25 Apr
2017
Tesla is doubling its Supercharger network by the end of the year to 10,000 chargers
Green Transportation & Logistics | UNITED STATES
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Tesla is nothing if not ambitious. With the Model 3 release mere months away, Tesla is vowing to double its charging network. Right now, there are over 5,000 Superchargers globally, and by the end of the year that number will rise to 10,000 chargers – plenty of juice for the growing Tesla fleet. Tesla has two types of chargers: Superchargers, which can completely charge up a Model S in 75 minutes, and Destination Chargers,…
21 Apr
2017
Apple announces plans to make all products from recycled materials
Others | UNITED STATES
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Apple just announced plans to close the loop and make all of its products from recycled materials. We tend not to realize how damaging our electronics are for the environment – from mining materials to the toxic effects when we dump them. Apple starting tackling these problems last year with its recycling robot, and now the electronics giant wants to only use recycled materials in its devices. Apple recently released its latest environmental report,…
19 Apr
2017
AeroMobil is launching a flying car that you can actually buy this year
Green Transportation & Logistics | MONACO
Published by : Eco Media Asia
We’ve been waiting for flying cars ever since the 1960s – and they’re set to become a viable reality this year. AeroMobil just announced that it is ready to launch its futuristic flying car – and you’ll actually be able to buy one in a few months. The company plans to show off the latest iteration of the car/plane hybrid next week in Monaco, with pre-orders starting later this year. According to the company, “AeroMobil is a completely integrated…
17 Apr
2017
Glowing cardboard pavilion pops up in a Gothic courtyard in Valencia
Green Building Materials, Construction & Design | SPAIN
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Spanish art collective Pink Intruder just installed a glowing cardboard building called Renaixementinside a beautiful Gothic cloister in Valencia. The golden cube features a mosaic facade made out of an intricate cardboard latticework, and it’s illuminated from within by lighting studio RADIANTE.The ornate structure made its debut at the 2016 Burning Man, but it was such a hit that the artists decided to bring it back home and rebuild…
15 Apr
2017
Australia announces massive $1B solar farm with the world’s largest battery
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency | AUSTRALIA
Published by : Eco Media Asia
South Australia is about to get a huge clean energy boost with a $1 billion solar farm. The farm will pump and store 300MW and 100MW of clean energy respectively with 3.4 million solar panels and 1.1 million batteries. It is expected to start running later this year.The Lyon Group, a partnership of three companies, is building the massive solar farm in the Riverland region of South Australia. Construction should commence…
13 Apr
2017
French startup will put 'flying' electric water taxis to work in Paris
Green Transportation & Logistics | FRANCE
Published by : Eco Media Asia
It's like Uber for 'flying' water cars, with an über-cute name: SeaBubbles. This summer, Parisians will get their first taste of 'flying' cars, although they will only 'fly' about two feet above the surface, and these electric hydrofoil water taxis will represent a new angle on zero-carbon transportation, using an underutilized infrastructure -- the waterways in and around cities. With many, if not most, of the world's cities being either on a river or with…
11 Apr
2017
Dutch solar bike path declared a success, is expanding
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency | GERMANY
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Readers often complain that I do not know what I am talking about, and they must be right. After all, when I first wrote about the SolaRoad, a bike lane with embedded solar panels, I noted that “I still find it hard to think of a worse place to put solar panels than in the road, except perhaps in my basement floor.”Then I covered how Dutch solar bicycle lane generating more power than expected and clearly still didn’t get it, writing “it…
09 Apr
2017
Diébédo Francis Kéré unveils 2017 Serpentine Pavilion with rain-gathering roof
Green Building Materials, Construction & Design | UNITED KINGDOM
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Burkina Faso-born architect Diébédo Francis Kéré has been selected as this year’s designer of the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion—making him the first African architect of the annual pavilion. Kéré, who leads the Berlin-based practice Kéré Architecture, unveiled preliminary designs of a pavilion strongly influenced by the rural vernacular of his home country. Designed to mimic the functions and form of a large tree, the temporary pavilion will…
07 Apr
2017
How to make an amazing grass daybed out of wood pallets
Eco Products & Services | AUSTRALIA
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Are you looking for ways to spruce up your home’s sparse green space or even that sad concrete roof top? Well, look no further because landscape gardener guru, Jason Hodges from the Australian TV show Better Homes & Gardens shows us how to build an amazing outdoor grass daybed. The DIY garden guru starts by building out the frame using wood pallets and a slatted headboard. He then covers the base with geofabric before…
05 Apr
2017
Artist recycles leaf waste into biodegradable Beleaf chair
Eco Products & Services | SLOVAKIA
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Šimon Kern found an unconventional use for leaf litter: green furniture. The Slovakian artist created Beleaf, a biodegradable chair made from recycled leaves, bio-resin, and steel. Developed during his studies at the Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem, the Beleaf chair was constructed as an eco-friendly alternative to plastic furnishing. Kern crafted the seat from mixing leaf litter with bio-resin, made mostly from leftover…
03 Apr
2017
Ingenious cardboard and bamboo emergency shelters by Shigeru Ban pop up in Sydney
