Eco-Vlog

Zaha Hadid Architects has been crowned a competition winner for its proposed design of Tower C at Shenzhen Bay Super Headquarters Base, a planned business and financial center that will serve the Greater Bay Area of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau. Informed by 3D-modeling tools, the skyscraper features a futuristic, energy-efficient design with terraced levels, dramatic curves and expansive glazing. The project targets high-performance energy standards with environmentally friendly elements such as water collection and recycling as well as aquaponic gardens to help purify the air. Located within a global technology hub, the Shenzhen Bay Super Headquarters Base will accommodate 300,000 employees every day and include residential developments, a transportation center, venues for international conferences, exhibitions, cultural and art programming and a landscaping plan with native grasslands and coastal wetlands. Tower C, which will be located at the intersection of the Shenzhen’s pla...

This summer, the Chinese city of Jiaxing will welcome an innovative transportation hub that will be topped with a lush “borderless park” to bring nature back to the urban environment. Designed by international design firm  MAD Architects , the 35.4-hectare project will feature a new Jiaxing Train Station topped with solar panels, a pair of plazas, a commercial zone, a transit hub and a renovation of the adjacent People’s Park. The main transportation and commercial functions will be tucked underground while an expansive green roof surrounded by trees will grow atop to create a “train station in the forest.” Currently under construction with completion expected by July 2021, Jiaxing’s “Train Station in the Forest” will blend MAD Architects’ signature futuristic forms with designs rooted in the city’s historic and cultural contexts. In addition to  green-roofed , disc-shaped transit buildings located at the site’s transportation hub in the south, the project will feature a one...

Several sailors are stranded outside the shores of Spain , fearing for the lives of hundreds of cattle aboard their ships. The managers of two vessels have accused the Spanish government of ignoring their calls for help. Further, they say that they are unable to dock since the Spanish government threatens to kill the cattle on board. One of the vessels that has been affected is the Karim Allah. The ship left Spain in December with bulls headed for several countries. However, due to a suspected outbreak of bluetongue, the vessels were denied entry into several countries, including Libya and Turkey. Karim Allah is owned by Khalifeh Livestock Trading, based in Lebanon . The ship is also managed by a Lebanese company, Talia Shipping Line. A third party owns the over 800 cattle onboard. Majed Eid, Talia Shipping Line director, says that they have remained docked outside Cartagena port since being barred from entering Spain. “We remain at anchor outside Cartagena port because first the ...

Need an energy boost? Don’t reach for that soft drink! Sure, the sugar and caffeine might make you feel more energized, but that feeling is only a temporary spike in blood sugar. When it wears off, you’ll crash—and feel even worse than before! The good news is that there are plenty of natural energy drinks that can ramp up your energy levels without spiking your blood sugar. That means no energy crash and no empty calories. Many of these drinks can even be made at home, so you can easily avoid the added sugars and artificial ingredients. Here are eight of the best natural energy drinks you can try (and make) for yourself at home. 1. Kombucha Kombucha is a fermented tea made with a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast). Kombucha has a long list of health properties: B vitamins, glucuronic acid (a detoxifier), and loads of antioxidant-rich polyphenols. But what kombucha is best known for is its probiotic bacteria and acetic acid, which have been shown to boost energy level...

Almost one-third of crop-growing land in the upper Midwest is now devoid of its most fertile topsoil, says a controversial new study. Evan Thaler, a PhD student at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst who worked on the study, acknowledged that their estimates are at odds with those published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. “I think the USDA is dramatically underestimating the amount of loss,” said Thaler . Related: SoilKit wins recognition through Lowe’s small businesses program As any home gardener knows, soil varies in color and quality. Even if you don’t garden, you’ve probably seen the different soil colors when flying over agricultural land. The darkest, richest soil is known as topsoil, the “black, organic, rich soil that’s really good for growing crops,” Thaler explained. When farmers first settled the Midwest, there was no shortage of this soil, which is full of organic carbon, made by stuff like decaying plant roots and living microorganisms. The topsoil layer i...

Off the shores of  Dubai , the majestic Arabian Sea section of the northern Indian Ocean can trace its history back to important marine trade routes. Also known as the Sea of Oman, this massive body of water is known for its turquoise waters and unique wave patterns. This natural wonder was the inspiration behind Middle East Architecture Network’s Mawj 3D Printed Chair, an innovative contemporary armchair meant to explore the potential of robotic 3D-printing in the furniture industry. Named for the Arabic word for “wave” and conceived in Dubai, Mawj is designed to reflect the natural waves and colors that characterize the Arabian Sea and its adjoining coastal city. Deep turquoise in color with a unique curved shape, the chair is built out of plastic polymer material via a 3D-printing machine supplied by Nagami Design. Related: Czech Republic’s first 3D-printed floating home will take just 48 hours to build According to Middle East Architecture Network, the chair’s p...

Are you feeling amplified anxiety, sadness, or anger lately? An astounding 84% of adults have felt at least one of these stress-related emotions in the two weeks prior to being surveyed, according to this recent Stress in America report. [1] Although it’s often comforting to know you’re not alone, the pervasiveness of this particular shared experience is disconcerting. But first, what causes stress? What Causes Stress? Lurking beneath the surface of this collective situation are some deeper factors: feelings of powerlessness and a diminished sense of certainty. Due to a variety of events over the past year, control over numerous elements of our lives has been stripped away, leaving us feeling frustrated, afraid, and unsure about the future. It’s as if someone took the puzzle of our lives, broke apart every segment we had painstakingly pieced together, then shook them up and dumped them into a scrambled mess on the floor. On top of that, we’re trying to put it all back together whil...

