Inhabitat

SeaShelter – Submersible Shelter Rides the Tides

Stretching along Denmark’s southwestern border is the truly unique coastline of the Wadden Sea. While too shallow for boats, and too deep for a high tide trek, many of the treasures of the Waden Sea remain sight unseen when the seabed floods. Leave it to a designer to figure out how to not only bring the tide to the people, but create an intimate experience between the environment and the observer. The winner of the Design It: Shelter Competition, David Eltang’s SeaShelter offers a new kind of seafaring experience, hatch included.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

SOLAR DECATHLON 2009: Team Ontario/BC’s North House For Cold Climates

We’ve been bringing you breaking coverage of this week’s Solar Decathlon in Washington DC throughout the week and one of the most interesting homes to emerge from the competition is the North House, a super sleek, high-tech solar powered home designed to generate more energy than it consumes – an especially impressive feat granted that the home was designed for the extreme climate of Northern Canada. Currently in 4th place at the Decathlon, Team Ontario/BC is exhibiting an incredibly impressive showing. With two days left of the competition, they still have a good chance to eek out some more points in the categories of Engineering, Lighting and the biggie, Net Metering, which could still put them in the lead.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 4 comments

Hanging Bamboo Gardens Make Beautiful Biofilters

If you were at West Coast Green this past weekend you would have surely noticed the elegant bamboo structures along the waterfront surrounded by beautiful native landscaping. What you may not have realized unless you looked closely is that the structure was actually supporting hanging gardens of marsh grass and was a way of preventing and remediating pollution from water runoff. A collaboration of The Natural Builders, Design Ecology, Floating Islands and Bertotti Landscaping, the installation was the talk of the trade show and highlight for us at Inhabitat.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 2 comments

Mason Lane Farm Showcases Beautiful Bamboo Construction

Farms are close to nature – places to harvest the fruit of the land and care for animals and livestock. As such they should be built and operated with respect for life through sustainable construction and operation. The Mason Lane Farm Operations Facility in North Carolina is just such an example. Designed by De Leon & Primmer Architecture Workshop out of Louisville, KY, the beautiful eco farm facility supports 2,000 acres of agriculture, recreation, wildlife habitat and conservation land as part of the University of North Carolina. Two barns were designed and constructed on a well planned site using sustainable materials like locally-sourced bamboo and prefab panels and trusses.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

Solé Power Tiles: Curved Solar Shingles Make Installation Easy

While scientists work to increase the efficiency of photovoltaics, designers are striving to make them sleeker, more adaptive, and easier to install. Case in point: SRS Energy’s Solé Power Tile, a beautiful solar shingle that is designed to fit into standard Mission style roofs while generating electricity. We caught up with these ingenious modular solar panels at West Coast Green this year, where they stole the show alongside several other innovative solar designs.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

New Super Efficient Pharox 60 LED Bulbs Last for 25 Years

One of the most exciting new products we found at West Coast Green this past weekend is the latest innovation by Lemnis Lighting, the Pharox 60 LED Dimmable Lightbulb, that uses just 6 Watts and has the equivalent luminescence of the traditional 60 Watt incandescent bulb. The Pharox 60 fits a standard sized household light fixture, is made of recyclable material, and is the most energy efficient bulb of comparable light quality on the market today with a light output of 300 lumens and a warm white light of 3000K. A patented heat sink keeps the bulb temperature low (we think it’s the aluminum housing surround) and it is the most environmentally safe option on the market as well, containing NO lead, mercury, or wolfram, unlike it’s compact fluorescent competitors.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 5 comments

WEST COAST GREEN 2009: Day 1 Roundup

Each year, West Coast Green brings together the largest conference on green innovation for the built environment with leading sustainable businesses and an eclectic group of green technology and exciting design exhibitors. This year’s batch of booths focused mainly on natural building materials and alternative energy, with a few futuristic electric vehicles thrown in. Many of the products are already available, but some, including Armageddon Energy’s solar panels and the Stak Block, are still in the testing stages. Check out all of our fantastic finds after the jump.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 2 comments

Ultra Adaptable Green Horizon Prefab Debuts at West Coast Green!

Today is the first day of West Coast Green, and this year’s showhouse is a stunner! Designed by San Francisco-based Green Horizon, the self-sustaining prefab home is an immediately deployable emergency shelter that can be configured to adapt to a remarkable range of situations. By focusing upon simple sturdy construction, prefabricated modular parts, and a bevy of green building strategies, Green Horizon has created a home that can sustain a family of four with a week’s worth of food, electricity, and water without external support. I met with CEO James Pope to take a tour of the modular wonder before the show – read on for the full scoop!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 1 comment

West Coast Green Kicks off Tomorrow!

