It is regrettable that the sun does not shine every day. However, you can always have the sun with you – and that is particularly pleasant in the seasons when the days are shorter - through hip lifestyle products that provide electricity from solar power even while you travel. The Odersun AG is investing in this newest trend. The producer of solar technology from Frankfurt/Oder manufactures not only cost-efficient solar modules for rooftops and solar parks; with their Solar4you products they serve all pioneers who want to provide their mobile lifestyles with solar electricity. “We want to get away from the thought that electricity must be generated only in large central power plants,” says Steffen Schwarzer, project manager at Odersun. “And so appliances that promise independence and mobility inevitably become very appealing.”The special feature of this series: Not just the eco-friendly functionality is of great essence, but also the attractive design! For this reason Odersun cooperates with specialized manufacturing companies to develop flexible solar modules that fit harmoniously into the stylistic vocabulary of the product design.An example of successful form and function is the solar bag “POGO Solar”, the first product in the solar4you series. For the designer bag POGO from the Berlin manufacturer Bagjack, renowned for its urban designed multi-functional bags, Odersun has developed a solar module laminated in a special foil and integrated into the cover of the bag. Steffen Schwarzer emphasizes that the designers did not want the bag to look like a “technical toy”, but rather that the solar module is an important fashion feature of the designer bag. Hence, they not only look very trendy, but they are also a real package of power: Their solar electricity is sufficient to charge USB-compatible devices such as mobile phones, MP3 players or GPS devices. And to top it all off: When the sun is gone, the “juice” is still available. A built-in battery stores solar energy and turns the bag into a “mobile plug” that functions miles away from any electrical power supply line. Basically, a whole range of consumer products can be supplied with energy by this technology – such as coolers, clothing, camping trailers and automobiles. Odersun is currently working on camera bags and laptop bags that provide the end device with electricity. In order to make these products ready for the market, however, more pioneer work is needed. But the solar bag “POGO Solar” will be available already the end of September.Whoever would like to learn more about solar technology applied to lifestyle products can get information from our video blogs of the “Garden of Ideas” on 3 October in Washington, D.C. From there we will be reporting for you about the newest developments in the area of regenerative energy sources made in Germany. Stay tuned!Pictures: Odersun AG

Christiane Paul is a multi-tasker in the truest sense of the word: She is one of Germany's most successful actresses (winner of the golden camera) and is heavily involved in many charity projects. She is a trained medical doctor, worked as a model, is a happy mum and for a short time - pioneering ambassador for the BMW hydrogen technology. During the BMW event “Markenschaufenster” in Munich, she was handed the key to her new H7.
Paul describes herself as an environmental activist, which is highlighted by her active membership of the “Nature alliance” (Naturallianz), founded by the German minister of the environment Sigmar Gabriel. In this interview with Club of Pioneers she talks about her motivation to test drive the Hydrogen 7 and what else she personally does to live an environmentally friendly way of life.
Foto: www.players.de

Now McDonald's wants to go green as well. The American fast food chain announced that the cooking oil used to fry their food in their 1200 outlets across the United Kingdom will be recycled into fuel for its fleet of lorries.McDonald's has already switched its fleet in Austria to biodiesel derived from its cooking oil, claims the move will cut its carbon emissions by 75 per cent in this country, the equivalent of taking 2,400 cars off the road. If the cut is that high remains to be seen.

Chicken McNuggets are made in the cooking oil that will run McDonald's truck fleed in the future
This is the latest attempt by the fast-food giant to tackle its image, which has been hit by claims that it contributes to problems ranging from obesity to intensive farming. Its 155-strong fleet of lorries will be converted to biodiesel by the end of this year and will use 85pc used cooking oil, collected from the restaurants and filtered to remove traces of food. It will then be cut with 15 per cent pure rapeseed oil.

It is not clear at the moment if the costs for generating the fuel from the used oil is economy wise a smart step. Critics say it would help more if people simply would walk to get their burger.

Read at ecofriend about McDonalds ecofleed.

It is not an open secret that the mega-cities of today already keep almost the majority of the world’s population. New is a number of the United Nations, revealed in t New York Times report recently: By 2030 5 billion people will live in cities and town around the world. This means that the migration into cities has not come to an end yet.

Gabarone, the Capital of Botswana, is expected to grow up to 500 000 inhabitants by 2030. In 1971 there were just 18 000As the UN point out it is not the already existing mega-city like Mexico-City, Sao Paolo or Calcutta that will extraordinary grow but the mid-sized ones like Gabarone or Botswana. Here the population will raise from 18 000 inhabitants in 1971 to 500 000 in 2030. In cities like Calcutta and others of that size more people move our then in.

The skyline of Sao Paolo
One thing that pricks up one’s ears is the fact that by 2030 developing nations will have 80 percent of the world’s urban population. While star architects in the Western world like Sir Norman Foster think about sustainable cities in the future with social areas, public transport infrastructure and roof gardens there is no way that these growing cities can adopt those ideas and set into practice until 2030. The opposite will be the case: The growing of urban slums will pollute watersheds. The struggle for clean water, for water in general, will be fought in these urban areas. The simple standards of living – like missing sanitation - there will threat the whole environmental structure of these cities.