Projekt Datscha is a minimalist tiny house handmade with a love of the outdoors in mind. The home was designed by Anna Busch and co-architect Monika Binkowska. In 2019, Busch and her partner, Jakob, took time off work to build their tiny home with some help from family and friends. Projekt Datscha now sits perched near the shore of Packer Lake in Austria; it is their vacation home and will soon be available to rent (beginning spring 2021). In order to meet the criteria for mobility, the team gave special attention to the weight and size of each material selection. The primary material is locally sourced wood . Busch told Inhabitat, “It requires significantly less energy to produce and transport than the typical building materials such as steel.” Plus, it met the needs for strength and temperature control, and any off-cuts were able to be reused as firewood. Related: The Mountain tiny home comes with a skylit cedar shower For insulation, Busch admitted that the materials are not ...

Spanish engineers have updated the old citrus cliché, bringing it into the eco era — when life gives you oranges, make electricity. In Seville, they’re repurposing the many tons of fruit that the city’s 48,000 orange trees drop in the streets. Instead of a sticky, pulpy wintertime hazard, the methane from these rotting oranges will soon generate clean energy . Seville’s municipal water company, Emasesa, will start this new program by using 35 tons of fruit in a facility that already turns organic matter into electricity. The methane captured from fermenting oranges will drive the generators for water purification plants. If the orange experiment is successful, old fruit could one day supply the grid with surplus power . Scientists report that early trials show that 1,000 kilograms of oranges can fuel five homes for a day. If all of Seville’s oranges were harvested, they could power 73,000 homes. Recent: Vincent Callebaut proposes a green, food-producing footbridge for Paris “We hop...

An unlikely hero is emerging in Israel’s fight to save sea turtles from one of the country’s worst ecological disasters. Mayonnaise is making the difference between life and death for some turtles affected by the estimated 1,000 tons of tar washing up on Israel’s Mediterranean coastline. North of Tel Aviv, at the Sea Turtle Rescue Center in Michmoret, medical assistant Guy Ivgy is helping to treat 11 turtles. “They came to us full of tar,” Ivgy said . “All their trachea from inside and outside was full of tar.” Turtle rescue workers have found that feeding the fatty, egg-based condiment to the turtles helps flush out their tar-clogged digestive tracks. Within a week or two, workers hope to release the turtles back into the wild. Related: Volunteers brave winter storm to save cold-stunned sea turtles The source of all this tar is still shrouded in mystery. It likely came from an oil tanker passing the Israeli coast a week or so ago. Israeli officials think that a ship spilled tens ...

Nowadays, if you’re not on social media, you feel like you’re not truly living in the 21st century. Everything from businesses to personal and professional relationships, social media has a strong presence—and with that, a luring temptation to spend even more time using its features. While it still provides platforms where we can connect with friends and family, it has exponentially grown to an online version of the Vegas strip: advertisements, videos, and links inviting us to turn our attention to the next latest and greatest trend or product. According to a recent article by Forbes, having a potent social media strategy is critical for businesses and consumers alike. [1] We make a tremendous amount of purchasing decisions based on content provided to us via social media channels. Likewise, we also tend to “follow the flock” when it comes to new trends, ideas, fashion, and unfortunately, even politics. While the positive side of social media is that we now have more freedom of expr...

In southeastern Shenzhen , Beijing-based architecture firm Clou Architects has completed Shenzhen Shuiwan 1979 Life Plaza, a mixed-use development interwoven with green terraces and a “secret garden” to provide visitors respite from the hustle and bustle of the tech megacity. The project, which was completed in 2016, takes inspiration for its name from the 1979 announcement by Deng Xiaoping — the country’s paramount leader prior to Xi Jinping — to reform and open up China, starting with the establishment of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone in the area of Shekou. The 220-meter-tall complex also draws influences from the lush, mountainous surroundings with its inclusion of elevated green spaces and public areas. Set between tree-lined streets with a direct connection to the Shuiwan subway station in Shekou, the Shenzhen Shuiwan 1979 Life Plaza combines a residential and office tower of 107,000 square meters with a three-story retail podium of 36,000 square meters. To give the skyscr...

NOMAD architects and Karina Aramanda have transformed wood waste into GO[A]T WASTE?, an educational pavilion and animal playground that raises awareness about the merits of upcycling . Installed in the town of Ādaži in Latvia, the eco-friendly project was inspired by the architects’ research into construction’s impact on climate change and environmental pollution; according to Latvia’s Ministry of Environment, the building industry is one of the biggest waste producers in the country. The architects repurposed timber off-cuts into three modular pavilions that can be joined together or used as standalone structures. The GO[A]T WASTE? project began with the collection of unwanted timber from a variety of sources, including new construction, renovation and demolition sites. Because the pavilions would only be built of upcycled waste, the final designs were limited by the materials the architects could salvage. They mostly collected short timber off-cuts with a few long, structural be...

Modern living makes us tired, stressed out, and overwhelmed with work. That pushes us to look for a quick energy fix during a busy day. While the best way to restore your energy is to get adequate sleep, manage stress better, and ensure your nutrition is on point, we know that it’s not always possible. Here, we take a look at one popular way of getting an energy boost quickly by consuming energy drinks. There are many different options available today: Vitamin-fortified nutritional beverages like the Boost energy drink by Nestle Mainstream brands like Monster and Red Bull that you can find in any store Healthy and natural energizing sips without added sugars or artificial sweeteners and colors The good news is that downing a can of caffeine-infused beverage may actually give you the pep in your step you so desperately need early in the morning or during the afternoon slump! But are all types of energy drinks equally effective? And are they good for you? I have prepared an in-de...