Eco-Friendly Design

Made out of one complete piece of laminated bamboo, this minimalist chair is a great example of bentwood - but with a sustainable twist. This type of design reduces the need for component parts which means less demand for materials and manufacture.

From an environmental viewpoint the chair uses bamboo which is a 100% natural, rapidly renewable, and biodegradable material. It is a much better alternative to hardwood timber.

With bamboo, consider the amount of shipping as this uses precious fuel resources and brings down the eco-credentials if transported from overseas. The finish used on the bamboo is also important. Does it contain chemicals or synthetics? Always check with the manufacturer for the technical data. This will help you make an all round eco-evaluation.

[via] www.modernbamboo.com

It is never too late, not even for a company like Nike, to turn things around on the road to environmental sustainability. And it sure is great to see them try!

They have made a huge part of their website about how they intend to do just that. They now feel they have a responsibility to use the success and the power of their brand to make a difference and create meaningful change.

By 2011 all Nike footwear will meet standards set on our sustainability index. By 2015 they will include all apparel, and by 2020 Nike equipment. They dream of a near future where there products will create zero waste.

They plan to be climate-neutral both in their facilities and their business travel by 2011.

They are also backing up their talk with a new sneaker, The Nike “Trash Talk” shoe. It uses scrap-ground foam from factory production. The outsole uses environmentally-preferred rubber that reduces toxicity and incorporates Nike Grind material from footwear manufacturing waste.

[via] www.nikebiz.com

Image [via] chinese-architecture

BEIJING - The sprawling Beijing Olympic Village has won its own gold medal for going green.  U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson presented Chinese officials with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold award during a short ceremony, saying the 160-acre Olympic Village could serve as a future prototype for energy efficiency and environmentally friendly design. “China’s leaders know the development of green buildings is a critical need and the Olympic Village can serve as a model for this development,” Paulson said.

The award, based on standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council, is an international benchmark for high performance in green design and construction. The village’s 42 six- and nine-story residential high-rises, which house more than 16,000 Olympic athletes, are 50 percent more energy efficient than most buildings in Beijing, using solar panels for energy and recycling waste water for heating and cooling.

“With this award, the Olympic Village is being recognized for its contributions to making this year’s Olympics the greenest ever,” said Paulson.

Though much attention has focused on the country’s efforts to curb its air pollution, China’s huge push to achieve its goal of a Green Olympics has also meant a major investment in other environmental efforts including the construction of green Olympic venues.

At the Water Cube, where Olympic swimming events are held, builders used material similar to plastic wrap to create 4,000 translucent bubbles as the outer shell, allowing sunlight to filter in. The skin lets the building use natural lighting, while a rainwater capture system on the roof saves water for irrigation and landscape purposes, said Kwok.

Solar panels in the 91,000-seat stadium, known as the Bird’s Nest, generate enough energy to power the huge underground parking lot. The arena’s open design, with its intricate external latticework, allows for natural ventilation instead of having a heating and cooling system, while the rainwater collection system uses 108 water tanks, said Kwok.

[via] www.bostonherald.com

It appears that some of the most creative and inventive advertising is coming from nonprofits these days.
This week I’ve been taking a look at the nonprofits and “for a good cause” marketing techniques. From the Live Earth event, to Al Gore and global warming, to major corporations claiming they are green, environmental ad campaigns seem to be everywhere. Here are my picks for some of the most interesting and entertaining of the green ads:

A. Greenpeace

Greenpeace is one organization that covers much of the market with this messaging. On top of their aggressive print ads, such as these simple print ads:

They play off of other well-known ads, like this parody of the popular polar bear ad campaign for Coca Cola. As you know, global warming has caused huge concerns about the future of the polar bear.

They also use alternative marketing methods to grab people’s attention. This funny snow-globe reads: “Winter. You will miss it when it’s gone.”

Or this toilet paper ad, done for Greenpeace, by an agency in China.

B. World Wildlife Fund

Also in China, the World Wildlife Fund attached this to vehicles around town.

The following two eye-catching print ads are also from the World Wildlife Fund anti pollution campaign.

C. CO2

Similar to the anti-pollution guerrilla marketing campaign above, this one is basically saying that carbon dioxide from car exhaust is destroying a balloon earth. Copy on the blown up balloon reads: “The World Can’t Take Any More CO2.” A bursting balloon earth surely grabbed attention.

D. Save the Rainforests.

Look at this print ad from the “save the rainforests” efforts. The ad portrays the 1965 US Army versus the 2005 US Army to emphasize the world is not getting greener. “More proof the rainforests are disappearing. Help us preserve what’s left of our rainforests.”

E. Global Warming

Even companies who are not in business to make a better, cleaner world are advertising for the green effort. This series of print ads is from a clothing line called Diesel. It highlights their new Spring 07 collection, while also focusing on the devastating effects and climate change that global warming can cause to planet earth. Who knew global warming was so fashionable?

