A Worthwhile Cause

The Problem of Being Green

Being a couch potato has its benefits, you get exposed to very relevant information. And by relevant information, we don’t mean the newest development in your favorite teleserye but we do mean things that can help save the planet.

One of the more interesting shows in cable is Living with Ed. For those who have been living under a rock, and has no idea what the show is about, Living with Ed is the hit reality TV series with actor Ed Begley Junior and wife, Rachelle.

Don’t dismiss it as your run-of-the-mill reality show, Living with Ed is about the home life of the couple and their efforts to go green. And we’re telling you, “efforts” is such an understatement, and obsession may be a more fitting word to describe Ed.

Last week’s episode featured several products that piqued my interest: lawn turf and insulation. Why on earth, you may ask would I be interested with turf or insulation? Here’s why: the turf completely requires no watering and the insulation is completely soy-based.

The turf is synthetic but looks so real, and as mentioned earlier requires no watering and only minimal maintenance. So not only do you save on

image from artificialturfsupply.com

your water bills but you save up on what could be gallons and gallons of precious water.

The soy-based insulation on the other hand was featured as a solution to noise pollution in the home of actress Beverly D’Angelo. It works with the same efficacy and effectiveness as plastic foam insulation, but the fact that it is plant-based makes for something biodegradable. And as with any insulation, it helps modulate interior temperature, keeping the cool or the heat in, therefore doing away with excessive use of airconditioning, or heating and lowering your energy bills. It may look like taho, or look good enough to be eaten, its benefit as noise pollution reducer simply dandy in keeping at bay noise from all our neighbor’s belting out videoke songs, all while being green.

There’s one simple catch though. While any green advocate would go gaga on the prospect of getting their hands on these products, you may be hard pressed in finding a supplier here in the shores. This is the great dilemma, so many good and green products out there, and it still remains to be just that—out there. If only someone would take the first step to bringing them all here…is there anyone?
On a related note, we are happy to report that the recently concluded Earth Hour last Saturday was a success, and the Philippines ranked as the highest in participation with 647 towns and cities turning off their lights for the event.Now, ain’t that grand?

Earth friends

Terra Furnishing's new spa collection

In this day and age, when commercialism is the name of the game and money is king, it’s sometimes way too easy to forget about the things that matter. The design world is not exempt from this. Although, heaven bless those kind-hearted souls that actually still care about things beyond the glitz and glamour that is entices everyone to the profession.

No, we’re not preaching. Just commending those who make a real effort to try to change the way people live and for the better of course. One such group is Terra Furnishing, a Michigan-based furniture E-retailer, who has recently joined the eco-friendly bandwagon by launching a website geared to eco-friendly handmade furniture and accessories. In a PR, released by the company, Terra Furnishings, has also incorporated in this website “an active blog where customers can find environmental news, links and quarterly product giveaways.”

Terra Furnishing offer products that are all 100% natural and made from organic resources, particularly sustainable woods such as monkey pod (acacia), farmed and/or reclaimed teak and mango are used for the hand-carved products.

Apart from a full range of products—from furniture, accessories, to pottery, glass and even jewelry items—the company has also linked up with 1% For the Planet as a member company in its recognition for the importance of environmental stewardship.
The company will soon be launching its new collection of teak spa items and that is certainly something worth looking forward. At least now you can go all out green and definitely be as stylish as you want to be.

For more information on Terra Furnishing, visit their website at www.terrafurnishings.com

Twist stools by Terra Furnishings

Fully Charged

Everyone and everything is going green these days, but we’re not complaining. But who would have thought that even gadgets can be green. We found this little baby on the internet- the Solio Green Charger. Although, it may not be the only one in the market right now, this one caught our eye with its sleek, fan-shaped design.

Only measuring 4.72 x 1.34 x 2.56in and weighing 1546 grams, this is a real heavyweight, figuratively, of course. It can  can power almost any electronic device from cell phones, mp3 players, PDAs, to digital cameras. It promises to deliver at least 20 minutes of talk time on your phone or 50 minutes of mp3 play. Oh, did we mention that this is perfectly portable? Bring it anywhere. anytime.

Yes, we know we’re starting to sound like a bit of advertisement but all things green can be a real source of excitement for us. But inasmuch as we’re loving the whole concept of the solar powered charger, it’s a real pain that it stil hasn’t reached our shores. We do hope that someone enterprising out there take steps to distribute it here in the Philippnes. We’d hate to miss all the action.

the solio charger classic (image from cnet.com)

Keeping Time

The field of architecture and design is now deep in environmentalism. And still, more are following suit. In a recent media launch, Citizen Watches unveiled its 2009 collection of Eco-Drive watches. The Eco-Drive promises to be “powered anywhere as long as there is light.” It is also the company’s answer to the vision of developing products that is also eco-friendly, as the batteries to these beautifully elegant timepieces don’t have to be discarded at all keeping true to the adage waste not, want not.

