For most people, buying a T-shirt is a pretty common occurrence. When you can buy a plain top on the high street for under £10, updating your wardrobe can quickly become an almost weekly event. But Tom Cridland, a young menswear designer based in London, believes wardrobe staples should be built to last. Last month Cridland launched a £25 T-shirt that is designed and guaranteed to last 30 years – if it wears out before the three decades are up, Cridland promises to mend or replace the shirt, free of charge. FURTHER READING The inspiration for the project came after Cridland set up his eponymous fashion label, which launched in 2014 with a range of men's trousers that have been spotted on the likes of Elton John, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Daniel Craig. "I certainly noticed the prevalence of fast fashion in the industry and what that can do to the environment, especially when companies are systematically making clothing to wear out," he tells BusinessGreen. "If you go into a…
E-Bikes and Solar Redefine Bike Transportation
SUSTAINABLE ELECTRIC BIKING
Go ahead. Park your bike in the sun. This new SOLAR BIKE soaks up the rays and stores them as power that can move you at up to 30 mph. It's battery powered but needs no plugs and is an innovative and sustainable alternative to the electric bike.
It is forecast that about 350,000 electric bicycles will be sold to customers in the United States by 2015 and, Asia and Europe are counted among the most important market for e-bikes. Sales of e-bikes has grown steadily each year in Europe from 98,000 units in 2006 to 588,000 units in 2010.
The NY Times reports that it all began in China where an estimated 120 million electric bicycles now hum along the roads, up from a few thousand in the 1990s. They are replacing traditional bikes and motorcycles at a rapid clip and, in many cases, allowing people to avoid purchasing cars.
While countries in the Asia Pacific region will continue to account for the vast majority of E-Bike sales in the next several…
Read more
The Future Is Clean – Solar Impulse 2 Plane Campaign
On March 9th 2015 the revolutionary airplane named “Solar Impulse 2” launched its first leg of its 35,000 mile trip around the world to help raise awareness of the Future is Clean Campaign. Starting off in Abu Dhabi the plane is set to stop in various global locations and is being tracked for audiences online. The Solar Impulse 2 (aka Si2)is a lot larger than its predecessor the Solar Impulse 1, which was the prototype that set several solar powered flight world records in 2013. This version of the aircraft is wider than a 747 Jumbo Jet with a wingspan of 72 metres (236.22 feet) and yet is still a light 2.3 tonnes. It’s light weight is key to the success of the plane that has 17000 solar panels built into its wings.
Solar energy is estimated to become the dominant energy source of the future, as predicted by the International Energy Agency. (IEA)
Read more
The Greenest and Meanest Cars for 2015 – No “Mr. Fusion” DeLorean on the List Yet!
Modern cars have come a long way from their gas guzzling roots and with our consumer priorities becoming ever greener each year– ratings and rankings are more important to car manufacturers than ever. The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) released its 18th annual environmental ratings for vehicles on its newly launched website greenercars.org, which provides an online database containing vehicle environmental scores for models from the year 2000 to present.
Ranked number one in the list of top twelve green cars is the third generation of the Smart ForTwo Electric Drive. The only conventional gas fueled car to make the list is the Mitsubishi Mirage (renamed Space Star) landing in tenth place. The rest were either plug-in electric vehicles or hybrids. Aptly named by ACEEE as the Greenest and Meanest lists, here are rankings:
Greenest List:
1
Mercedez-Benz Smart Fortwo Elec. Drive Convertible / Coupe
2
Chevrolet Spark EV
…
Read more
New Study: Bioenergy May Be Bad News for Forests, Climate
Resource: Global Forest Reporting Network
BioFuels like Ethanol have more than just an image problem (Growing food vs growing fuel). Now a new report from the World Resources Institute finds that dedicating land to the production of biofuels may undermine efforts to achieve a sustainable food future, combat climate change, and protect forests.
The problem, of course, is that if you dedicate land to growing crops like sugarcane, corn, soybeans, or wood solely for the production of biofuels, you can’t use that land to grow food--or as a carbon sink. We already use a whopping three-fourths of the world’s vegetated land for crops, livestock grazing, and wood harvests, according to the WRI paper. And the remaining land really should be left as is, since it protects clean water, supports biodiversity, and stores carbon.
Watch this video about new biofuels made from cellulose with the help of a bacteria under the development of AE Biofuels, which acquired Zemetis in 2011.
Read more
Google’s Amazing New Campus Revealed. Video…
Google reveals its greatest search results.
Google’s search was global. Massive. Yet personal. Google was scouring the world, looking for a special architect for their own new campus. According to Google Vice President of Real Estate, Dave Radcliffe, their Search Results culminated in two “Best in Class” architects, Bjarke Ingels from Denmark and Thomas Heatherwick from the UK.
Radcliffe assembled a veritable trifecta of function, form and beauty by teaming the ambitious, community-focused architect, Ingels and Heatherwick, renowned for his attention to human scale and beauty. The company that Revolutionized online search has now embarked on a paradigm-shifting mission to transform the workplace environment. They started with a question. “What is the best possible environment we can make to invent, engineer and make ideas happen?”
Google's presence in Mountain View, California is so strong that the team felt the need to focus on developing a community, not a fortress. …
Read more