Heads up San Francisco Inhabitants! West Coast Green kicks off tomorrow, and Inhabitat will be live on the scene at Fort Mason to bring you all of the fresh green designs on display! Taking place from October 1-3 at San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center, this year’s program promises another star-studded lineup of speakers, an inspiring series of panels and summits, and a cutting-edge …

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

Win a Free West Coast Green Tradeshow Pass!

Heads up all readers in the San Francisco Bay Area! West Coast Green is just one week away, and we’re giving away free tradeshow floor passes to 20 lucky readers! These passes are your gateway to over 280 exhibitors and 12 demo sessions showcasing the greatest green building developments around, and they’re good for all 3 days of the event. All you have to do to win is:

1. Sign up for the Inhabitat newsletter

2. Leave a comment below with your full name telling us why you’d like to go!

The first 20 responses win a tradeshow pass, so get cracking!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 23 comments

West Coast Green 2009 is Two Weeks Away!

Heads up all Bay Area green building buffs – West Coast Green 2009 is just two week’s away, and tickets are selling fast! Taking place from October 1-3 at San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center, this year’s program promises another star-studded lineup of speakers, an inspiring series of panels and summits, and a cutting-edge exhibition of green building technologies that stand to shape the …

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

Refract House | Solar Decathlon + Architecture City

Project managers open the doors to Refract House, ready for Solar Decathlon 2009, Photo by Kevin Gardner

What happens when an architect and an engineer walk into a Jesuit university in Silicon Valley and end up on a lightbender wholly rolling for the nation’s capital? This year’s Solar Decathlon, a Dept. of Energy best-of competition for smart and sunny houses, chose Team California to compete in the finals in Washington, D.C. The West Coast team is the  result of two very different schools joining forces — 100+ students, graduates and advisers were pooled from Santa Clara University (mostly engineering) and California College of the Arts (architecture and design) to create this solar dream team that created this truly energy-efficient, sun-powered Refract House.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

Dwell on Design Features More Brilliant Green Design Than Ever

Inhabitat is happy to report that Dwell on Design, the west coast’s largest modern design event, featured more smart green design than ever before this year. When we walked the floor yesterday with Dwell Publisher and President Michela O’Connor Abrams (and the carpenter and designer from HGTV’s Carter Can show), it was clear to see that the majority of the companies showcasing their products and services at the three-day festival are paying a great deal more attention to sustainability than in the past. We guestimate that about 80% of the companies there were promoting some kind of green story – in a varying shades, of course. Read on for our highlights from the show!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 1 comment

The Sunset Magazine Modern Cottage

Known for showcasing the latest innovations in architecture, construction, design, and green-building practices on the West Coast, Sunset magazine’s Idea House program recently debuted its latest project, the Modern Cottage, this past weekend at the magazine’s annual Celebration Weekend. Created and designed by Norwegian architect Casper Mork-Ulnes, Co-Founder and Director of Design of the San Francisco-based pre-fab building company Modern Cabana and Co-Founder and Director of Building, Nick Damner, the house incorporates green design with affordable living spaces.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 1 comment

Obama Unveils High-Speed Railway Plan

Today President Barack Obama announced a “long overdue” plan to develop high speed rail lines in the US. Obama and his administration have identified 10 potential corridors for the new railways in California, the Gulf Coast, the Midwest and the Northeast. They have also pledged $8 billion in economic stimulus for the initiative through 2012. …

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 12 comments

The EcoDrain Cuts Water Heater Use by 40%

A hot shower is relaxing, but is also a huge waste of energy: we heat our water with massive amounts of natural gas, oil or electricity, then transport the heated water to our tubs for a few seconds of sudsing, before washing it down the drain full of raw, wasted heat and energy! What if we could recapture this untapped source of wasted energy by transferring the heat from that shower waste-water to cold incoming water? The EcoDrain, a simple heat exchange unit, does just that, saving water heater use by up to 40%.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 8 comments

“Greenest Building in the West” on Hold Pending Investigation

After weeks of public outcry , the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to place a hold of at least one year upon the “Greenest Building on the West Coast”. Designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, the 110 Embarcadero project is now under review to determine the historical significance of the site and the proposed 10-story height of the project. Just months ago, the architects had been given the go-ahead to construct the uber-green office building, which was set to become the first commercial building on the West Coast to receive a LEED Platinum rating.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 2 comments

