However, just because it’s a good thing to do, that doesn’t mean you know how to use all your old stuff to make new, useful stuff. A lot of us just aren’t the “crafty” type, myself included. I look at a bunch of old socks, and I see maybe something I can clean a rifle with or that I can use as stuffing in a quilt. Others, however, see a doll. If you are like me, and you have a hard time conceptualizing what an old sock could possibly be turned into, then you need to get your hands on a book or two that goes over what kind of possibilities there are out there.

One book like that is Sock and Glove by Miyako Kanamori. This is a really great text that shows you how to do tons of different things with old socks and gloves that are past their usefulness. Don’t like dolls? Then there are a lot of other things in the book that you can make, and all of them come with very simple instructions so you can get moving right away. After all, who doesn’t have a few socks that are on their way out? Instead of just dumping them in the garbage, you can now easily come up with some amazing craft ideas to put them to use. As long as you make sure you wash them first, you should have a bunch of cool little pieces laying all over your house.

A lot of this is due to the fact that we’re not really taught to do things for ourselves anymore. Doing work seems to be scorned as something that we just shouldn’t have to do if we’ve lived our lives the right way and made the right choices. I don’t agree with this at all. There is nothing but honor to be found in doing stuff like this for yourself and being more self sufficient. If you are in my camp, but don’t know much about this stuff and would be embarrassed to ask for help, then there are a number of really great books out there that you can use to get a better idea of how to do all this stuff.

Design*Sponge At Home is one of these books and it really does a great job of making the information both accessible and very engaging for the average reader that doesn’t have a whole lot of know-how in this field. If you want to get more involved in your own DIY projects around the house, this is really the book to get. Not only does it have a lot of great tips in it, but it even has some regular projects that you can get started on right away.

I love books like this. Not only can you do your own DIY projects at home, but you can have a great time while you’re at it.

Motherboard is one of those companies. Their full name is “Motherboard Gifts and More”, but they don’t work with just motherboards. They work with a huge range of old, worn out electronics and spruce them up into awesome little trinkets and useful stuff. For example, they have this new money clip out that uses the pieces of old mouse motherboards to snap the money together. They use old circuit boards, computer housings, really anything that they can get their hands on.

Another perk: longevity. With all of the success that ec0-minded businesses have been having over the past few years, there are a lot of fly by night companies out there that work hard to look like they’re environmentally friendly. However, the reality of these places is that they’re just online to make a quick buck, and they won’t be around for long. Motherboard Gifts and More has been around for over 20 years now, making it one of the oldest vendors of recycled merchandise in the entire country. Put great ideas, longevity, and a lot of disused electronics together. What you get out of that mix is an ingenious little company that offers a unique product that nerds around the world will love.

This is just one more example of how eco-friendly products are not just for your standard hippie types. We really do throw away way too much crap on a day to day basis, and these companies are really just filling a void created by that river of waste. They really do exemplify the saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” Not in a bad, eating out of the dumpster kind of way, though… In the good “stop throwing all this crap away I can do something with it” kind of way.

Then I started thinking about personal solar panels. Right now, it may not be the best time of year to talk about these things. After all, the sun isn’t really a big part of anyone’s life during the winter. However, those sunny days will rear their heads once more in a few months, and then these solar panels will be a great investment to have around.

I didn’t really know how great of an investment they were until I started looking into them a bit more. I was expecting them to cost about four times as much as they really do, which is a funny little indication of just how far the technology has come over the years. Five years ago, a little charger to charge your phone would have run you around $200 bucks. Now, it’ll run you about $50. It’s crazy how times change!

So I ordered one for myself. I decided to go with the Kiwi U-Powered Portable Power Source. I’m just planning on using it to charge my phone, but I think it’s pretty cool to possibly use it as my sole source of power to charge my phone once the sun comes back. I’ll let you know how everything turned out once I finally get to use it, so stay tuned for any updates. This is just another great example of the ways that we can all rescue ourselves from the technological slavery that oil is putting us into. If this one works out, I’m definitely going to be thinking more about solar in the future for my other projects.

A recent design competition for the London Olympic Games Information Pavilion generated a number of projects that will make use of recycled materials and solar power. The competition hoped to encourage and reward design excellence at a small scale which integrates function, structure, details, as well as the spirit of the games. The aim of the international competition was to design a temporary, freestanding information pavilion to be build within the world famous Trafalgar Square in the heart of London.

A group of Portuguese architects won the competition with an Olympic rings-shaped pavilion that showcases recycled steel. Solar panels will be installed on the top of the pavilion to generate power for use in the pavilion. Sustainable design plays an important role in the info pavilion.