Slum in Calcutta

Berlin has a new trend, or better: the city slowly gets a new feel to it: it’s turning into little Hanoi! The concept of Vietnamese cuisine seems to fit right into the Berlin lifestyle for the time being – healthy, fresh and ecological. Most “Berliner” have chosen already their favourite Vietnamese place among hundreds in town. Freshness and health to go or sit - for sure to enjoy.
The new simplicity in food plays along with a new gardening trend: Bamboo (not to forget that bamboo is also used as ingredient in some Asian dishes). Whether it comes in a small-curled-stick-version for the trendy but small Berlin apartment, or as bamboo forests planted in hotel lobbies or city backyards – the Asian touch is omnipresent.
Rightly so: bamboo is not just a beautiful material but also one of the most efficient sustainable plants in the biosphere. It grows two times faster than a tree, releases 30 percent more oxygen into the atmosphere and recycles a huge quantity of CO2. No wonder, that even designers discovered the potential of the material.
Colourful salad servers
Ekobo, a French company, combines ecology and design within handmade home accessories derived from bamboo. Colourful and fun in design – Ekobo bowles and plates are way more than that. They are also life and work basis for several communities in Vietnam where the products are designed based on traditional craft methods.
That way Ekobo creates jobs in rural areas and prevents people’s migration to mega cities but also wins insights in and input from the artisans’ age-old savoir-faire in working. The result: “a contemporary design language based in their own heritage.”
Several stores and classy boutiques in Berlin jumped on the bamboo trend and put Ekobo designs on display. I expect even more to follow. And here is an idea to round up the Asian trend: Eat your favourite Vietnamese dish like a communal bowl of canh (a clear broth with vegetables and often meat) in an Ekobo bowl in the bamboo section of the Japanese garden in Berlin - or whereever you are at right now! Who needs to go to Hanoi to get the Asia feel?
Fotos: website

Having a look into the web you find new publications regarding sustainability and sustainable lifestyle. We enjoyed discovering www.sprig.com. It is a publication of the Washington Post dealing with design and products that fulfill certain sustainable criteria. "Stylish people are into green" is the claim of the new venture. It seems to be a new channel for the newspaper to create advertisment room for a new market segment: creating products for a new group of consumers, the new greeners.

www.blueegg.com seems to be more climate change solution orientated in terms of energy saving and not a design forum. The page however is still in construction at the moment . "We at Blue Egg are scrambling to compile the best information we can find about living more sustainably. We strive to present solutions that are clear and practical, without ducking the tradeoffs to consider—and without instilling guilt! Our planet may be fragile, but it’s not beyond hope. If we all undertake simple shifts of habit, it will make a difference." This is the message of blueegg.com so far.Blueegg also offers - and this may be the business idea behind the new site - services for green contractors, interior designers, or architects. Both sites are worth to be visited.

When Martin Furtner came to Berlin ten years ago, it could not yet have been predicted that the property around the Hackeschen Market in the former eastern part of the reunited city would become the center of gravitation for trendy agencies and design firms. Since then a store with retro and recycled furniture is located in Neue Schönhauser Straße with the fitting name “Schönhauser” (beautiful house).

The Garden Egg is a classical chair used in the former GDR before 1989.
Martin Furtner came from southern Germany to Berlin and since then has become the father of two children. People like himself are his best customers. Since Reunification one million people have left Berlin and exactly that many have moved into Berlin. Many of them have come into money and live in the “in” section of Berlin, Prenzlauer Berg. They like to spend their money on retro furniture and other high-quality merchandise. “In the past few years we have been selling mainly furniture from the 60’s and 70’s. Star designers like Charles Eames and George Nelson are more in demand than ever. People like having some patina.

Schoenhauser offers lamps, chairs, sofas, accessoires... patina guaranteed.
Schönhauser has a small branch in “Prenzelberg” – there we are in the center of the community where the people live who are interested in our furniture,” explains Furtner.“The recycling aspect certainly plays a role for a number of customers”, he states. “There are shapes – straight lines, cubes – that have such a timeless beauty about them and are still being purchased today.” Why buy new furniture? Beside the recycling aspect, there are the aspects of sustainability and efficiency. “If I have a chair or a table that is 30 years old, then I recognize that it is of very good quality, and if I handle it with care, it will survive the next 30 years.”“The sofa on which we are sitting”, says Furtner, “is a piece from the Swiss company de sede and is still being produced today.” Today’s price: 30,000 Euros. The sofa in Furtner’s showroom, however, costs only 8500 Euros.

"De Sede" sofa - mostly bought for the clubs of the Capital.
The sofa is trendy in color – brownish shades that are hip right now. “A few years ago chairs and armchairs were colorful. People soon tired of that.” At that time plastic furniture was in, today the favorite material is wood. The party haute couture of Germany’s capital visit Furtner’s shops regularly – for example DJ Dr. Motte who organized the well-known Love parade. The design branch in Berlin is booming at the moment. “Several years ago many architects who couldn’t find jobs started designing their own furniture and accessories”, explains Furtner. Since the economy is doing better now and people like to invest their money in furniture, these people have a better livelihood and are making a sustainable influence on Berlin. More at www.schoenhauser-design.de