Now have an environment-friendly travel. In what can be treated as a step towards government’s endeavor to fight pollution by vehicles, Volvo announced the launch of its new entry into the diesel-electric hybrid bus market. The hybrid Volvo 7700 is a 12-meter low-floor city bus that gets up to 30 percent better fuel economy and emits 40 to 50 percent less nitrous oxide and 30 percent less carbon, the company said. In addition, a smaller engine and nearly a third of the bus’ components are developed in-house by Volvo.
The hybrid Volvo 7700 uses “parallel hybrid” technology which allows the bus to be powered by either the electric motor or the diesel engine or both at the same time. I-SAM, the company’s hybrid technology, plans to use the same technology in its trucks and construction equipment after the buses go into mass production in 2010. Though the hybrid bus weighs more or less the same as a diesel-driven bus, it has a better weight distribution, which allows the hybrid bus to take more passengers than a comparable diesel bus.� As a result, the bus’ performance is enhanced and fuel consumption is reduced.

According to a report by United Press International, the first of Volvo’s hybrid buses will begin testing on city streets in London and Gothenburg, Sweden, later this fall. Volvo is believed to start delivering hybrid diesel electric buses to customers in 2009 with mass production beginning in 2010.

Via igreenspot

With the benefits of Windmills come common concerns like the whooshing sound that regular turbines produce, as well as their divisive visual aesthetics. Keeping in mind the volatility of the speed of wind in the urban environment, the QR (Quiet Revolution) has been designed. A new type of wind turbine intended to address both of these issues, Quiet Revolution’s QR5 Vertical Axis Wind Turbine, or VAWT for shawt, is smaller, quieter, and way better looking than your typical windmill, plus it should produce the equivalent of its £25,000 price tag in clean energy within 15 years or less. The elegant helical (twisted) design of QR ensures a robust performance even in turbulent winds. It is also responsible for virtually eliminating noise and vibration.

At five metres high and three metres in diameter, it is compact and easy to integrate, and with just one moving part, maintenance can be limited to an annual inspection.

Though the energy output will vary according to the wind speed but is likely to be between 6,000 and 10,000 kWhrs on a typical site. And if that wasn’t all, according the usage of such windmills will also lead to reduction in CO2 emmisions.

Via trendir

Finally something to fight the food shortage problem!! Conceptualized by Dickson Despommier, a professor of public health at Columbia University, this is sure to be both environmentally friendly and economically profitable. Added to this the dream of preserving a little of the country in the city is a utopian one which now will help fight global warming too. The professor believes that only by allowing significant portions of the Earth’s farmland to return to forest do we have a real chance of stabilizing climate and weather patterns. Merely reducing energy consumption would not suffice.

Allowing forests to regrow where crops are now cultivated, he believes, would reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Besides, with the world’s population expected to increase to 3 billion by 2050 and almost 80 per cent of farming land in use, the idea has never been more relevant. The best way very rationally Despommier argues, is to change the way we farm.

Dr. Despommier estimates that it would cost $20 million to $30 million to make a prototype of a vertical farm, but hundreds of millions to build one of the 30-story towers that he suggests could feed 50,000 people. “I’m viewed as kind of an outlier because it’s kind of a crazy idea,” said he. The revolutionary scientist envisions blocks of vertical farms in the world’s biggest cities, each structure 30 stories high that could potentially be as productive as 588 acres of land and grow up to 12 million lettuces a year.

Currently he is in discussions with potential investors to build the first prototype. For Dr. Despommier, the high-rise version is on the horizon. “It’s very idealistic and ivory tower and all of that,” he said. “But there’s a real desire to make this happen.”

Via dailymail

With the West in a water crisis, it’s not surprising to see a machine that pulls water from ambient air at West Coast Green. Though not an innovation, these machines require a lot of energy which has been dealt with by Element Four who have addressed the issues of energy use for creating water. The unit uses just 300 watts; a relatively low amount for these machines, the Watermill senses its environment and acts accordingly.
The Watermill checks its environment every three minutes to determine the dew point and keeps itself operating at just a few degrees below that dew point. This way, it maximizes efficiency of the energy it uses to operate by maximizing the amount of water it can pull from the air 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
It can pull an average of 13 quarts of water each day, which is plenty of potable water for an average family of four. The water is essentially distilled, but a filter can be added to restore organic minerals if the user wishes.

And if that wasn’t all, a solar powered version of the machine is in the works and will be available in about six months. So, this one is sure to tackle the water needs and the environmental issues with utmost efficiency.

Via geekologie

This may be called living for a cause!! When we are trying to make everything environmental friendly, why not die the same way? The German made Uono Cocoon is a customized product manufactured exclusively by hand to reinterpret the traditional coffin design. Uono, representing premium quality selection of materials as well as the high-class workmanship is an innovative and exceptional natural product.

The model COCOON combines aesthetics and functional simplicity. Its organic space reminds us of a timeless sculpture. As Cocoon, the coffin symbolizes a feeling of security and care as well as the crossing of something transcendental. Available in 14 colors, it weighs only 20 kgs making it easier to carry, move and lay out.� Endowed with high-gloss finished varnish, extendable handles of stainless steel and noble lining it degrades in 10-15 years, is CO2 neutral, the gloss finish is water based, it can be used in the cremation process, and is made from renewable primary resources.

