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Showing posts with label environmental design. Show all posts
Showing posts with label environmental design. Show all posts

Floating Wooden Sustainable Egg Pod Is Home To Artist Stephen Turner For A Year.




The Exbury Egg is a collaborative project between artist Stephen Turner, SPUD and PAD studio. After almost 3 years in development, the energy efficient, self-sustaining pod will serve as home and workspace to Stephen in the estuary of the River Beaulieu.

Buy The Bay: Artists Turn Beach Experiences Into Objects For Charity.



Buy the Bay is a collaborative effort to help preserve the beach we love in support of Heal The Bay.

Artists, designers, writers and musicians are transforming precious beach experiences into tangible objects that you can own or give to someone else. These beautifully crafted items reflect the things everyone cherishes most about the beach, and are available to own or share as a gift.

You can give back by investing in the experiences that matter most to you. To Buy the Bay is to help preserve the things we love most about the beach. The proceeds raised through each donation will help benefit Heal The Bay’s efforts in keeping L.A.’s beaches clean, healthy and safe to enjoy.

All The Time In The World by Khobe DeLucca
A small hourglass filled with local beach sand, caught between pieces of sterling silver.



Product Specifications:
Hourglass Height: 1.25” including loop
Chain Length: 18”
All metals are sterling silver
Handmade in the USA
limited edition of 50
$200
buy it here

The Perfect Wave by Tim Meraz
Small amounts of water from eight of the best surfing beaches in Southern California like Malibu, The Wedge, Rincon and Trestles. The bottle’s label is held in place by a fine wire wrapped around it, which suggests undulating waves.



Product specifications:
750mL bordeaux bottle approx. 11.5” tall. Ships in a black corrugated presentation shipping box approx. 13.75” x 4.25” x 3.5”.
limited edition of 100
$100
buy it here

Beach Karma by Elizabeth Saveri
Beautiful hand painted beachscapes on the little plastic ties that litter so many beaches and oceans. Each is framed in a 6" square black wood frame.



Product Specifications:
Water-based oil paint on recycled plastic bag ties.
Comes in a 6” x 6” black wooden frame.
limited edition of 10
$150
buy it here

Special Edition Poster by Eric Nyquist

With every special-edition 25th anniversary poster comes a year-long membership to Heal the Bay, and every poster you purchase adds another year. Hang it up and let the world know just how much a clean and healthy beach means to you.


This poster was printed in a limited-run of 250.
Product Specifications:
16” x 20” hand-pulled 2-color silkscreen print on uncoated 100# cover stock suitable for framing.
$50
buy it here

Info and images courtesy of:

New Orleans Jeweler Designs Collection To Help Gulf Coast Oil Spill Cleanup



Mignon Faget, a jewelry designer based in New Orleans, has introduced a new collection dedicated to raising awareness and funds for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster.



Now considered to be the largest offshore spill in U.S. history, the disaster has already had an extensive impact on marine and wildlife habitats. For Faget, the impacts of the spill and the cause of restoration in the area are especially close to her heart. The designer's very first collection was one inspired by the nature of the Gulf Coast region.




The new collection, dubbed "In Mourning," features pieces that Faget selected and redesigned from her earlier collections. Redfish, speckled trout, oysters and pelicans are presented as sterling silver or 14-karat gold pins backed with black ribbons or as pendants on black cords. The designs are meant to be worn in the tradition of mourning jewelry and so the collection evokes a somber mood, yet it also carries a spirit of hope.




"It is a heartbreaking statement to make with jewelry originally designed to celebrate the abundant gifts of our coast, but the reality is that we need to make people aware of this disaster and the long-term effects on this region," Faget said in a media release.




Designs in the In Mourning collection retail from $65 to $300, with proceeds benefiting the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (http://www.crcl.org/), a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring and protecting the Louisiana coast. The collection is available in Mignon Faget galleries in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, La., as well as through the designer's Web site, MignonFaget.com.

The Peepoo, A Lean Green Latrine.




The Peepoo is a single use, self-sanitizing, hygienic, biodegradable human waste container (i.e. toilet) that can be even used as fertilizer after use. A smart, affordable innovation that can revolutionize sanitary waste management needs amongst millions of homeless, ill-housed or disaster affected venues.

The Problem?


In the world today, more than 2.6 billion people have no access to basic sanitation. That means that 40 out of every 100 people lack even the most simple latrine to perform their needs. The lack of toilets affects both society and the individual through the contamination of fresh water and ground water. Human feces contain viruses, bacteria, worms and parasites which kill and infect people. As a matter of fact, one child in the world dies every 15 seconds due to contaminated water.

The Solution:


The Peepoo is in the form of a slim elongated bag measuring 14 x 38 centimeters. Within the bag there is a thin gauze layer measuring 26 x 24 cm. The gauze is coated with a thin film of urea, the most common fertilizer in the world and a non-hazardous chemical. As the urea is broken down, the pH value of the material increases and hygienization begins.




The Peepoo is designed to be used once, sitting, squatting or standing. If one uses the bag by holding it with only the hand, the thin gauze prevents all contact with the excrement. It doesn't need any supporting structure, but, for convenience, a cut PET-bottle or a bucket in which to place the bag, can help:



Easy To Use, Easy To Handle
The Peepoo is a toilet which is not fixed to a particular place. It is simple to carry since it is small and weighs less than 10 grams. The only thing one needs to do is find a secluded spot where one can use it as a toilet.