F. Water Conservation

Attention grabbing ads from Denver Water…

[via] Amy Gifford inventorspot.com

I know we are no were near Christmas, and I am normally the kind of person that really dislikes when the Christmas decorations come up too early and Christmas starts in November. But I just could not help but post this very funny lamp already now in July. The lamps are made from used Christmas trees, and I love the idea. It always feels like such a waste when you drag out the tree after just a few weeks of use, so here you are: problem solved.

[via] www.cinqcinqdesigners.com

Who said that recycling could not be lots of fun?. The Bicicleta Rug from Nani Marquina made out of recycled bicycle tires looks just like the fun recycling should be!

Description:
The Bicicleta rug from Nani Marquina was born out of research into the possibility of using recycled rubber to create new textures. A trip to India, where bicycles are the primary mode of transport, was the inspiration for Bicicleta.

Each rug is made using 130-140 bicycle inner tubes collected and processed in India.

Materials:
100% recycled rubber, handmade, hand loomed

Dimensions:
5′ 6″ x 7′ 9″

Cleaning:
Vacuuming is recommended. In the event of dirt in general, wash by hand in a solution of warm water and detergent. Do not dry-clean.

[via] www.plushpod.com

The Asian Elephant Art & Conservation Project (AEACP) is a non-profit organization dedicated to aiding people in need and to saving the diminishing number of Asian elephants left on our planet through its work with domesticated elephants. The AEACP raises funds through the sale of artwork created by elephants in order to generate money and create awareness for the people and elephants of Asia.

One of the elephants is eight year old Hong. She has a very curious nature. She loves to investigate everything and once managed to use her trunk to open the door of a truck. This kind of curiosity made Hong a natural candidate for artistic instruction.

Two years ago, Hong began painting with her mahout (teacher), Noi Rakchang, and has steadily developed her skills. After learning how to paint flowers, she moved on to more advanced paintings. She now has two specialties. One is an elephant holding flowers with her trunk, and the other is the Thai flag. An elephant with so much control and dexterity is capable of amazing work. Just for clarification, with these realistic figural works, the elephant is still the only one making the marks on the paper.  The paintings are made from a learned series of brushstrokes.

The majority of works created by the elephants are painted on recycled elephant dung paper. The paper is created on the grounds. It is beautifully textured, odorless and environmentally sound. With 90 elephants on site, each of which eats an average of 300 – 500 lbs. of food daily, one can surmise that a fair amount of cleanup would be necessary. There has been a new movement as of late to reuse this elephant by-product in larger elephant facilities throughout Southeast Asia. The dung is processed, bleached, screened and dried into a paper-mache type material. The beautifully textured result is being used to create a variety of wonderful products such as paper, picture frames, bookmarks, jewelry boxes and even hats. Yes, “art from both ends of the elephant.”

[via] www.elephantart.com

When I was looking through Youtube for a good video of Hong I found this. I cannot help it.  I find it so funny that I just had to add this to our site. Elephants are amazing. Enjoy if you have not seen it before!

Dirt can be made beautiful. A San Francisco, California group launched The Reverse Grafitti Project. They are creating green art by cleaning up dirt and grime from walls. In the video you see them making a 140 foot long mural in the Broadway tunnel. The images created by washing dirt away are native species of plants that would be living in the area had the tunnel not been built.

The original Tide chandelier is part of a larger body of work based on the collection of man-made debris washed up on a specific stretch of Kent coastline. The English designer Stuart Haygarth has been collecting material over many years and the work is still in progress. The material collected is sorted and categorized and several individual pieces of work are produced.

The Tide chandelier is created from clear and translucent objects primarily made of plastic.  Each object is different in shape and form, yet they come together to produce one sphere. The sphere is an analogy for the moon which effects the tides which in turn wash up the debris.

The objects hang on a monofilament line held by split shot from a 1.5 meter square MDF platform above. The light source is a 100 watt incandescent bulb.

Hanging platform : 152cm x 152cm
Sphere diameter : 150cm
Hanging height : 210cm ( distance from platform to the bottom of sphere

[via] www.stuarthaygarth.com

The Danish designed NOBODY Chair from Komplot Design was presented the “Best in International Design Over Last 12 Months” award at the London Design Museum Inaugural Exhibition and Awards Celebration.  The designers Poul Christiansen and Boris Berlin describe their chair this way: “With its clear metaphor for a cover, the cloth is laid on the chair to protect it while not being used. NOBODY refers to the ’shadow’ side of the life of a chair. The cover blurs the shape of the chair and at the same time makes an allusion to it.  But on our ‘cover’ one can sit without the ’chair’ underneath. The cover is empty and the chair is taken away, but cloth still remembers the chair and keeps the shape of it.”

NOBODY is produced in one single process by thermo-pressing the polymer fibre PET felt mat without any kind of the frame. The production process neither demands any additives like glues or resins, nor any additional materials like screws or reinforcements. PET felt is made of 100% recycled material produced mainly from used soda and water bottles.

Light and stackable, NOBODY can be used in both public and residential interiors.  Good air circulation, perfect acoustic properties of the PET felt and ease of cleaning give additional qualities to the chair.

[via] www.hay.dk