This move made by the company just shows the depth and impact that design will ultimately have in our lives—that not only can you be at your most fashionable but also be at your best behavior towards the greening of the earth.

Real Green Indeed

The US Green Building Council (USGBC) has just awarded its highest level of recognition, LEED® Platinum certification, to the Conference Center at the newly re-opened TreePeople Center for Community Forestry. TreePeople, an environmental non-profit, has served the Los Angeles region for 35 years with the goal of “helping nature heal our cities.” The state-of-the-art Conference Center provides a gathering place for local, national, and international leaders to create healthy, sustainable cities.

The Conference Center is the focal point for the Center for Community Forestry, a four-acre environmental educational campus located in L.A.’s Coldwater Canyon Park. Furthering TreePeople’s mission to provide environmental and watershed education to the public, the Conference Center utilizes natural principles to minimize the building’s need for imported heating, cooling, energy and water.

Andy Lipkis, TreePeople founder and president explains, “In the forest, trees mitigate extreme temperatures by providing sun and wind protection. They capture water and slowly restore it to the water table, thereby preventing floods and filtering out pollution. The design of the Conference Center and the water reclamation systems throughout our entire campus are informed by these natural processes.”

The building is oriented to make the best use of the sun and prevailing winds. Concrete walls act both as structure and as a natural temperature control method, absorbing the day’s heat from the sun and releasing it at night. All rainwater on the site is captured through an underground drainage network, stored in a 216,000-gallon underground cistern and reused in landscaping and as a fire-fighting resource.

The Conference Center was designed by the Los Angeles–based architecture firm, Marmol Radziner and Associates. Leo Marmol, FAIA, principal of the firm adds, “There is a tremendous amount of complexity involved in creating a simple building that mimics nature while providing modern comforts. The project involved numerous engineers and design consultants, and it took careful leadership to keep such a large team of people moving together in the same direction.”

Singapore gets on the green bandwagon

Just like any other in the world, Singapore’s city center can be a harsh concrete jungle. So harsh, in fact, that it was referred to having zero-culture—an ecologically devastated site cleared of vegetation. But just as many cities that has turned “green”, it has also taken suit with the EDITT Tower short of Ecological Design in the Tropics.
Designed by Malaysian firm TM Hamzah and Yeang, it promises to deliver sustainability, adaptability and ecological improvement. The tower will feature photovoltaic panels to harness solar energy as well as a plant to convert sewage into biogas and fertilizer. The plant system integrated into the design is expected to improve the city’s biodiversity turning the tower quite into a sight for sore urbanite eyes.

Waste Not, Want Not

the loot light made of natural jute

inkuku chair made of discarded plastic shopping bags

I was recently invited to give a talk at the School of Architecture, Industrial Design and the Built Environment (ARI) Department of Mapua Institute of Technology to a group of interior design student, and discuss my work as interior designer and journalist. That talk soon proved to be invaluable, as one of the speakers, Jerome David, a lecturer at the same school, discussed his work as both educator and furniture designer and showed examples of his students’ designs of sustainable furniture.

During the course of his lecture, names of international designers such as Ryan Frank were brought up along with their oeuvre of hip and green furniture. Naturally, my curiosity was piqued and pushed me to know more about this guy Ryan Frank, and his work on sustainable design.

So I googled him and found an impressive collection of green furniture that defines what hip means. The South African-born product designer, who is now based in East London, takes everyday discarded items and just transforms them into inspired items fit for everyday living. Take Inkuku for instance—a chair made entirely out of discarded plastic shopping bags. It faintly resembles a chicken mainly because it was indeed inspired by one. With its form and visual texture, it definitely brings a quirky and fun element in any space.
Apart from discarded objects, Ryan’s work also features various sustainable materials such as Sundela boards, which are made of recycled and compressed newspapers or the Strawboard, a sustainable, formaldehyde-free material made entirely from compressed straw.

His designs are now widely celebrated and wildly accepted all over the world, and has even been featured at the Salone de Mobile in Milan, which happens to be just one of the biggest furniture fairs in the world!
Green design is now considered as de rigueur. And Ryan Frank surely knows what it means to be fashionable minus the guilt. And I hope to see more Filipino designers take the initiative to go green just as our Western counterparts have. Going green is more than just because it happens to be the “in” thing to do, but because all us have a larger responsibility to lessen the impact we have on our environment. And Ryan Frank shows us exactly how to do that—turning one man’s trash to a gleaming piece of art.

For more information on Ryan Frank, visit his website at www.ryanfrank.net