Video still from Barcroft TV
Chris Todd had a goal of walking from Wales to Ireland – and he was not about to let the Irish Sea get in his way. So, after building a gigantic hamster wheel treadmill in his backyard dubbed the “Treadalo“, he set off on his journey to hoof it across the stretch of water. Unfortunately, 9 hours into the projected 48-hour crossing, things began to go awry.
Did you know that your daily five-minute shower uses more water than the average person in a developing country uses for an entire day*? In the U.S. we have such easy access to clean water that it can feel like we have an unlimited supply, and a few gallons wasted here and there may not seem like a big deal. But places like California are already feeling the effects of the global water crisis, and awareness about the need to save water is getting out there slowly but surely. The good news is that doing your part to conserve water is easy. Read on for our top tips on how to save water (it will only take you 5 minutes), and get ahead of the game today.
* United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2006). Human Development Report 2006, Beyond Scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis.
Neiman Marcus is ringing in the holidays for the 1% with the launch of their 2012 Fantasy Gift Christmas Book – and this year’s edition features a super posh chicken coop for heirloom hens that rings in at a whopping $100k. The Heritage Hen Mini Farm is a two-story luxury abode for egg-laying hens designed by Svetlana Simon of Heritage Hen Farm in Florida. The Versailles-inspired Le Petit Trianon house is way over the top for raising chickens – it comes with a chandelier for starters, and the hefty purchase price includes a selection of heritage-breed hens, and a whole lot of hand-holding to help start your new farm.
If you’ve been feeling the pinch like we have, you’ve probably learned to shop smarter, pack your own lunch, and cut back on the gourmet coffee, but you might still be missing out on big savings if your home hasn’t been optimized for energy efficiency. The good news is that just a few quick and easy DIY upgrades to your home could equate to hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year in savings on your energy bill. Crafting a home energy-optimization strategy sounds more daunting than it is. We’ve rounded up 15 great inexpensive and easy-to-find green home improvement products that will set you on the path towards a lower energy bill and more moolah in the bank – read on to get the inside scoop on all of them.
The Building Baskets exhibition during the London Design Festival showcased a two-year design collaboration between the Design and Business Schools at Kingston University and the Lupane Women’s Center – a basket weaving enterprise that uses craft to empower women. The students worked with 26 highly skilled craftswomen, who used the students’ projects as a starting point and were then given time and space in a workshop environment to explore their own ideas, creativity and identity. The resulting prototypes make up the exhibition.
Designed by Dinkoff Architects and Engineers, Rock-Sette is a self-sufficient and non-polluting disaster prevention and education center for Istanbul, Turkey. The project draws in water from the creek on the south side, purifies it, and stores it in a series of ponds. The cool air from these ponds is brought indoors to cool the interior naturally via diffusers in the floor plates and walls. Additionally, a set of solar panels on the south-facing roof are able to satisfy all the facility’s electrical power needs.
The article above was submitted to us by an Inhabitat reader. Want to see your story on Inhabitat? Send us a tip by following this link. Remember to follow our instructions carefully to boost your chances of being chosen for publishing!
Photo from Shutterstock
A new report from Yale and George Mason University finds that 74 percent of Americans now believe global warming is changing the weather in the United States. A September survey shows that figure has climbed 5 percent since March. When asked about six specific weather events, majorities of respondents to the survey said global warming made each event worse, with respondents most likely to connect global warming to the record temperatures experienced in the summer of 2012. Sixty-one percent say that the weather in the country has gotten worse over the past several years; that figure is up 9 percent since March.
Concrete Mode is a Thailand-based company that creates incredibly sturdy totes, bags and pencil cases the discarded bags used to transport concrete. Concrete is the most consumed man-made material on earth and more than half of all the world’s concrete consumption occurs in Asia. Besides immense CO2 emissions, concrete consumption produces waste when transporting it via bags. Instead of these bags ending up in landfill, Concrete Mode’s founders believe these bags should be repurposed into useful, fun, and fashionable items. After a successful Kickstarter campaign earlier this year, they’ve been at work producing the bags and have even tested out a prototype umbrella from the salvaged fabric.
The article above was submitted to us by an Inhabitat reader. Want to see your story on Inhabitat? Send us a tip by following this link. Remember to follow our instructions carefully to boost your chances of being chosen for publishing!
Mike Morone of Rochester, NY is willing to go to great lengths to promote waste reduction – 300 miles to be exact. This summer, he plans to walk the distance while pushing a 50-gallon wheeled recycling bin over a 12-day period to promote Give Your Stuff Away Day, which he started as an annual event to get people to barter and donate their unwanted goods instead of trashing them. If you’re interested in sponsoring Morone’s 12-day green trek, please contact him at mike@giveyourstuffaway.com or 585-749-5107.
The article above was submitted to us by an Inhabitat reader. Want to see your story on Inhabitat? Send us a tip by following this link. Remember to follow our instructions carefully to boost your chances of being chosen for publishing!
These stylish rocking chairs are crafted from salvaged ski gondolas by Adrien Rovero. The chairs, dubbed ‘Rock’, are part of a larger project organized by Mountain Climbers, a group which combines sustainable design with charitable efforts. Each of the rockers is crafted from a gondola lift and then decorated by a different artist, architect or designer to create an thoroughly unique work.
Welcome to Inhabitat, your online guide to the best green design ideas, innovations and inspiration to build a cleaner, brighter, and better future.