Although the manufactures aren’t ready to divulge details about the material being used to make the Cocoon, they state that it is hand shaped, placed in a mould, heated and hardened in an oven, then finished by hand. Besides, it comes to you in a secure wooden box and with a special base frame.
So for all those who want to leave the mortal world as much in style, as they led in while alive, this is one important purchase before you close your eyes to the world.

Via uono.de

This may be called optimum utilization of resources or a measure towards being biodegradable. If you have ever pondered over the amount of food waste that becomes a food for the dustbin, this one is sure to put a smile on your face. The innovative Hybrid Gas Range created by award-winning Korean designer Seokmoon Woo, is an amazing concept, utilizing food garbage as an alternate fuel for the gas range. This concept helps reduce food garbage in households while meeting a chunk of their energy needs as well by allowing them to switch between the collected methane and regular gas at the press of a button.
If we change food garbage at home into methane energy, we can cook with methane instead of gas all the time. Considering that the dwindling natural gas resources have raised an alarm worldwide this device is sure to be a boom for the consumer.

The concept allows users to put away their food garbage in a classifier in the center which ferments and creates methane that is used as fuel for the gas range. The resulting waste is dehydrated by the machine and collected in a tank at the bottom that can be disposed off later. Though still a concept, this one is sure to have buyers in the market the day it is launched.

Via designist.kr

Classy and efficient is how one can define this one. With startling looks, it is sure to take you on a ride. For travelers, this is an avant-garde vehicle, offering a great speed yet being environment friendly. With masters in industrial design, its designer Robert Nightingale is a much-talked about luminary these days. Drawing upon his experience in sustainable research, creative thinking & design method he has been consistently providing innovative concept. This futuristic concept is designed to take you miles and that too without causing any hazards like non-reversible carbon footprints & global warming which are the gifts of the aviation industry to the environment.

Aptly named, The Environment by its creator, this invention provides the travelers with an environment conducive for work as well as leisure besides zooming at a marvelous speed. Always banking upon the concepts, Robert’s innovations have brought him various applauses and acclamations all across the world.

From the Hitch Concept to Water Shelter Concept to the current transport innovation, his products have always been an affix to the advanced technology. And when they couples with environmental benefits, they surely are adorable.
So now you don’t have to think before to decide your next trip.
Via robertnightingaledesign

A beer that’s green!!! Sounds absurd? Well don’t be too surprised. After organic and biodynamic wine it is green beer that is making news these days.
Going by the name of Cascade Green, this organic beer company manufactures the fuzzy liquor in Tasmania Australia with a commitment towards a greener life. Their special product is called ‘Beer of the Earth’ as Cascade Green has been consistently working for over 6 years to reduce the energy and water consumption by 16% and 30% respectively in the manufacturing process.
The website is an extremely vibrant affair. But you have to be more than 18 years of age to access it. Here I read about the brewery’s green location that is surrounded by 250 hectares of pristine forest with Mount Wellington in the backdrop. The company is doing its best to maintain the beauty of the natural surroundings. And it is also taking special care to neutralise carbon emissions by purchasing carbon offsets.
Via cascadegreen

Using the advanced techniques of airoponics, which helps grow plants without soil, various scientists from the USA and Israel have decided to create tree abodes for the future, a very eco-friendly housing solution for the future. The whole project is being supported by Plantware, and the first prototype home could be ready in just 10 years. They have already experimented in creating bus shelters, park benches and traffic lights from their unique growing techniques.

These homes will be constructed from actual tree roots to any design specification and will come equipped with a host of eco-friendly features such as solar panels and wind harvesting fans. The self-sufficient dwellings will draw power from clean energy sources and recycle human waste into valuable nutrients for the living trees. With this you can expect to have reduced heating bills, because when the deciduous trees shed the leaves, these homes will have more heat. And in the summer, the leaves will provide shade and shelter.

A very smart and practical “green” concept .Just what our poor little earth engulfed in pollution needs. A very scientifically natural way to purify the air .breathing fresh already? You can hold that thought for a decade though. But this wait will be worth the results.

Technology going ecofriendly is the best one could ask for. But if it brings foliage straight into your house-Bingo! Sara Rossbach has planted an innovative green concept for today’s energy consuming lifestyle. She has come up with a décor for your window that is dubbed as Leaf Shade. Leaf Shade utilizes sun’s energy to power up a house and at the same time acts as a screen to keep away the glaring sun. This leafy shade too just like real leaves absorbs the sun rays.

But the shade doesn’t prepare food for itself. It is tweaked to power your home with solar energy instead. Made of two layers, the prime solar film layer is fitted with a battery and does the actual job of energizing your abode with all the goodness of the sun. The other layer is fabric that is dressed with cutouts that give an impression of sunlight passing through the leaves. With the concrete jungles spreading like wildfire erasing all the greens from the face of the earth, this Leaf Shade would also remind you every moment to conserve our lush greens.

A very interesting and style of green décor and eco-energy, one would agree. This one’s a must have for every eco-lover!

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