Forget plastic and leather, your next wallet could be made from a more ethical and eco-friendly alternative—banana fiber. Kosrae, Micronesia-based startup Green Banana Paper tapped into banana tree waste, upcycling the unlikely material into stylish and sturdy vegan leather wallets. Green Banana Paper launched a Kickstarter to bring these eco friendly wallets to the global market and help improve … Continue reading →See how banana trees are recycled into vegan “leather” wallets in Micronesia

There’s money in that half-eaten peanut butter sandwich or leftover pizza now making its way into your kitchen dustbin, says Dubai Carbon. Wet organic waste such as leftover household food or restaurant waste can be converted using heat and spinning technology to create what are called biosolid fuels. And those environmentally friendly fuels can be … Continue reading →Dubai to produce bio fuel from leftover food

A new flapping wind turbine from Tunisia marks a revolutionary breakthrough in the field of mechanics. Until recently, scientists have been limited in their ability to apply new understandings of animal and human motion to machines, according to Tyer Wind. In the wind energy sector, this limitation has resulted in fairly simple and relatively inefficient turbines. Using 3D … Continue reading →Revolutionary flapping wind turbine mimics hummingbirds to produce clean energy

SolarWindow made headlines for their business-card thin solar coating for curved glass surfaces in late 2016, and now they’re going a step further with a new kind of flexible glass capable of generating clean energy. The firm created a super thin, bendable “glass ‘veneer’” that if applied to skyscrapers, cars, or even planes, could totally transform the way we produce and obtain solar … Continue reading →SolarWindow unveils new energy-generating glass that bends

All of the electric passenger trains running in the Netherlands are now powered entirely by wind. One year ahead of schedule, Dutch railway company NS announced its entire electric train fleet is running on 100-percent wind power as of January 1, 2017, ushering in a new era of green transportation. Renewable energy advocates hope the early success … Continue reading →Wind power now runs all electric passenger trains in the Netherlands

When it comes to mitigating the impact of modern civilization on our planet’s environment, many scientists and engineers have been focused on ways to clean up excess carbon dioxide, which contributes to climate change. India-based company Carbon Clean Solutions is making headway in that area, with its unique method for turning CO2 into harmless baking … Continue reading →Breakthrough technology turns coal plant CO2 into baking soda

Until recently, the indigenous Croton megalocarpus tree common to central and east Africa was used mainly for firewood. But now Eco Fuels Kenya (EFK) is pioneering sustainable biofuel from croton nuts– without planting a single tree. As opposed to jatropha biofuel, once thought to hold immense promise as an alternative fuel but which required expensive plantations, croton nuts can be sourced from farmers. Managing Director Myles … Continue reading →Africa’s newest sustainable biofuel grows on trees

The Egyptian cleantech ecosystem is a few years behind its cousin, pure tech, but the sector is beginning to show signs of consolidation. There is a chance that if the threads outlined at the Rise Up Summit in Cairo this month pull together, cleantech could indeed be the huge wealth creator that both locals and foreigners expect … Continue reading →Can cleantech be Egypt’s greatest wealth generator?

Jordan’s latest solar energy deal with a UAE company marks the largest power plant to be built on Jordanian soil. The deal, along with importing gas from Israel in spite of public outrage, and the launch of Shams Ma’an solar project are a few indicators of Jordan’s rush to find alternative energy sources to meet … Continue reading →300 days of sunlight a year: a look at Jordan’s solar sector

Solar-generating roadways could soon be a reality on roads everywhere, thanks to new technology from Europe. According to Bloomberg, Colas SA, a subsidiary of France’s Bouygues Group has been working on solar panels that are tough enough to handle the load of an 18-wheeler truck – and are currently building them into some French road … Continue reading →Rugged solar roads to hit four continents in 2017