The winning entry was designed by Jose Carlos Cruz, Ines Guedes, Miguel Santos, and Antonio Cruz. The rings are extruded into rooms where visitors can find out information, relax, shop, or grab a drink.

ArchDaily

Photo by Patrick Gillooly via MIT News

“The sheet of paper looks like any other document that might have just come spitting out of an office printer, with an array of colored rectangles printed over much of its surface. But then a researcher picks it up, clips a couple of wires to one end, and shines a light on the paper. Instantly an LCD clock display at the other end of the wires starts to display the time,” reports MIT news.

If a technology like this made its way into homes, it could dramatically change the average person’s access to alternative energy sources. The paper solar cells can even be folded without breaking the cells. The new technology uses vapors instead of liquids to print onto the material. The printer operates at a cooler temperature than conventional printers and the printing actually takes place in a vacuum chamber.

One of the most unique proposed applications for this new solar cell technology is in the fashion world. Cells could potentially be printed on fabric and incorporated into clothing and accessories. It is already popular to add solar cells onto bags and backpacks, but now those still solar cells could be replaced with even lighter and more flexible versions. The potential for these new printable cells is limited only by the imagination.

TreeHugger

The MEV HUMMER HX is the only proportionally correct licensed resort vehicle currently on the market. Its design matches the infamous Humvee and includes the characteristic louver grille, custom wheels, door sills, styled seats, and floor mats.

MEV, or My Electric Vehicle, was formed in 2006; initially trading as Mini Hummer Europe and achieved year on year growth because of its introduction of luxury golf cars manufactured by others to the European market. As a result of poor growth and lack of sales from third party suppliers, a decision was made in 2009 for the company to design and develop their own products.

The greatest thing about this new Hummer is that it is not a gas guzzler like its predecessors. This Hummer is electric and can be charged from a 12V charging point. Despite the fact that General Moters closed the Hummer automotive plant in 2010, it is believed that the little HX model could have saved the brand.

Just before closing the factory, MEV managed to sign the worldwide exclusive rights to manufacture the HUMMER HX as a mini electric vehicle.

Source: My Electric Vehicle

The tunnel was originally designed to protect the region’s forests by diverting trains through the mountains, rather than felling ancient trees. Now, the tunnel is playing an even larger environmental role.

The two miles of solar panels will produce enough energy to power all the trains in Belgium for one day per year, in addition to powering up the Antwerp station. This totals approximately 3.5Mw/hour of energy each year. Total estimates for the project is believed to have reached $20.1 million.

Bart Van Renterghem, UK head of Belgian renewable energy company Enfinity, which installed the panels, believes, “For train operators, it is the perfect way to cut their carbon footprints because you can use spaces that have no other economic value and the projects can be delivered within a year because they don’t attract the protests that wind power does.”

Renterghem adds, “We had a couple of projects lined up around London with train operators and water utilities, but they have been put on hold.”

Enfinity via Inhabitat

The plan calls for phasing out all of Germany’s 17 nuclear reactors –8 of which are offline – and expanding the use of renewable resources. This decision came after recommendations of an expert commission appointed after the disaster at Fukushima. Nuclear energy accounts for 23 percent of Germany’s electricity.

Norber Rottgen, the environment minister, stated, “It’s definite –the latest end for the last three nuclear plants is 2022.”

While the announcement still faces legislative approval, environmentalists applauded the decision, which is also expected to be popular among voters. The decision was greeted skeptically around Europe and within the German industry. Some critics cited a potential harm to economic growth, while others claim it could force Germany to import nuclear power from France, or even inflate the cost of energy across the continent.

Georg Zachmann, an energy expert at Bruegel, a research institute in Brussels, said, “The German decision has direct implications for Europe’s energy sector.”

For Chancellor Angela Merkel, ending the reliance on nuclear energy may be ambitious, but it is also necessary. The embrace of clean energy represents a transformation based on the politics of the ballot box. Just last year, Mrs. Merkel released an unpopular plan to extend the life of nuclear power plants, with the final plants to close in 2036.

“If the government goes ahead with what it said it would do, then Germany will be a kind of laboratory for efforts worldwide to end nuclear power in an advanced economy,” claims Mark Hibbs, a senior associate in Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington. “No other country in the world is taking those steps.”

The German government said all of the details of the phase-out plan had not yet been decided.

Source NYTimes

The creators of the bicycle believe that their design is capable of setting a speed record for wooden bicycles. The only hitch in this plan is that known of the designers have actually ridden the bicycle. Apparently, they have been unable to hind a surface smooth enough to make the record attempt.

Via Gizmodo and Inhabitat