Monthly Archives: September 2009

Choose a species to save

Posted on September 30, 2009 | Leave a comment

panda

Think this is cute? Vote to see it saved in Baby’s latest improbable opinion poll…

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Wonderful water

Posted on September 30, 2009 | Leave a comment

We always try to keep you up to date with new and interesting green development. Often however, even we are forced to admit that this stuff isn’t necessarily attractive, or very practical.

Water tank

We think this new rainwater tank from Waterwall tanks matches the brief of being both attractive and practical. Rainwater tanks do exactly what they say – harvest rainwater for use in your home, saving on your water and heating bills. Usually, they are therefore pretty squat and functional. Even if swiss-cheese chique isn’t really your thing, at least this is a start.

(source: Waterwall tanks via notcot)

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Posted in baby creative, creative, environment, home

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Paper Tower

Posted on September 29, 2009 | Leave a comment

Ever wondered what to do with all your used up tubes of toilet tissue? Why not build a tower?

paper tower

It might take some time to match up to this 22m high monstrosity, but it’s worth a shot. Currently standing outside Royal Festival Hall to ‘challenge  the perceptions of the everyday materials used’, it is certainly an eyecatcher. And it’s always nice to see things like this being done with recyclable, renewable materials. The artist, Shigeru Ban, has built a number of similar installations around the world.

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Now if we could only find a way to fill in all those holes, we could be on to a new and renewable form of housing.

(source: atelier29 via NotCot)

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Posted in art, baby creative

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Dandella – Intuitive navigation

Posted on September 28, 2009 | 1 Comment

dandella

The Dandella by DIC is modern take on a dowsing rod which looks much like ET’s finger – it’s a highly technical solution for a simple concept and provides an intuitive way to navigate, and find directions by ‘pointing’ to the right way. Simply put when facing in the right direction the Dandella glows.

Though it behaves more like a sunflower always point towards the sun, this device lights up & bends towards its direction or other dandella that it’s been synchronised with. Easy for finding your friend in a crowded mall, or for parents to keep track of their kids at the mall. The form is kept minimal and humble, likened to holding a flower in the hand. Dandella simplifies the complex interface of current GPS devices to a simple notion of ‘just follow where it points.

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Source: Design Year Book

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Limited design for unlimited life

Posted on September 28, 2009 | Leave a comment
mischertraxler_limited_fungi3
These shelves, which are part of the RealLimited series, are amazing. Artist Katharina Mischer chose an endangered Austrian fungi species and translated them into a limited design edition -  fungi species sculpted from tin are shown growing on an old ‘rotten’ wooden board.
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These designs are a limited edition in which each tin mushroom is numbered, and represent one mushroom left in reality.  We love the design of this luscious furniture and it supports a good cause too – part of the money going to environmental projects that try to save the specific fungi species. A limited design for unlimited life.
mischertraxler_limited_fungi1

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Mobile Treehouse

Posted on September 27, 2009 | 5 Comments

This amazing mobile treehouse was recently sold on E-Bay for around Aus$12,000.

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It was created by Forestry Tasmania with its original use being to promote tourism – the mobile nature of their information center being crucial to it’s success in this role. It is a pretty grotty inside but the external view is just stunning. We can think of millions of uses for this astonishing structure from a private library, guest bedroom and even the best children’s den ever.

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Source: Sweet Station

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Posted in environment, Plants, think tank

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Climate Thoughts

Posted on September 26, 2009 | Leave a comment

So the world’s biggest ever conference on climate change is approaching, and everyone from world leaders from grass roots activists has something to say about it.

Well funnily enough, you can now read what everyone has to say about it, and even have your say too. The UN’s dedicated Copenhagen Conference page has a section dedicated to “your thoughts”, and each one is represented on a shiny interactive blue spinning globe.

Climate thoughts

Celebrity posters include Paul McCartney and inevitably Bob Geldof, but you can have your own name in lights next to theirs, and even vote for your favourite green comments. Look out for a post from Baby!

(source)

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ipod goes wooden

Posted on September 25, 2009 | Leave a comment

We’ve always thought ipods were pretty cool – along with millions of others. And they have always had some of the funkiest accessories to go along with this. What could be left to add?

The answer – a new range of products from Vers.

ipod cases

These ipod cases are the pick of the lot, with a full choice of sizes and even different woods from bamboo to cherry available.

On top of this, Vers do a fabulous range of sound systems – see their website for details (source). What separates these from the scores of other ipod accessory ranges? They are hand-crafted, custom-made and above all renewable. And we think they’re not too bad looking either.

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Secret Arctic Lairs

Posted on September 24, 2009 | Leave a comment

Brilliant - this is why we love The Onion.

Claiming it to be one of the most dramatic and visible signs of climate change to date, researchers said on Monday that receding polar ice caps have revealed nearly 200 clandestine lairs once buried deep beneath hundreds of feet of Arctic ice.

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Their spoof story continues…

“We always assumed there would be some secret lairs here and there, but the sheer number now being exposed is indeed troubling,” said noted climatologist Anders Lorenzen, who claimed that the Arctic ice caps have shrunk at the alarming rate of 41,000 square miles per year. “In August alone we discovered 44 mad scientist laboratories, three highly classified military compounds, and seven reanimated and very confused cavemen. That’s more than twice the number we had found in the previous three decades combined.”

Read more about this most dramatic effect of global warming here – safe to say it is clear the residents of these lairs are far from happy.

Evil Scientist Dr. Raygun has begun the expensive task of moving his entire mutant staff to their Titan moon base.

Melting-Ice-Jump-R

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Posted in Conservation, creative, environment

Celebrating green transport

Posted on September 23, 2009 | Leave a comment

European Mobility Week is a really simple, and hopefully effective, idea. It offers celebrations of green transport all over Europe where residents can reclaim roads. Here are just two examples;

Residents of the town of Almada in Portugal can swap recyclable materials for free rides on public transportation.

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In Budapest, Hungary, they closed a road to all but public transit vehicles and hybrid cars. Best of all the road was even turned into a “living street” and paved with green grass that hosts sports and theater events for three days. If only it could be like this all year round, most certainly in the summer.

Here is our pick of some of the other events from all over Europe.

Germany, Bielefeld

Germany, Bielefeld

United Kingdom, Greenwich

United Kingdom, Greenwich

(source)

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