Category: Solutions

10 sustainable gift ideas [infographic]

Holiday season is here! For many people, it’s the most special period of the year: celebrating together with family and friends, is there something better than that? And let’s admit it: we are looking forward to the presents as well. Receiving one is fun and exciting, but finding it for a someone who is dear to you can be a daunting task. Leave the junk and go for practical and fun. And why not find something that has a minimal footprint and helps the person you want to surprise to live more sustainable?

If you are looking for a tangible gift, find some inspiration in the below. Links for all the ideas are included below the infographic. But don’t forget that all stuff leaves a footprint. Giving an experience, like a ticket for a concert or visit, can end up being both better for the planet and highly appreciated ;) Happy holidays!

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Turning CO2 into ethanol: is this the new hydrogen?

Last week my facebook feed nearly overflew with shares of an amazing discovery: a group of US scientists of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tenessee had accidently stumbled upon a catalyst that turns CO2 into ethanol. For those of you unfamiliar with catalysts, they are materials or substances that speed up or slow down the rate of a chemical reaction by providing a ‘reactive site’. The catalyst itself is not altered during the process (don’t run away, the article won’t get more complicated than this ;) ).

Well well, I thought. It’s about the fourth or fifth time this year I read about a new technique to suck CO2 out of the air. This one sparked my interest more than previous discoveries, though. (more…)

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Sundrop farms turns desert into tomato factory

photo: eSolar

If you are a traditional farmer, you’ll need water and energy to grow your produce. And you’ll need lots of it. The challenge is that they are finite resources that are becoming ever scarcer. Our solution? Not to use them!

Sundrop’s website bulges of this kind of statements. It is clear that the South Australia-based farm is pretty proud of their achievements over the last six years. In cooperation with an international team of scientists, they developed a commercial farm that runs on solar power and seawater. Yes, you read that right: they are producing tomatoes with just salt water from the nearby Spencer Gulf and the energy captured by a solar power plant.

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8 ideas for a sustainable dorm room

It is back-to-school time. All over the world, students return to their college or university dorms and student flats. For many young people, it is the first time to live on their own and what could be a better moment to adapt a sustainable lifestyle? It all begins with your dorm room itself. Below you find a list of 8 things to keep in mind when choosing, decorating and living in your new dorm room. I put it in a nice visual format for you, because your professors will bombard you with dull papers soon enough. I collected some websites to get you started, so be sure to check out the links I listed below the infographic. Do you have other suggestions? Leave them in the comments below! And of course, all those tips are equally applicable for any other place you call home and for those who passed their school-desk era. And don’t forget: moving to a new place is supposed to be exciting, so experiment, explore and have fun!

8-sustainable-dorm-room-hacks

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Brushed up Einstein invention wins James Dyson award

photo: University of Loughborough

Loyal readers of my blog know I am a big fan of technological inventions that shine in their simplicity and have a big impact at the same time. Among the many solutions that have been showcased earlier on The Shift, the Lifestraw is one of my favourites. Being cheap and simple, it can potentially save thousands if not millions of lives by providing clean drinking water in developing countries or regions hit by severe weather events. But… I have found a strong competitor: an off-grid portable refrigerator to stransport vaccins safely to the final destination in developing countries. And I am not the only one who seems to like it; recently its inventor received the prestigious UK James Dyson award.

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