Governors Island Envisioned as Incredible Eco-Park

New York’s Governor’s Island is set to receive an incredible set of renovations that will transform the 172-acre plot of decaying Coast Guard structures into a stunning eco-park. Designed by West 8, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, and Rogers Marvel Architects, the project is a hybrid of landscape and architecture based around a sinuous set of new paths, watercourses, restaurants, aquaria and even complimentary wooden bicycles. Slated for completion in 2012, the ambitious, new and improved Governors Island will incorporate a host of environmentally friendly features.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 3 comments

San Jose Installs First Electric Vehicle Chargepoint

As electric vehicle charging stations sweep the nation it’s tremendously exciting to see the sparks that may spread into the massive uptake of plug-in vehicles. In the latest ev infrastructure update Coulomb Technologies recently installed the first charging station in San Jose, California. Their Chargepoint features an ingenious design that is easily connected to an existing streetlamp and provides access to the municipal energy grid. As an incentive to try out the new technology they are currently offering access cards for a full year of free charging!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 3 comments

GREEN GIFT GUIDE: Make Your Own DIY Gifts

Homemade gifts are always cherished and add a personal touch to the season of giving. They’re also easy on the pocketbook, and we know that will appeal to lots of you out there in these tough economic times. Since we all have different levels of craftiness, we’ve listed our DIY gift ideas here in order of complexity: simpler DIY ideas for the novice are at the top and projects for seasoned crafters at the bottom. Many of these projects require buying fabric or other raw materials. Keep it green by choosing organic, local, pre-loved or sustainably sourced goods.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

GREEN GIFT GUIDE 2008: Make Your Own Gifts!

Homemade gifts are always cherished and add a personal touch to the season of giving. They’re also easy on the pocketbook, and we know that will appeal to lots of you out there in these tough economic times. Since we all have different levels of craftiness, we’ve listed our DIY gift ideas …

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

PREFAB FRIDAY: The Spoorhouse

We often see new home designs at Inhabitat that incorporate advanced technologies, reduce energy use and provide a healthy and safe living environment, but we really enjoy seeing home designs that have been vetted in competitions such as the Lifecycle Building Challenge. This annual competition, in its 2nd year and sponsored by well-known organizations such as the EPA, AIA, Building Reuse Association, Southface, and West Coast Green, is a challenge to design buildings with several points in mind: incorporate local building materials, consider the whole lifecycle of building materials, reduce the overall embodied energy and greenhouse gas emissions from materials, use innovative and creative strategies, and reduce environmental and economic costs. The 2008 winner of this contest for Best Residential Design was the Spoorhouse, by Benno van Noort of Van Noort Designs, LLC.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

Solaleya Domes: Rotating UFO-Homes Land in America

One of our favorite finds at this year’s West Coast Green were these other-wordly and eco-friendly dome homes from Solaleya. Imagine a circular loft with plenty of skylights and a solar array on top, gently rotating to orient itself towards the sun, and you have the basic idea. It’s like an eco-friendly update to the Chemosphere in LA. The durable domes are constructed using only FSC-certified wood and have been proven to withstand category 5 hurricanes and earthquakes up to magnitude 8 on the MSK scale.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 4 comments

Aquaduct Bike Purifies Water as you Pedal

This year’s West Coast Green was host to a dizzying array of innovative ideas, not the least of which was the Aquaduct Concept Vehicle by IDEO. Winner of the ‘08 Innovate or Die competition sponsored by Google and Specialized, the Aquaduct is “a pedal-powered concept vehicle that transports, filters, and stores water.” Pedal to the well, fill up the tank and by the time you’re home you have 8 liters of purified water.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 6 comments

WEST COAST GREEN: Hybrid Scooter gets 180MPG

California-based ELV Motors showcased several slick electric scooters at West Coast Green, but they stole the spotlight with their VKM 50 hybrid that gets about 180 mpg. Its 49cc gasoline engine powers a 500-watt electric engine and it reaches nearly 40 mph. It also looks more like a motorcycle than a scooter, with a tandem seat for driver and passenger. Best of all it retails for $2895.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 2 comments

West Coast Green 2008: The H2OG Rainwater Storage System

Every once in a while we come across an idea so fresh and simple it seems incredible that it has not been thought of before. The Rainwaterhog is just such an idea – the H2OG system is a modular rainwater harvesting system that is a ‘game-changer’ in the water harvesting and storage industry. The easy-to-install system “boldly fits where no water storage has fit before” and is expandable, reusable, and 100% recyclable.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 5 comments

