sustainable

Smart, Ever-Changing Buildings

- Adam Clare

Building green has been mentioned here before, and now there are buildings that are green and move. Buildings can be a lot more efficient and sustainable with this new technology, decreasing energy consumption.

“Shape-changing envelopes offer architects the ability to produce buildings that condition themselves in very simple, natural and sustainable ways,” says Sterk. “They enable buildings to be conceived of as systems that change shape to improve the way people live.”

Sterk said there are other advantages. Imagine a high-rise tower that braces itself against sudden strong winds by distributing stresses. Or a home that shakes the snow from its roof.

Car Sharing in Toronto

- Adam Clare 1 Comment

logosThe Torontoist has a great look at two car sharing companies that are fighting it out on the streets of Toronto. Car sharing has been around for years and is quickly becoming a staple of the urban experience. Yet, in North America car sharing is not nearly has strong as it is in Europe.

The Torontoist looks at the benefits of car sharing and how the two companies have slightly different strategies. I like how there is now competition in this market in Toronto because it has made more people aware of car sharing. Ever shared car equals to about 10 less cars on the road!

Dropping Knowledge

- Adam Clare 1 Comment

This has got to be the coolest thing ever! Dropping Knowledge is getting ” 112 of the world’s most compelling thinkers, artists, writers, scientists, social entrepreneurs, philosophers and humanitarians from around the world” and seating them around the world’s largest table in Berlin. It’s happening in three days on the ninth of September. I wish I could be in Berlin for this.

“Using dropping knowledge’s question-rating system, the public identified 500 questions as those most likely to initate open dialog on a social topic of most relevance to them. This group of questions will yield the final 100 Questions — representing a truly global sampling of cultures, themes and ideas — to be asked at the Table of Free Voices and beyond.”

Some sample questions:
“why is clean water more expensive than gasoline in many countries?” joshua dharma , 34, suratthani, Thailand

“Self serving global corporations are not held accountable in any real sense of the word for their actions, how can this be changed? ” David Anderer , 60, Albany, Oregon, USA

“What is the real reason we punish criminals through a court system?” Mathijs Koenraadt , 25, Oosterhout, Netherlands

Germany Crushes Competition in Solar Market

- Cam Proctor 2 Comments

There really isnt much more to this story than what the title title says. Germany has heavily embraced renewable energy, especially solar power, in every appliciable measure.
Lets see how….

Germany generates enough power from the sun’s rays to meet the needs of households in a city of 590 000, according to the Solar Energy Association BSW.

Last week, a solar electric power plant, billed by its operators as the world’s biggest, went into service in the southern German state of Bavaria. More than 1 400 movable solar modules will collect the sun’s rays and harness them into energy for around 3 500 homes.

Germany accounts for 60% of the world market in solar energy, with some 5 000 firms exporting one-quarter of their products in a sector that employs 45 000

Germans last year invested €3.7bn in solar energy, one of the fastest growing sources of renewable energy along with wind power and biomass. Solar energy accounts for less than 1% of the country’s energy needs, but the figure is expected to grow to more than 5% by 2020, according to the BSW.

Flushing Rainwater

- Adam Clare

Clean, drinkable water is a precious resource, so why are we flushing it down the toilet? I ask this question almost daily (no joke). Well, LifeHacker has a great comment thread going on this very question.

The thread is part of a post about how one man actually uses rainwater to fill his water toilet basin. This is a great way to do to less harm to the environment, but some municipalities in Canada don’t like people doing this though. Other parts of the world, buildings are built incorporating rainwater collection.

“Domestic potable water collection requires effort, energy, and chemicals for purification and transport. Toilets use 20 to 25% of water consumed in a residential house. Why are we flushing drinkable water down the toilet? In some other countries of the world, rainwater harvesting on a residential level is a mandatory part of building codes.”

Scroll To Top