Peepoos are odor free for at least 24 hours after use and can thus be stored in the immediate environment. It is one of few sanitation solutions which require no water. The only water required is to wash the hands after use. The Peepoos cuts the traditional link between water and sanitation. A used Peepoo bag is clean to handle. It has become a waste product that neither smells nor is dirty to take care of and collect.



Without sacrificing ergonomic function, the bag’s design is adapted in every way so that it might be manufactured at as low a price as possible and sold to groups with the weakest purchasing power in the world.

Use As Fertilizer
Two to four weeks after use, the treated feces constitute a high value fertilizer with a considerable market value. The fertilizer will mainly be a nitrogen fertilizer due to the added urea for sanitation. Other nutrients are also available for the plants and thereby improve the soil fertility. Additionally, the organic matter in the feces will improve the soil’s structure, buffering capacity, and water holding capacity which, in the long term, will improve the potential harvest from the fields.

Since fertilizers are an expensive and scarce commodity in developing countries, it is possible for simple economic systems to develop informally through the collection and distribution of used Peepoos. Consequently, the used bags represent a local resource instead of a contaminant.



The Materials
The Peepoo is made of a high performance degradable bioplastic which meets EU standard EN13432. The plastic not only disintegrates but the molecules are also broken down into carbon dioxide, water and bio-mass. 45% of the plastic is produced using renewable materials. Peepoople intends, within the near future, to find a solution which is 100% renewable. The bioplastic comprises a mixture of aromatic co-polyesters and polylactone acid (PLA), with small additives of wax and lime. PHB represents alternative bioplastics.



How It Began
The Peepoo project was initiated by Anders Wilhelmson in September 2005. During the spring of 2006, a group comprised of researchers and other interested persons was formed and the company, based in Stockholm, Sweden was founded. Initial tests and development of a prototypical Peepoo toilet were completed later that year, followed by the formation of Peepoople AB in December. Following positive test results, a Swedish patent was initially assigned in March 2007 and granted in December and a world patent PCT was assigned in March 2008. In October 2009, Karin Ruiz was brought on board as CEO and now, the Peepoo toilet is scheduled to be available for delivery in the third trimester of 2010.



About Peepoople
Peepoople AB was created to develop, produce and distribute the Peepoo (pat.pend) sanitation solution. The mission of Peepoople is to provide universal access to dignified and hygienic sanitation. Research has been conducted in co-operation with the Swedish University of Agricultural Science (SLU) and the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH).

You can learn more at Peepoople.com

The Porta Hedge Allows You To Study Nature Incognito & Eco-consciously




The Porta Hedge is a mobile artificial hedge created by Justin Shull. The exterior repurposes discarded artificial Christmas trees and on the inside, it can accommodate people, offering them an opportunity to study what's around them, such as birds and plants, all while enshrouded and incognito from nature.



above: exterior, Mixed media, including artificial Christmas trees, birdsong audio, video surveillance cameras, 21′x8′x6′


above and below: interior Mobile Observation Lab


As described by the designer:
Like all hedges, the Porta Hedge is a physical barrier that provides a certain amount of privacy in the guise of greenery. Built within the ‘green’ paradigm, the Porta Hedge features several eco-conscious design features including solar power, a small physical footprint (2 tires and a swivel jack), recycled Christmas trees on the exterior, living plants and wood finishing on the interior, and the relaxing sound of birdsong audio on the interior and exterior.



BRANCHES: The exterior of the Porta Hedge is constructed from thousands of recycled artificial Christmas tree branches donated by 7,000 EVERGREENS Instead of going to the landfill, these artificial tree branches become part of a new mobile landscape.



AUDIO: The Porta Hedge also features exterior audio of prerecorded, arranged birdsong. Robins, Cardinals, Chickadees, Blue Jays and Mourning Doves are just a few of the birds that one hears crooning softly from the Porta Hedge.

WILDLIFE HABITAT: A study is currently under way on the Summer '09 Tour to determine if the combination of artificial branches and precorded birdsong audio will attract other bird and animal species to use the Porta Hedge as a home.

SOLAR:

The roof of the Porta Hedge is the perfect location for photovoltaic solar panels. Generate additional electricity either for the interior of the Porta Hedge, for your home, or for any structure nearby.

What About the Trailer?
With minimal impact upon the landscape, and mobility for the lifetime of the hedge, the Porta Hedge and its related Porta Projects are a novel approach to landscape design.


Like many other contemporary products, all Porta Projects are designed to be modular and easily relocated when necessary. With only 5 points touching the ground, Porta Projects have minimal impact upon the land they are situated on.

INTERIOR:





The Porta Hedge's interior Mobile Observation Lab features surveillance cameras/monitors, a rooftop observation hatch and peep holes with accompanying chalkboards to observe and respond to one's surroundings. For the comfort of the inside observer, amenities include a small bathroom, live plants, and an internet uplink.

Rooftop hatch and live plants:

bathroom:


Since July 2009, the Porta Hedge has been travelling the country in search of suitable sites, for field testing, and to meet the public. To learn more about it and see other projects of Justin Shull, visit his site here.

all information and images courtesy of Justin Shull

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