurge of a gift that’s not just romantic, but sustainable too?! Here are some of our best recommendations for great green gifts for the most romantic day of the year.
Drumroll please…. Many of you have been asking for videos of the groundbreaking Greener Gadget Conference - which was held last week in New York City - and here they come! We’ve got a bunch of interesting video shorts coming down the pipeline, and the very first one we have for you (to whet your appetite for the most exciting stuff) is our overview and introduction to the Greener Gadgets Event.
Stay tuned for the highly entertaining Design Competition video coming in a couple hours, and the rest of the videos (Chris Jordan, Mary Lou Jepsen), coming next week.
Who doesn’t love the Superbowl? The competition, the commercials, the excuse to drink beer. This year’s champ, the New York Giants, certainly deserved the title, though I wonder if their quarterback, Eli Manning, “deserved” his Cadillac Escalade, a behemoth of a vehicle whose hybrid status seems like a serious dose of greenwashing. Blogstress Elizabeth Howard is asking Eli to give back the 18 mpg hybrid gas guzzler, and we’ll second that motion.
Ireland plastic bag usage drops dramatically after plastic bag taxes are instated!
With all the recent bans on plastic bagsaround the world, it’s natural to wonder just how effective all the bag banning will be. Instead of simply enacting laws to phase out plastic bags - which seems like a wishy-washy attempt at most, Ireland has implemented a tax-based incentive to cut plastic bag useage — and it seems to be working wonders. Between the government tax on bags, an effective advertising campaign, and public support, plastic bag usage has dropped 94% in a matter of weeks.
Despite the enormous untapped potential of solar energy, one thing is for sure- photovoltaics are only as good as the sun’s rays shining upon them. However, researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory are close to the production of a super-thin solar film that would be cost-effective, imprinted on flexible materials, and would be able to harvest solar energy even after sunset!
Digital artist Chris Jordan knows how to turn e-trash into photographic treasure. His large-scale images of massive amounts of statistically-inspired refuse make it all too clear just how big a problem consumer waste is. His work, which features objects from Barbies and plastic bags to e-waste and shipping containers, brings to light a tough dichotomy, presenting our gluttonous existence as consumers in a beautiful medium. He’ll be keynoting our Greener Gadgets Conference on Friday, and we can’t wait to hear what he has to say.
Our friend Lloyd Hicks has made a great that’s a perfect lead-in to our upcoming Greener Gadgets Conference this Friday. We talk a lot about the under-recycled cell phone, but with videos like this, we’re starting to think there’s hope. While it brings to light issues like product life-cycle, materials, and the impact of these objects on the environment, we can’t help but believe there are possibilities for improvement (we’re even hosting a cell phone recycling center at Greener Gadgets!). Watch the video for the full story, and check out the Secret Life of Cell Phones website for even more info.
If you haven’t registered for the conference yet, there’s no time like the present! Register here and be sure to come by the Project H Design booth for more info on the organization and these great products.
Today’s Compostmodern conference in San Francisco didn’t disappoint, with a design-star-studded line up of speakers from Alex Steffen of Worldchanging to Marc Alt (co-organizer of our Greener Gadgets Conference!), Adam Werbach of Act Now Productions and Scott Stowell of Open. Discussions centered around sustainable innovation in design, what it really means to design “green,” and the future of environmental responsibility in the design world. Highlights included Joel Makower’s morning introduction, which likened sustainability to teenage sex: “Everyone says they’re doing it, but not many people really are. And those who are, aren’t doing it well,” to Jane Savage’s overview of Nike’s “Considered” program which combines a forward-thinking corporate responsibility plan with innovative design.
Check out our latest video interview of Miami architect Chad Oppenheim, designer of the stunning green COR Tower for Miami. In this video he discusses Miami as a booming real estate and construction economy, and his take on sustainability as a factor in that growth. And of course, details on his futuristic-looking Cor Tower, which we can’t wait to see completed.
While certain objects seem to be making big strides in sustainability, the humble cell phone is lagging a bit behind the curve - what with the lead, cadmium and other toxic chemicals, as well as the relentless consumption, upgrading and disposable on which the entire industry is based. But Nokia has recently launched a new, more environmentally friendly cellphone called the 3310 Evolve. The Evolve is a great example of a greener device, made from biomaterials and 60% recycled packaging. Right now these phones are only available in Europe (what Nokia - you don’t think there is a market for this in the US??), so if you want to check out this cute little eco phone in action, come by the Greener Gadgets Conference on February 1st! But don’t get too attached — we haven’t heard of any launch date set for the US yet.
We love NAU and we love Ecolect (one of our recent holiday party cohosts). So it’s natural that we’re wishing we were in the Midwest for the Ecolect “3rd Coast” launch party at the NAU store in Chicago.
The giant CES tradeshow is primarily about gadgets - as one would expect - but we made a surprising architectural discovery at this years CES which impressed us with its creativity (and its creative marketing tactics). On display in the middle of the showroom floor as part of the Olevia booth was the newly-debuted prefab design from new manufacturer Logical Homes. While we could personally care less about more slick Olevia televisions on display (sorry Olevia, but its true), the stunning shipping container prefab definitely caught our eye.
What’s a more renewable form of energy than human energy? We’ve seen it before with the human-powered gyms in Hong Kong, and here’s a portable energy source that’s powered by the spring in your step. We just discovered this amazingly useful gadget at CES, and can’t wait to get our hands on one. The Weza Portable Energy Source from Freeplay can produce enough power from a few footpumps to jump-start a boat or automobile battery and power a laptop, light or a variety of other electronics. If you were stuck out in the middle of nowhere, you could even use to charge your cellphone!
We are thrilled to announce that Voltaic, our favorite solar bag company, has just debuted a sleek new laptop bag that actually charges laptops! Whereas Voltaic’s previous solar bags only generate enough power to charge smaller gadgets like phones, cameras and mp3 players, the new Generator, is a super-powered solar tote that will charge your laptop along with all of your other green gadgets. It uses a single solar panel (which you can order with different color trims) to produce up to 14.7 watts of power, enough to fully charge a typical laptop, along with your iPod and cell phone.
