Eco-friendly holiday gifts for babies and kids

The holiday season is just around the corner. Gift-giving adds to the joyous celebrations, and with children, the festivities truly feel magical. But finding just the right present can be challenging, especially when making the effort to avoid plastic, seek out natural materials and skip wasteful packaging. Here are some ideas that are sure to delight...

16h

Is high-yield vertical farming the future of agriculture?

When people think of agriculture, they often picture rows of crops on flat lands stretching out to the horizon. But according to agtech start up Plenty, we should be thinking vertical for best yield. Stranger still, Plenty’s agricultural vision is indoors and populated by robots. “The reality is, there are five places in the world where you can grow...

17h

Scotland to become first country to test 100% green hydrogen

The U.K. has moved one step closer towards its net-zero carbon target by unveiling a plan to test 100% green hydrogen for cooking and heating in 300 Scottish homes, making Scotland the first country to do so. Ofgem, the U.K.’s energy regulator, announced this plan on Monday. According to Ofgem, Scottish gas company SGN will be responsible for fitting...

18h

Green design meets glamping in Queenslands Lamington National Park

Located in Lamington National Park in Queensland, Australia, O’Reilly’s Campground is a community center and campsite that features what the designers call “architectural ecotourism.” Sustainable building practices include minimally invasive and lightweight construction, passive solar access, sustainably sourced materials and more. The campground...

19h

Treat Fido and Fluffy with these eco-friendly holiday gifts for pets

Our pets constantly give to us, from a morning lick on the forehead to a bedtime purr. They bring out our best, most loving selves, and inspire us to get exercise in all types of weather. Even when they’re naughty — climbing the Christmas tree, zooming around the house when you’re trying to sleep, begging for a taste of your food — they’re so dang cute....

1d

Singapore is the first country to approve lab-grown meat

For the first time, lab-grown meat has won approval for public consumption — but only in Singapore. San Francisco-based Eat Just has developed what it calls “cultured chicken.” The startup company describes its product as “real, high-quality meat created directly from animal cells for safe human consumption.” Singapore’s Food Agency has given the okay...

1d

New Zealand targets carbon neutrality by 2025 amidst climate emergency

New Zealand has joined 32 other nations in formally acknowledging a climate emergency. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described climate change as “one of the greatest challenges of our time” and pledged that New Zealand would have a carbon-neutral government by 2025. But not all New Zealand governmental officials agreed. The Green Party and the Māori...

1d

TAMassociati envisions a zero-emissions, future-proof urban development

Venice-based architecture firm TAMassociati has teamed up with sa_partners and Franco Giorgetta Landscape Architect to design Porta del Ticino — Urban Living Lab, a future-proof masterplan for a large post-industrial site in the southern Swiss city of Bellinzona. Developed as part of an invited competition by the Canton, Municipality and SBB-Swiss Railways,...

1d

Amazon deforestation reaches a 12-year record

Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest has risen to a 12-year high in 2020, according to data released by Inpe, the national space research agency in Brazil. The official data, released on Monday, shows that deforestation in the rainforest has been on the rise since President Jair Bolsonaro took office. In 2020 alone, the destruction of the rainforest...

2d

Hungary announces preemptive ban on fur farms

Hungary’s ministerial commissioner of animal protection, Péter Óvári, announced this week that farming mink, foxes, ferrets and coypu will not be allowed in the country. These animals are not currently farmed there. But now that millions of mink have been slaughtered in other European countries due to COVID-19 concerns, Hungarian officials worried that...

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