The idea of edible cutlery seems pretty out there, but Peesapaty's view on innovation shows us if we have the right mindset we can change anything. Seeing single-use plastic being used on a daily basis in many households due to it's convenience and cheap price is shocking. The worldwide shared habit of consuming at our convenience has left a detrimental environmental impact and we must encourage change for the better. I used to get stressed thinking about how many people would live without regard for their impact on the environment. I would think about alternatives and would get discouraged by the thought of how deeply ingrained our unsustainable way of living is within our lives. At a time where climate change was only regarded as global warming, and when everyone was just encouraged to recycle, I felt like I was the only one who cared. I would hate to see litter and would fight people over their laziness in not putting a bottle in the recycling bin (but rather they'd put it in the garbage right next to it(like seriously?)) The helplessness of thinking nothing will change and things will only get worse should be directed into innovation. With enough people wanting a change, the entire market can shift into something that will not only make the economy flourish, but our eco-system too. ![]() Plastic contains many different chemicals, all which can be ingested while consuming your food. For example many plastic spoons are made of polystyrene, which once heated can release toxic chemicals. Would you want to use that for eating your boiling soup? Why risk raising your cancer susceptibility on an unsustainable product when we have the alternatives here and ready? Don't contribute to the 100 million plastic utensils used and tossed away everyday in America. Stop the influx of plastic cutlery taking hundreds of years to decompose in landfills. Don't contribute to our old mistakes, if we collaborate enough we can save our Earth.
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Pineapple leaf fibre leather![]() Piñatex is a newly found alternative to leather. It is made from the fibres of pineapple leaves, and is made into an non woven plant based textile. The pineapple is the second most popular fruit, and typically the pineapple industry is left with 40,000 tonnes of wasted pineapple leaves. This means there's an abundant supply of materials for the alternative leather without planting more. ![]() Piñatex was created after a leather goods expert, Dr. Carmen Hijosa saw the environmental impact of mass leather production. Hijosa went to the Philippines in the 1990's, and the original idea of Piñatex was born. ![]() Why I care I'm currently vegetarian due to environmental issues regarding the meat industry, as well as the inhumane treatment of the animals we raise for our consumption. Reading about the leather industry and the treatment of the animals from birth to death in a slaughterhouse is horrid even without pictures. No living form of life should have to suffer as these animals do, especially just for our next meal or leather coat. If there's an alternative to wearing dead skin, why not invest in it? Cows are extremely intelligent, can form complex relationships and can even mourn the death of a friend, we shouldn't be killing them for our clothing. ![]() Why you should care The global trade value of leather is an estimated US$100 billion yearly, this is an industry with one of the most cruel and inhuman treatment of animals. China is the biggest leather export in the world, and most people's leather comes from China. The treatment of cows in China for the leather industry is unimaginable (video). There is a big environmental impact that comes with leather, and it is classified as a waste product from meat industries. The water, land and energy used to raise cows is unsustainable. The process of tanning the dead skin involves working with 250 environmentally toxic chemicals. Pineapple skin leather allows pineapple farmers to utilise their crops and create further income. It is a cradle to cradle product. ![]() Don't be for animal cruelty, if an alternative that has positive environmental and economic impact has been created, we should support the sustainable shift. The fashion industry shouldn't be around fast and cheap production. Slowly but surely we will replace old ways with new sustainable and humane methods. Pineapple skin leather isn't the only innovation of leather, there's also leather made from mushrooms https://www.ananas-anam.com/responsibility/ https://www.amexessentials.com/pinatex-pineapple-leather/ A smog vaccum tower that turns polluted air into jewellery![]() The Dutch artist, Daan Roosegaarde, is the founder of Studio Roosegaarde and designer of the smog machine. Roosegaarde wanted to tackle places that had severe air pollution. The smog free projects have been launched in China, South Korea, the Netherlands, Mexico and Poland. To quote Roosegaarde, "We are on a mission for clean air". The team compresses carbon-filled smog dust into jewellery products such as rings and cufflinks, each containing smog dust filtered from 1000 cubic meters of air. This innovative creation will help clean majorly polluted rejoins, specifically mega cities. The tower can take in 30,000 cubic meters of air per hour. It purifies the air, and releases the clean air back into the atmosphere. The smog is sucked through the top of the tower, and is cleaned through the process of ionisation before releasing it again (similar to other air purification systems). Air pollution releases C02 into atmosphere, contributing to global warming and climate change. It can cause acid rain, which kills many plants and animals. The smog effect leaves great impacts on the wildlife