12 companies whose amazing inventions are set to change the world
It's no secret that the world's in trouble and it's up to us to repair the damage that our modern-day habits have caused. Sadly, a lot of industrial heavyweights don't seem to recognize the destructive role they play... On a positive note, other companies and organizations have stepped up to the challenge of making our planet a cleaner, healthier place - less waste, eco-friendly agriculture, green energy, lower consumption. Every gesture, no matter how small, can make a difference!
Here are 12 companies who've developed amazing products designed to help our planet in this time of need!
1. BUREO and its recycled fishnet skateboards
BUREO is a Chilean company that was founded by three sports-loving friends, who decided it was time to save the planet! They began to collect plastic fishnets that washed up on beaches and recycled them into skateboards. Not all of the plastic used comes from Chilean beaches, but it's a great step in the right direction! And these ecowarriors haven't stopped there - the company also produces sunglasses, cotton T-shirts and other eco-friendly items. Even better, BUREO now sells its products worldwide. Its products are very reasonably priced, meaning we can treat ourselves and help the Earth at the same time!
2. Elisabeth Buetcher and her inflatable shower
Meet Spiky, the nickname that this inventor gave to her hard-wearing, inflatable shower curtain! Designed to lower our water consumption, the plastic spikes on this curtain inflate once you've spent 4 minutes in the shower. You may think this is a useless idea, but to be honest, we all tend to loiter in the shower. Plus this could be a fun way to get your kids to reduce the amount of water they use, without shower time ending in a parent vs child meltdown!
3. Solar powered cooking
© Solar Cookers International/Facebook
Solar Cooker specializes in products designed to cook food using solar power. It's not a new idea, but Solar Cooker aims to achieve world-wide distribution, so that no matter where we are, we can use the sun rather than gas or electricity to rustle up our favorite dishes. An eco-friendly and far cheaper way to prepare our meals!
4. The V5 Seabin: an ocean trash can
Surfers were some of the first people to witness just how filthy our seas and oceans have become. Two Australian surfer friends therefore came up with the V5 Seabin. This prototype scours the sea and collects trash that's floating on its surface. Any trash collected is stored in a huge filter. The biggest advantages are that it can be used anywhere (ports, marinas, shallow water...) and it can remove invisible pollutants such as petrol and industrial waste!
5. Eco-friendly furniture resin
MANUFRACT® is a German company that began to produce furniture made from damaged and therefore apparently 'useless' wood. How? Well, trees naturally heal themselves by using their sap to 'plug' any wounds. This company drew on this idea and began to make furniture from salvaged wood that was then 'glued' together and formed using a bio-resin. Unfortunately stiff competition seems to have put Manufract out of business, but other companies have leapt onto this eco-friendly bandwagon and now produce similar ranges of furniture and even wooden jewelry!
6. Capsule homes
Ecocapsules are small, ecologically constructed, self-sustaining homes designed for two people. Comfortable and autonomous, they're solar and wind powered, with solar panels integrated into their roofs!
7. Plastics made from agar-agar by AMAM
This algae is popular with vegetarians, who use it as an animal gelatin alternative. AMAM is a company that's managed to produce a type of biodegradable plastic from agar-agar that hopefully will one day replace the non-biodegradable plastics that pollute our world.
8. ALTERED's mist faucets
Altered has come up with a mist nozzle that fits all faucets and can reduce water consumption by up to 98 %! This mist is ideal if you're just washing your hands or brushing your teeth - a genius money and planet-saving idea!
9. Homebiogas to recycle organic waste
If you've never thought about composting, think again! Homebiogas provides an easy-to-use solution - all you need to have in order to generate 2 hours of gas energy is sunlight and organic waste!
10. INDIEGOGO and their intelligent bag!
PaqSule is an ultra-intelligent sports bag that cleans your sports kit! It has an integrated refreshing, deodorizing and disinfecting system to remove any nasty smells and bacteria! It doesn't use any chemicals and to start the 'clean cycle' all you need to do is press a button on the bag or activate its app from your smartphone!
11. Ooho's edible water bottle
This 100 % natural bottle by Ohoo is made from plants and algae. Colors and flavors can be added to this edible 'ball', which means that one day we should be able to kiss goodbye to classic plastic bottles!
12. TETRABIN, the intelligent trash can
Sometimes the world feels like a negative place, where we're constantly reminded about 'what not to do'. This constant berating and lack of rewards doesn't exactly encourage us to do our best - with kids being left feeling particularly downtrodden! Thankfully TetraBIN have come up with a cool idea - a trash can with an interactive cover that rewards people who use it! The inside of the trash can is covered in movement detectors, meaning it can interact with people when they throw away an object. For example, if you throw away a piece of paper you'll see a hungry little dog devour a meal. A fun way to encourage people (particularly children) to not litter the streets!
As you can see from this list, there are ways we can help our planet. It does mean we need to adapt and alter our lifestyles, but it's also essential that we care for our world and leave us kids with a brighter, cleaner future!
By Straker Julia
Writer
Passionate about writing, I write articles on the subjects that I love. Creativity and Animals themes are my favorites!