WEST COAST GREEN 2008: Highlights from the Show

This past weekend Silicon Valley erupted in a fantastic celebration of sustainable design as green building experts from all disciplines converged in San Jose for West Coast Green. From architects, contractors and interior designers to eco entrepreneurs and clean tech mavens, this year’s exposition focused an incredible spectrum of skills towards the common goal of greening the built environment, the world’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. The conference itself showcased an incredible set of sustainable strategies including solar power provided by SolaRover, recycled carpeting and finishings, compostable food and beverage containers, and carbon neutrality. Read on for our highlights from the show!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

PREFAB FRIDAY: Recycled Shipping Container Harbinger House

Recycled shipping containers are becoming more and more popular as a viable sustainable building material, and this year’s West Coast Green show house highlights this growing trend. The showroom highlight of this year’s event is Lawrence Group’s SG Blocks Container House, fashion out of five shipping containers and a plethora of other eco-friendly building materials. As a prefab, the home is affordable, cute, and easy to assemble — demonstrated by the fact that the model at West Coast Green was erected in less than 5 hours.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 12 comments

SG Blocks Container House Debuts at West Coast Green

West Coast Green kicked off this morning and we’re excited to reveal this year’s stunning show house: the SG Blocks Harbinger prefab! Composed of five recycled shipping containers, the home features a durable steel envelope that is capable of withstanding hurricanes in Florida and earthquakes in California. A paragon of sustainability, the Harbinger house also features FSC-certified woods, solar panels, rainwater recycling, and an Agilewaves resource monitoring system. Designed by the Lawrence Group, the prefab was fabricated in a month and assembled on-site in just 4 hours and 47 minutes!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 14 comments

ANNOUNCING: Our West Coast Green Contest Winners!

With West Coast Green right around the corner we’re excited to announce the winners of last week’s conference pass giveaway! With over 380 exhibitors and an extensive lineup of speakers, this year’s conference will be bigger and better than ever before, so we’ve chosen two talented readers to join us as Inhabitat correspondents. See our winners after the jump!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 0 comments

WEST COAST GREEN CONTEST: Win Free Conference Passes!

WIN A FREE PASS TO WEST COAST GREEN!
The last weekend of September is right around the corner, which can only mean one thing – we’re gearing up for West Coast Green, the nation’s largest green building expo! Inhabitat will be on the scene in Silicon Valley to bring you the latest and greatest green building innovations, and we’re looking to bring two lucky readers in on the excitement. That’s right, we’re giving away two full conference passes, worth $575 each. Read on to find out how you can get a free pass to this fabulous conference >

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 14 comments

ANNOUNCING: West Coast Green 2008!

Later this month Silicon Valley will be opening its doors to West Coast Green, the nation’s premier exposition of sustainable building, business, and design. Taking place from September 25-27th in San Jose, this year’s event will feature more than 380 exhibitors showcasing the latest and greatest in sustainable materials, technology, and practices, as well as an incredible lineup of speakers including Al Gore, David Suzuki, and Sarah Susanka. Inhabitat will be on the scene to bringing you coverage of all the cutting-edge developments – last year’s show-stopper was the unveiling of the Michelle Kaufman’s stunning MKLotus prefab, so we can’t wait to see what’s in store for this year!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 1 comment

Palmyra House by Studio Mumbai

Pitched as having over 800 uses, the Palmyra Palm (or Borassus) is recognized as one of the most important trees in Cambodia and India. Earlier this year, Indian born architect Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai illustrated the ecological potential of the palm when he designed and built the beautiful Palmyra House. Constructed entirely from locally sourced and sustainably harvested palmyra, the home is sited on a working coconut plantation in the West Indian coastal town of Alibaug.

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 5 comments

INHABITOTS: Economical & Eco-friendly Maternity Wear

Or How to Get Through Your Pregnancy Without Having to Purchase Maternity Clothes

I haven’t talked much about my pregnancy on Inhabitat, mostly because I assume that the non-pregnant reader is probably not too interested in the day-to-day trials and tribulations of navigating environmental sustainability through maternity. However, I’m guessing there is probably a small minority of you out there who are either pregnant or new parents, and for those of you, I would like to announce the newest addition to the Inhabitat family: INHABITOTS!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 5 comments

Lifecycle Building Challenge 2008 Open for Submissions!

Do you have a green building idea that’s bursting to break through? Now is the time to let it shine, as the Lifecycle Building Challenge is open for submissions! Currently in its second year running, the contest invites architects, students, designers, and construction professionals to submit innovative ideas for greening our built environment from start to finish. Last year’s stunner was David Miller’s Pavilion in the Park, and we can’t wait to see this year’s entries!

READ MORE >

email this email this tweet this tweet this facebook this facebook this 2 comments