too, as it can stunt plant growth and affect the quality of food and habitat for animals. Not only has it got a big impact on the environment, but also on our individual health. Long term exposure to air pollutants causes one third of deaths from stroke, lung cancer and heart disease. Air pollution is considered a major environmental risk factor and contributes to the progression of many respiratory diseases. Pollution not only harms your insides, but can cause irritation and breakouts to your skin due to its impact on the skin barrier. Why wouldn't you want clean air? SMOG FREE PROJECT WEBSITE www.studioroosegaarde.net/project/smog-free-project The Ooho water balls were invented by the Skipping Rocks Lab based in London. They are made out of algae and calcium chloride and cost only 2 cents to produce. The plasticless packaging is edible and biodegradable. This innovation can have a major positive impact on the environment. There is around 150 million metric tons of plastic in the ocean, with 8 million metric tons being added each year. More than $1 billion worth of plastic is wasted every year. Plastic water bottles' impact on the environment is extensive. Plastic bottles can take up to 1000 years to break down in a landfill, and releases toxic chemicals into the Earth as it decomposes. Plastic leaves behind microplastics, tiny shards of plastic that remain after it has decomposed, that continue to pollute the environment and harm animals. If Ohoo water balls can make it to the worldwide industry, we could rapidly change our relationship with plastic. Only 25% of the plastic produced in the US gets recycled. As climate change increases, the number of innovations to help reduce our environmental impact also increases. This new way to eliminate plastic packaging can push us in the step towards replacing industries in which negatively impact the environment with mass production of environmentally unfriendly products. This biodegradable packaging not only changes the water bottle industry, but products worldwide needing packaging. References
https://utahrecycles.org/get-the-facts/the-facts-plastic/#:~:text=Americans%20throw%20away%2035%20billion,yards%20of%20landfill%20space%20annually. https://healthyhumanlife.com/blogs/news/plastic-water-bottle-pollution-plastic-bottles-end#:~:text=Plastic%20water%20bottles%20in%20landfills,every%20single%20bottle%20to%20decompose.&text=discarded%20water%20bottles.-,It%20takes%20up%20to%201%2C000%20years%20for%20every%20single%20bottle,the%20way%20as%20it%20decomposes. Capsula Mundi was created in 2003 by Italian designers Raoul Bretzel and Anna Citelli, meaning "world's capsule".
"It was a big competition to design new things, but almost nobody cared about future impact or whether anyone would actually use these things", Bretzel said. "We started thinking about projects that could have an environmental aspect. Biodegradable human burial pods are an environmental friendly way to dispose of your body once you've passed. A sustainable way to bury a loved one, and turn their body into a tree. The biodegradable plastic shell can hold a human body or ashes, and this provides nutrients to the tree sapling planted above it. The tradition of human burials has been in practice since around 5000BC, where the first evidence of a wooden coffin was found. The materials used for a funeral and burial is not only unsustainable, but also expensive. There's satin lining in the coffin, wood used for the coffin and rock used for the tombstone. The average cost of a funeral is around $7000 to $12000. The cost of the burial pod is around $1000 to $4000. These biodegradable pods also save land taken up by graveyards, and replaces it with a forest. The average land used for a burial is I chose to write about this because I thought it was a great innovations idea, taking something that we don't speak of much, yet is inevitable for all of us. Bretzel and Citelli reflected on the impact we leave on this Earth once we die, the impact we don't think about much because we are gone, and created a sustainable way to dispose of the dead. I love the idea of becoming a tree when I'm dead. Providing nutrients for another living thing on this Earth, while creating fresh air for people still living. There are many ways to dispose of yourself once you're dead outside of coffins and burial pods, but I want this to create awareness that you have a choice of what impact you want to leave on the earth after you die. Cemeteries are growing full, and with the amount of Covid-19 deaths accumulating recently, we are looking at a shortage of burial space. Graveyards are not the prettiest place, it's an eery place of grieving. If we were to plant a tree for every dead person, you would have a beautiful garden cemetery to visit while grieving, along with a lack of C02 emissions. issa win win ![]() - Bob marley - Jamaican musician - Lived in Ridgmount Gardens, Bloomsbury (and Jamaica) What did he do aside from music? - advocated for the rights of black people - against oppression from westerners - advocated against poverty - brought Jamaican/Caribbean culture to mainstream media Why he matters to me?
- Love his music - believe for what he stands for and his message - he took something he loved (music)and was able to change the world with it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XiYUYcpsT4 - directly witnessed police brutality in Jamaica and wanted to make a public statement Why should you care - Songs still bring social change - Delivers the BLM message - So much injustice but nothing is being done about - he is using his platform to spread positivity - Want to make an impact by doing something I love |
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