Eco-Lifestyle Innovation, Achievements and Contributions

Top 10 environmentally friendly “Green” innovations and inventions that help our planet earth create less pollution.

In a world with a population of over 7 billion people, our reliance on limited non-renewable resources and an environment which is getting more polluted each year means that being environmentally or eco-friendly is becoming increasingly important. Every day we are bombarded with messages about air and water pollution. We are constantly reminded about our carbon footprint and the fact that global warming is slowly altering the environment we live in. From movies to politics, our relationship with the environment is a topic which is gaining importance with each passing year. Our response to this issue started slowly, but has accelerated dramatically over the past few years. If we don’t adjust our lifestyles and become more eco-friendly then we may end up destroying the very environment we live in.

It is clear that we have reached the point of crisis and the alarming signals are an increase in the number of droughts, melting icebergs, heavy rains, heat waves, dying coral reefs, deteriorating human health, and dreadful deaths of human beings.

The awareness of this situation is motivating us to do something for humans and the environment.

The Challenge of Going Green is always difficult but individuals and organizations are doing their best to innovate and contribute towards living an Eco-lifestyle. Here are some of the biggest advances across the spectrum towards living a better and green life.

Smart Thermostats and Tony Fadell

Until a few years back, a smart thermostat was known as a device which automatically regulates the temperature, or which starts a device in case the temperature reaches a specific point. But Tony Fadell, the CEO of Nest, came up with innovative smart thermostats which make use of intelligent automation to learn an individual’s habits and adjust cooling and heating in a space accordingly. This is one of the most energy efficient innovations known until now because these smart thermostats not only save money but conserve resources as well.

K. J. Antoji and Rainwater Harvesting

Most of the population has limited knowledge about collecting and using rainwater. K. J. Antoji, an electronics technician from Kerala, India, has invented a device for those on the coastal regions where groundwater is salty. His device injects stored rainwater into the ground for future usage. His system stores the rainwater in a tank and injects it 10-30 feet below the ground’s surface. The injected rainwater is retained by the water columns below the ground and is drawn back with the help of a water pump.

Grove Ecosystem, The Intelligent In-Home Garden

Grove Ecosystems innovated the world’s first intelligent in-home garden. It harnesses the procedure of aquaponics. An aquarium is placed below this garden, and the owners utilize the fish waste products rich in ammonia. With the help of microbes, these are transformed into nitrates. At the same time, this system provides clean water to fish and organic nutrients to the home-grown vegetables. It is intelligent not just because of this quality, it is intelligent also because it comes with a paired app that has all the essential training and tools to monitor the growth inside the garden.

Nebia, The Shower System

It is a fact that while taking showers, we waste a considerable amount of water. Keeping this in mind, Nebia’s intelligent shower system innovation means that 70% less water is consumed and the best thing is that our shower experience is not impacted. Due to the technology it uses which atomizes the stream of water into very small droplets, a greater area is covered. While moving the droplets, the water pressure is maintained and water wastage is prevented. This shower system is self-installed, and its height, as well as the water stream’s angle, is adjusted as per your preference.

Inna Braverman: Catching Waves:

When it comes to sources of renewable energy, the wind and sun get most of the attention. Ocean waves, not so much.

Arthur Kay: The Power of Coffee Grounds

Arthur Kay’s life began to change when he stared down into a coffee cup. He noticed there was a thin, oily film on top of the coffee that had been sitting out overnight. It made him wonder where that came from, which prompted some research that told him that coffee has a higher caloric value than wood so it’s capable of releasing energy. And that led Kay, now 25, to end his career as a young architect and start a company named Bio-Bean, built around the premise that one man’s trash—in this case, coffee grounds—are another man’s energy source.

 Evelyn Aravena, Camila Rupcich and Carolina Guerrero: Soil Power

Watching your cell phone run out of power leads to desperate thinking. “Why don’t any of these plants have a socket?” Camila Rupcich mused to her two friends, Evelyn Aravena and Carolina Guerrero, as they sat in a courtyard between exams, all with dead cell phones.

A little research suggested that the idea wasn’t so far-fetched. During photosynthesis, plants convert sunlight into chemical energy, some of which goes into the surrounding soil. That’s where the device the women invented, which they named E-Kaia, gathers its power.

 Sanwal Muneer: Capturing Traffic Turbulence

For Sanwal Muneer, the moment of inspiration came a few years ago when he was standing next to a racetrack in Malaysia, and he felt the wind from the cars speeding by. That made him think there might be something in the movement of vehicles for him to tap into. Soon that thought evolved into a startup called Capture Mobility.

When it comes to the next great eco-friendly invention (or any cool invention for that matter), we often wonder why we didn’t think of it first. Well, this list is probably no different. Each of these were dreamed up by the young minds of students or graduates who were looking for a more eco-friendly option (and in some cases a little grant money too)

Teenagers’ minds work in mysterious ways. Because they are always brimming with ideas, in most cases they drive their parents crazy. However, on the occasions when enthusiasm is coupled with creativity and a feel for science and concern for the environment, youngsters are capable of inventing the most incredible technologies.

Kayu is an Australian based sunglasses company providing unique, safe, fashionable and affordable sunglasses. ‘We are launching Kayu with our first range of sunglasses called the ‘UNO’ range. The ‘UNO’ range takes inspiration from the classic wayfarer frame design with a twist. For the ‘UNO’ range we’ve also added renewably sourced bamboo from the Zhejiang Mountain in China, which is then hand crafted into the best looking and most comfortable leg design you’ll ever wear.’