Smart Design

One of the hallmarks of design innovation is the ability to take something that’s mundane and transform it into something new and exciting. Well we can’t think of a more fitting example of that than the wildly creative and fun dumpster pools that popped up on one of New York City‘s busiet streets, Park Avenue, this summer. Made from actual dumpsters that were cleaned out, painted and fitted with all of the appropriate parts, these unlikely watering holes really made a splash with the public. Talk about taking something that is trash-y (literally) and turning into treasure through the magic of smart design! read more

Even the most environmentally conscious of us have found ourselves tempted to quench our thirst by buying (gasp!) bottled water when we’re out and about and can’t find a place to fill up on clean, drinkable H2O. So wouldn’t it be wonderful if your reusable bottle could also purify tap water from your office, gym or public water fountain, making it infinitely easier for you to avoid purchasing costly and wasteful plastic bottles? Well, that’s exactly what Bobble does — it’s a reusable water bottle with a built-in water filter. Conceived by product design mastermind Karim Rashid, the colorful, modern Bobble is made of recycled plastic, and if that doesn’t impress you, maybe the $9.95 price tag will! This is a great example of smart design — solving a ubiquitous problem that plagues us all.

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Chris Jordan is a well known digital artist who has taken to recycling e-waste and other trash into amazing pieces of artwork. One of his recent exhibitions, “Running The Numbers” consisted of statistically significant amounts of batteries, cell phones, circuit boards and other consumer waste to show how big of an issue waste is. His newest piece called Gyre, takes a look at the Pacific Garbage Patch and the staggering amount of plastic waste floating in the Pacific ocean. You may recognize the picture as The Great Wave at Kanagawa by the famous Japanese wood block printer, Hokusai. But what you may not be able to tell from this first picture is that it is made out of 2.4 million plastic pieces. read more

Since clothes dryers are the 2nd largest energy consumer in the house, it behooves us to air dry our clothes – it could save up to $85 a year. But many of us live in tight quarters without yards, and even though we’d love to dry our clothes outside to get that fresh outdoor smell, we can’t. Which means we must make use of whatever free space we have indoors to hang our clothes – whether that’s in the middle of the living room, on the shower rod, or all over the bedroom. Designs are getting smarter and more attractive though – take this ingenius design for instance. Designed by Rob Podell for the 2009 Greener Gadgets Design Competition, this indoor drying rack solves all of the problems. It is sustainably built, adjustable, wall-mounted, space-saving and very cool looking. read more

Cell phones have been an incredibly important technology – replacing land lines, allowing callers to connect anywhere and anytime, and in some countries eliminating hundreds of thousands of telephone wires. For developing countries, cell phones leap-frogged traditional telephones, minimizing costly infrastructure development. But for all their efficiencies, we still use a lot of energy to charge them. That’s why solar powered cell phones may be the next step towards an efficient technology. Here’s a look at few of the new solar powered cell phones coming on the market. They all debuted at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona back in February.
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Lawns are hardwired into the American psyche – a green, luscious, well-manicured lawn is part of what shows off our success. We spend hours or pay someone to spend hours mowing the lawn, trimming the edges, and putting fertilizer on it. And yet, the lawn gives us nothing back. Instead it just sucks down water, time and money. For those of you tired of maintaining a fruitless lawn, it may be time to consider killing your lawn and replacing it with native vegetation, drought tolerant landscaping or an edible garden. At first it will take a commitment and some hard work, but the goal is to reduce your lawn maintenance, water usage and have a beautiful garden. read more

Water is our most precious resource. It covers 70% of the Earth’s surface and every living organism is dependent upon it for survival. Less than 30% of people on this planet even have access to safe drinking water – a basic human right. In the coming years, we will likely see that access to clean, safe water will become even more important than the climate change.  In fact here in the US, 36 states anticipate local, regional and even statewide water shortages by 2013. We can all take immediate steps starting in our own households to more efficiently use water so there is enough to go around.

The US EPA estimates that an average family of 4 in the US consumes around 400 gallons of water a day, 280 of which are used indoors. At least 20-30% of that water usage can be reduced with a few simple acts and upgrades. Here are 10 easy ways to save water in your household, starting from very simple and free to slightly more involved with an investment.

Save Water For Another Use – Keep a pitcher on hand near the sink or shower to catch extra water for another use. When you’re waiting for the water to get hot or cold, put the pitcher under the faucet and a bucket under the showerhead. Use that water for your plants, to wash fruit and vegetables, for your pet, or for cleaning. It may seem excessive, but in reality, every drop counts. read more