Photo via Stabarinde’s

Kids who’ve had too much candy aren’t the only ones with a lot of “energy”. We’re pretty much walking batteries and it’s time to make ourselves useful. Poptech recently blogged about a gym that (finally!) turns your calories wattage and we wrote about sustainable clubs a while back which uses floors to harness the bump ‘n grind. Well Tokyo is looking for more mass and taking it to the street, or subway rather.

The company East Japan Railway Company (JR East) recently started installing and testing piezoelectric elements in floors at Tokyo Station in an attempt to harness human energy as people walk through turn styles.

Being installed at seven ticket gates in the Yaesu Kita exit and seven steps of a staircase inside the gate at  the Yaesu Kita, JR East expects a generating capacity of total 1,400kW/sec per day. (for sake of scale, your laptop takes 85 watts). Tests will continue till Feb 09, and this time, the generated power will be used to display the generating capacity, but, in the future, it will be used to run the automatic ticket gates and electronic display systems, according to the company. Time to buy some energy bars.

via Ladies Lotto

The system’s not super new, but we tried out some city wide bike sharing programs on a recent visit to Europe and fell in love. One of the most widely publicized and successful…Vélib (short for Vélo Liberté or bicycle freedom).

Part of a plan to cut traffic 40% by 2020, it’s become the largest and most successful bike-sharing program in the world growing from 10,000 to what’s now 20,000 bicycles and 1,450 stations, about 1 station every 300 m throughout the city center.

It’s a simple subscription model that allows you to pick up bikes at any location. The first 30 min of every trip are free with exponentially increasing rates per half hour (for most short trips to the store etc. and to keep bikes in circulation).

From testimonials (and personal experience), bikes are by far the fastest way to get around Paris.

Twenty vehicles are used at night to redistribute bicycles to high-demand stations and a barge that floats up and down the Seine serves as the service station.

JCDecaux advertising corporation financed the project and provides the government revenue from the program as well, a fee of $4.3 million a year and about half of all billboards free of charge for PSAs. In return, JCDecaux gets exclusive billboard ad rights.

The design challenge: convincing people that riding a bicycle is not a symbol of lowered social status, and that the Vélib is not their “grandpa’s bicycle.” At the same time, they also had to design something durable that could be ridden by a variety of people day after day.

New York, are you taking notes? For more, there’s an episode about the bike project that aired recently on the e2 series…(Brad Pitt narrating about city wide bike sharing? … swoon). Kudos to KR Films for some nice videography of a great idea. 

In New York, there’s no escaping it. Fashion week is upon us and we’re putting on our Pangea products, organic duds and heading to the tents.

The green scene kicked off yesterday with BeEcoChic’s huge opening event at the American Museum of Natural History. A campaign dedicated to raising awareness of environmentalism through fashion, the goal is to prove the fashion industry’s commitment is here to stay.

The start studded line up of designers included Chado Ralph Rucci, DKNY, Carmen Marc Valvo, Nicole Miller, Loomstate, Levi’s, Del Forte, Vena Cava, Maggie Norris Couture, Deborah Lindquist, Christian Cota, FORM, Red Carter, Laura Bennett and Thread Social.

Eko-lab and Ekovaruhuset will be showing their beautiful pieces later this week as well. Intricately crafted through collaborative design and with love, their use luxurious sustainable products and are even aiming to set up an NY fair-made facility where hand craft arts such as crochet, low-impact/natural dying nd screen printing will be practiced and taught in the local community. Cute.

Elisa Jimenez from the acclaimed Project Runway will be presenting her Summer 09 “Urban Nomads” Collection and United Bamboo, is showing on Saturday at the Altmann Building. (Santos after party anyone?)

In all honesty, the fashion industry’s movement toward green has been encouraging. Say what you will about pandering and partying, but new fabric developments, increases in organic demand and people like our girl Summer Ryan Oakes are evidence that you can have brains and beauty and that it can change an industry. Now if they would only H&M would stop using those little plastic hang-tags on  the knock-offs!

