Al Gore, Barack Obama and now, there’s you. Trying to save the planet isn’t always an easy job, but somebody’s gotta do it. Well, these Christmas lights actually are pretty easy.
The solar panels do all of the work. All you have to do is hang the lights and enjoy. Not only do you get to save a butt load of money on your electricity bill, but you get to save the planet at the same time. It’s really win-win. Plus… hello? Bragging rights!
Everyday, thousands of street lights are orphaned, sent to the junk yard to rot, with no one to maintain their slowly rusting bodies, their LED and solar brethren slowly taking their place. Please, help save these helpless street lights and adopt one for your own personal use.
These Street Light Floor Lamps use re-appropriated street lights to create a unique lamp for your home while saving the life of a helpless public servant. Every time you ignore a street light a kitty dies.
Cellphones are a great convenience for us, but not so great for Mother Earth. See, cellphones pack lots of toxic, non-biodegradable chemicals and components. That’s why Samsung created Blue Earth, a cellie made from recycled plastic bottles that can be charged via solar panels on the back of the device. It’ll text, it’ll call, it’ll even tell you how many trees you’ve saved in a day; just don’t call it a phone. Wait, what?
The best part? The Blue Earth will actually go into production this year, unlike half the cool phones we hear about on the web. Put that in your peace pipe and smoke it. But make sure you compost the ashes!
So this isn’t really anything extravagant, but sometimes the best gadgets are the ones that operate in a simple fashion. This AM/FM radio has a bit of a DIY look with the old-school silver button on the top and the solar panel feeding it energy. There’s also a hand crank in case you live in Seattle or Alaska. It can’t do anything special, it just cranks out some classic tunes from the radio. Perfect for listening to WHYY whilst working at your desk. At $25, it’s a nice little bargain and a fantastic gift idea.
This adorable solar toy is bound to entertain you for — an hour, tops. Still, it’s a neat little gizmo you purchase for 20 dollars and build yourself. It’s a solar powered monkey which climbs to its plastic heart’s content.
When the monkey is placed in sunlight it’ll derive power from the sun enabling it to climb the rope, hand over hand! It’s also another cheap and easy way out of a science fair project with your kid.
Here’s an idea I seriously can’t believe hasn’t been implemented yet: generating electricity through solar cells on sunglasses. It makes sense. When it’s very sunny out, you pop on shades and you’re good to go. Why can’t we mount panels to them to generate small bits of energy? You could then use said energy to power an MP3 player or recharge a cellphone.
That’s the idea with these Self-Energy Converting Glasses from designers Hyun-Joong Jim and Kwang-Seok Jeong.
The dye solar cell is described by the designers of the SIG as “cheap organic dye [used with] nano technology [providing] cheap but high energy efficiency.” Inexpensive, light, and visible-ray penetrable. The lens turns sunlight rays, (rays that would otherwise harm the eye,) into electrical energy.
I think we’ll be there by 2010. What do you think?
When one thinks of a submarine, solar energy is the furthest thing from their mind. After all, submarines dive down deep below the ocean’s surface where the sun does not shine. The Swiss energy company, BKW is a little more optimistic than myself. It’s unveiled the GOLDFISH project, which will feature the world’s first solar powered submarine.
How will they do it? How could they possibly get the sun to energize solar panels underneath the sea? The answer is quite simple: bring the solar panels to the surface. Duh! A floating solar array that takes on the appearance of a water lily will be capable of producing 30 kilowatts of electricity. Currently, BKW is still looking for investors for this project so that it may begin building it. The project is estimated to cost about $8.85 million. If you’ve got more money than you know what to do with, here’s an investment that could help save the planet and make you look good while doing it.
Anyone interested in DIY, energy or our ecosystem should most definitely check out the Alternative Energy Gift Guide from MAKE. They cover some key issues that we as Americans must confront head on, such as our dependence on foreign energy and oil. There’s a bunch of a kits you can browse through that will have you using the Sun as your new battery pack in no time.
A mobile home is hardly a house. It’s a truck with a bed inside. On the other hand, the N55 WALKING HOUSE is the premier modular dwelling system. In addition to its ability to slowly troll surrounding landscapes, it collects energy by using solar cells and small windmills. There is even a system for collecting rain water and another for solar heated hot water. Of course, let’s not forget the crapper and the fireplace, the WALKING HOUSE has both.
Unlike a mobile home, you’re living a pollution-free life but you’re still a nomad. Roaming the countryside with nothing more than your own bedroom sounds great, then you realize you have to eat. Not a problem considering a small greenhouse unit can be added to the basic living module, eliminating the possibility of a food shortage. When we find ourselves in a post-apocalyptic future caused by mankind’s irresponsibility to maintain mother Earth, we’ll all wish we were living in the WALKING HOUSE.
Even more architecture that resembles the “arcologies” of Sim City 2000 are sprouting up, this time in Singapore. Here, eco-minded architecture firm TR Hamzah & Yeang is designing this skyscraper it’s calling the EDITT (Ecological Design In The Tropics) Tower. This 26-story skyscraper will be constructed using various recycled and recyclable materials. Not only that, but the tower will include the most eco-friendly technologies ever to be incorporated into a high-rise building.
You name it, this thing’s got it. Besides the immense amount of solar panels that’ll generate 40% of the tower’s energy demands, this skyscraper will include an energy plant that will convert human sewage into biofuel, a rain water harvesting system and the ability to remove and add walls and floors just in case vegetation is growing out of hand. That’s every possible way to save our planet jam packed into one skyscraper. You’ll have to deal with a major case of bed bugs, but it’s a small price to pay for saving the planet.