Green Building Materials, Construction & Design | JAPAN
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Pritzker Prize-winning Japanese architect Shigeru Ban is widely known and respected for his 20 year career in designing groundbreaking buildings from cardboard, paper and other unexpected materials, as well as his humanitarian efforts in designing emergency shelters for natural disasters, such as the Nepal Earthquake and the tsunami which hit Southeast Asia. To celebrate the architect’s long dedication to humanitarian design,…
01 Apr
2017
Artisanal clay pots from Egypt can water your plants for up to a month
Eco Products & Services | EGYPT
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Gardeners who travel will love these absorbent clay pots from Egypt. Modeled after the Olla, an ancient ceramic pot prevalent throughout North Africa, the small vessels are designed to water plants for weeks at a time–using nothing but gravity. Clayola founder Rami Halim says 20 liters (5 gallons) of water can sustain six to eight plants for up to a month.The Clayola pots, connected via a pipe to a water source placed at a slightly higher…
30 Mar
2017
Libeskind unveils zero-emissions university building designed in collaboration with students
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency | GERMANY
Published by : Eco Media Asia
A new building with exciting geometry and eco-friendly design is inspiring students at Leuphana University at Lüneburg, Germany. Architect Daniel Libeskind recently completed the New Central Building, a landmark university structure designed in collaboration with the students as part of the tradition at Leuphana University to involve students in campus changes. Topped with a green roof and powered by renewable energy, the light-filled sculptural…
28 Mar
2017
European firms eye artificial island for North Sea wind and solar farm
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency | DENMARK
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Of all the opponents of wind turbines, few are as vociferous as the loose collective that planners and developers deride as “Nimby,” a term that derives from the acronym for “not in my backyard.” Driven to stake out real estate further offshore, a group of European companies have devised a plan almost breathtaking in its audacity: create a vast artificial island in the middle of the tumultuous North Sea, populate the area around it with thousands…
26 Mar
2017
100% recycled rubber yoga mat was created at an EPA yoga class (review)
Eco Products & Services | UNITED STATES
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Kiss the Sky's yoga mats are made in the US from virgin scrap rubber, and can be recycled again and again.When looking for an accessory for a healthy lifestyle practice, one of the last things you want to do is buy something that could be harmful to your health and detrimental to the environment. All too often, many of the available products are either made from substances that probably shouldn't come in regular contact with our bodies, or are built to be…
24 Mar
2017
A solar-powered greenhouse in a waterless desert, and a 100% autonomous bus
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency | AUSTRALIA
Published by : Eco Media Asia
When we talk about climate change, two of the most pressing challenges that humanity faces are how will we feed ourselves when the weather gets crazy and where will we get reliable, low carbon energy. A project in Port Augusta, South Australia appears to offer a partial answer to both of these problems: Producing 15,000 tons of pesticide-free tomatoes (that's 15% of Australia's tomato market, apparently!) and they are doing it with virtually no fresh water.…
22 Mar
2017
Pure Cycles launches its 35-pound Volta electric bicycle, which is "packed with perks"
Green Transportation & Logistics | UNITED STATES
Published by : Eco Media Asia
The latest in what seems like a near-constant flood of e-bike launches comes not from a startup, but from a conventional bike company that started out building the ultimate in hip urban transport -- fixed gear bikes.There have been quite a few e-bikes hitting the scene lately, which is a good indicator of their growing popularity, but many of them come from startups and are re-branded Chinese electric bikes, so this entry from LA's Pure Cycles could be a great…
20 Mar
2017
Steel drum contains a complete solar charging station for off-grid & remote power
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency | UNITED KINGDOM
Published by : Eco Media Asia
The Solar Charging Can has a self-contained solar power hub inside it that can be set up in about half an hour for events, off-grid situations, or emergency power. While the residential and commercial solar market is relatively saturated with choices, and the micro solar market is chock full of options for charging portable electronics, the space between the two seems like the sweet spot to be for companies looking to provide solutions for portable power to…
18 Mar
2017
70%, 80%, 99.9%, 100% Renewables — Study Central
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency | UNITED STATES
Published by : Eco Media Asia
A number of research teams have tackled the whole “how much could (or should) renewable energy power our grid?” question. Of course, the regions studied, goals of the studies, technology assumptions, and other parameters have varied, so the studies come to various conclusions. Here are some of the most notable studies I’ve seen:Here’s How To Build 100% Clean Renewable Energy In The US Before 2040+Getting To 100% Renewable Energy In the USThe Solutions Project:…
16 Mar
2017
See how banana trees are recycled into vegan “leather” wallets in Micronesia
Eco Products & Services | MICRONESIA, FEDERATED STATES OF
Published by : Eco Media Asia
Forget plastic and leather, your next wallet could be made from a more ethical and eco-friendly alternative—banana fiber. Kosrae, Micronesia-based startup Green Banana Paper tapped into banana tree waste, upcycling the unlikely material into stylish and sturdy vegan leather wallets. Green Banana Paper launched a Kickstarter to bring these eco friendly wallets to the global market and help improve the lives of local farmers. Bananas may…