You can catch summer around NY Fashion week between her work in Mozambique, or you can come hear her insights on environmentalism in the fashion industry at The Feast on October 16th (runway not included).

In Hunts Point, Bronx, one might catch a glimpse of a graffiti-covered trailer home and think nothing unusual of it. The small, defaced home could be one of the many in this impoverished neighborhood ridden with high crime, a poor educational system, and environmental degradation.

On the front of the trailer, fat yellow block letters read “FAB LAB!”. The trailer is smothered in neon orange clouds, and a silver robot gives his thumbs up. This particular trailer hosts the product of a partnership between Massachusetts Institute of Technology and non-profit organization Sustainable South Bronx. SSBX recently presented a collection of their latest project ideas at ADB and Behance’s Make Good Happen event.

Fab Lab (Fabrication Laboratory) brings the powerful resource of “digital fabrication” to communities. Inside, computers containing special programs designed by MIT, allow community members to design ideas and then execute their ideas in the physical world. According to MIT’s website, “A Fab Lab can give its users around the world the ability to locally conceptualize, design, develop, fabricate and test almost anything—for example a Fab Lab puts communication technologies within reach of almost anyone, anywhere.” Part of the trailer is dedicated to teaching sessions, where the technical jargon can be broken down into comprehensible lessons.

Once a student understands the software, the possibilities and practical applications of Fab Lab can be ground breaking. MIT has setup Fab Labs worldwide, and here are a few examples of what other communities have created as posted on MIT’s website: At the Ghana Fab Lab, students are working on low-cost designs for mobile refrigeration and TV antennas. In Pabal, India, Fab Lab users are making replacement gears for out-of-date copying machines, reliable tools for testing milk content and for diagnostics on human blood. Boston Fab Lab users make jewelry, toys and crafts using recycled materials from the community.

In addition to performing design, Fab Labs can digitally share ideas with other labs. Every lab contains the same equipment and has the same capabilities. Through another MIT designed program, users share their files and experiences. As a result, the program encourages users to learn from each other rather than rely on the program’s curriculum.

Fab Labs are an educational outreach component of MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms, which is funded by the National Science Foundation. The SSBxFab coordinator is Jon Santiago.

The theme, ‘Emergence: Creative pioneers in uncharted territory’ was chosen to resonate with the context of the emergence of a historically rich Governors Island. This show, in the ‘Commanders House’ (Building 14) is part of the growing cultural renaissance of the island and an exploration of its creative potential.

The Commanders house has morphed from an abandoned outpost into an inclusive, interactive, 3-dimensional, living exhibit, featuring contributions from visual artists working across fields of media which include but are not limited to sculpture, installation art, aerial kinetic sculpture, photography, and computer graphic sequencing. The installation will change over the course of the summer as a result of the interactive elements and the engagement of visiting participants.

What are the resultant artifacts in the experience of discovery of land, creating a new set of rules and culture? What is the romanticized idea of moving to a brave new world? These can include authentic objects and ephemera of time or contemporary objects that reference people and things of the past. Who are the people who lived and passed through the island? The present reveals our questioning of economic, political, environmental, social and sustainability issues. What are challenges that we are facing today? Creative explorations of the future will reveal new inventions, manifestos and fantasies that illuminate our understanding of self, place, change and time

ADB and Behance are big fans of the work and ideas that have come from Sustinable South Bronx. Talk about using innovation to break the rules and expectations, they’ve put the Bronx on the Green map, destroying the notion of trickle down “elitist” environmentalism. So we’re extremely excited that they’ll be creating a new consultancy to take their methods on Greening the Ghetto national, and will be presenting (and asking for your thoughts on) the initiative at Make Good Ideas Happen.

Their mission:

Environmental Justice through innovative, economically sustainable projects that are informed by community needs.

Founded in 2001 by life-long South Bronx resident, Dr. Majora Carter, SSBx also addresses land-use, energy, transportation, water & waste policy, and education to advance the environmental and economic rebirth of the South Bronx, and inspire solutions in areas like it across the nation and around the world.

What they do:

Everything from Green Roof Installation to the Bronx Greenway project, even Green Collar Job Training. A small locally based non-profit environmental justice solutions corporation that has an international reputation for innovation and foresight.

What they will be presenting

Bronx Takeover-Creating a New Initiative and Consultancy to Green the Nation’s Ghettos.

Being a small org with a big rep has made it hard for SSBx to find funding. So founder, Dr. Majora Carter, is launching a private consulting firm that will guide municipalities, educational institutions, foundations, and other communities towards a path that unlocks their own green-collar potential in ways that benefit everyone. A near blank slate, come help SSBX determine what the new face of urban sustainability and justice will look like.

This consultancy will offer survey tools and services for government, community, and corporate leaders to get a clear picture of their assets and deficits, and then ongoing reporting and advice that will bridge those gaps and shine a light to a sustainable future.

A woman after our own hearts. If the potential isn’t inspiring enough, this video of Dr. Carter at on of the most inspiring talks we’ve seen at TED should do it.

If you’d like to help make SSBX’s ideas happen, check out the Make Good Ideas Happen event or Internet Week site and stop by the roof of The Delancey on June 9th at 7 pm.

City Year, StartingBloc and Sustainable South Bronx will present ideas they are pursuing to change the world. Bring your idealism, and leave behind Action Steps with resources, connections, and next steps to help these non-profits make their ideas happen. Amazing people, good drinks, and a nice buzz from doing good – what more could you ask for?

RSVP at www.behance.com/events Can’t make the event? Drop us a line if you want to help anyway.

Do you know where your clothes come from? And no, I don’t mean the Gap, or China for that matter. I mean sheep, cotton plants and the like. Well, Deepa Natarajan does. The Botanical Gardens have reinstated an old program under her direction, called Fiber and Dye that explores just that.

With the assistance of Sasha Duerr of the Permacouture Institute, Deepa and co. updated the old exhibit for modern times. At the Garden you can check out everything from the raw materials used to create clothing to some handmade finished product to the kinds of plants various dyes come from (see photos below). You can also take a self-guided walk through the Garden itself, which showcases the relevant plants used for both dyeing and material. In addition, the exhibit ran a few workshops, including an Easter Egg dyeing workshop featuring natural dyes that allowed kids to actually see where their dyes come from (way cooler than those little tablets things that come in an Easter Egg dyeing kit).

According to Deepa, the idea behind this is the same as garden programs that many schools do. In those, children are taught where their food comes through garden tours or even by having the kids raise plants. Why not do the same for clothing? It would be cool for people to know that onion skins can create a beautiful golden hue, or cabbage (yes, cabbage) a brilliant blue. You can hear the dinner table conversations now–”but mom, I’d much rather make dye with my cabbage than eat it!”

This exhibit has another goal too–to help raise awareness about eco-fashion and sustainable clothing, or as Deepa called it “Slow Clothing”. Lot’s of eco-fashion is a bit on the pricey side right now, but I’m willing to bet that as awareness grows and more producers start joining in to meet demand that prices will fall. In the meantime, eco-savvy people can try for sustainable fabrics, reusing fabrics (hullo, Vintage!), and clothing made with fair practices. If you’re in the SF Bay area you can also check out the Fiber and Dye exhibit this weekend–it runs until Monday, March 31 and is open from 9am-5pm each day. Admission prices and directions can be found here.

We heart Hype Machine, so naturally we’re psyched about this necklace bearing their bubble. But here’s the kicker, it’s made out of recycled vinyl records (guess not all vinyl’s bad for you). Created by Vling, the bubble was made specially for the winners of a little contest our friends over at the hype held, so they’re not for sale yet. But you can weigh in on whether you’d want one or check out Vling’s whole collection of sweet recycled vinyl wears.  Enter code HYPEM at checkout for 15% off your order.

Here’s how we feel about them!

The maker of the eco-chic (and super cute and tiny you just want to pinch them) Smart Car is releasing a book of art called Sideways: A Smart Art Project. Curated by 11 magazines from all around the world (including Dazed & Confused, WAD and Blend) and featuring works from 100 different artists, the book evaluates the way in which we think about the environment and mobility and serves as the brand’s creative anthology.

The interesting part is the overall charge: “to express and transform the subject by reflecting the zeitgeist from a consumer point of view which manages to keep a critical feeling of responsibility.” Ironically, much of the zeitgeist is the consumer point of view (whether consumption of art, design, or demand for sustainable goods themselves). If anyone gets that, Smart Car does.

But as the publisher asks, what do the Smart car brand, independent trend magazines and international top creatives have in common? “At first glance maybe not so much but on closer inspection quite a lot since they all share a philosophy of constantly questioning the given, not least when it comes to the global environmental challenges currently facing us all.”

It’s always interesting to see various disciplines take on one issue and, according to Smart Car, this book “looks at the issue of ecology in a new creative context, and it should therefore generate some interesting new takes on the topic. And this is a key motivation behind the approach of Smart itself.

Printed on on sustainably harvested heavy paper, the book is available from Gestalten Verlag.

via  Cool Hunting

Biofuel (or Biorganic Fuel) is what it sounds like: fuel derived from organic material. The biofuel you’re probably most familiar with is Ethanol. Ethanol is alcohol (though probably not something you’d care to drink) often derived from corn, though it can be made from many things. Ethanol has a lot of benefits, including the fact that it burns cleaner and is a renewable resource. Since it comes from plants like corn and sugar cane, and the plants absorb the Carbon Dioxide let off by burning the fuel, it creates a cycle of cleaner fuel production. Seems great, no? The US government has certainly hopped aboard this bandwagon, increasing the amount of biofuel that must be mixed into gasoline (via the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and the Energy and Security Act of 2007), and subsidizing farmers to raise the crops necessary for this (read: corn and soybeans).

Only, there’s a catch. In fact, there are few:

Food Shortages: “when we divert our corn or soybeans to fuel, if people around the world are going to continue to eat the same amount that they’re already eating, you have to replace that food somewhere else,” (Study: Ethanol Worse for Climate Than Gasoline ). Thus, thanks to good ‘ol supply and demand, food prices have increased–not just because of biofuels, but it is certainly a factor. This maybe isn’t a big deal for your average American, but sure hurts the people of Nigeria. Going hand in hand with that is the fact that in some countries farmers are participating in slash and burn practices to create more land to grow crops for biofuel. It is believed that this could release twice as much carbon dioxide as gasoline usage over the next 30 years.

Higher energy cost to create biofuel than what you get out of it: This one is controversial, but some scientists believe that between the fuel to run farm equipment, ship the crops, fertilize, and farm in general, that some kinds of biofuel, especially corn, are energy inefficient.

Not cost effective: Ethanol from corn is relatively cheap because it’s subsidized. The problem with subsidies is a whole ‘nother one, but it is pretty well recognized (if arguable) that it does nothing for crop diversity or allowing developing countries to create competitive farming industries. Not to mention, that’s letting our energy future rest in the hands of the American farm lobby.

Weather: It’s tricky. If we become reliant on biofuel and we have a bad drought, we’re in trouble. Then we’d have both a food AND fuel shortage, a veritable double whammy of disaster.

So what’s a good eco-citizen to do? Well, there are some alternatives. One is to use switchgrass instead of corn. Switchgrass grows well just about anywhere, even on land that’s been exhausted by other crops. It has multiple uses as animal feed, biofuel, or ground cover to stop erosion. And, since humans can’t eat it, it’s not so bad for the food production problem as corn. Another interesting idea is to use trash to create ethanol. And of course, there’s always solar and wind energy.

So basically, Biofuel is an interesting avenue to explore, but really requires further research before we make it the backbone of American energy independence and promote it as an environmentally sustainable fuel.