An American company, Green Planet, has launched a new water brand in a 100% plant-based bottle that is toxin-free and carbon neutral, compared to popular plastic bottles containing petroleum and BPA. They are also reusable, recyclable and compostable in 80 days. For every 72 plant-based bottles produced, they save one gallon of oil. The bottles also use 65% less energy and fuel to produce.
Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE) is developing a sanitary pad for women and girls intended to be low-cost as well as environmentally friendly. Millions of girls and women in developing countries miss up to 50 days of school and work per year because they do not have access to affordable sanitary pads when they menstruate.
Ghanais the largest per capita consumer of charcoal in West Africa. Cooking with charcoal contributes to carbon dioxide emissions and indoor air pollution. Many Ghanaians cannot afford to purchase a gas stove for their homes, making the switch to cleaner energy difficult.
Masdar city, which is being built in Abu Dhabi, aims to obtain 100% of its energy from renewable sources, including photovoltaics, concentrating solar power (C.S.P.), wind, waste to energy. The city is being designed to reduce the need for artificial lighting and air conditioning. All buildings are being constructed to the highest energy efficiency standards, and will use traditional Arabian architecture to integrate local values, and innovative technologies, such as retractable screens to provide shade, and folding solar umbrellas to reflect the heat.
The national grid in Cambodia is a patchwork of inefficient regional grids that extend from the major cities out into the countryside. One successful solution to providing reliable, affordable and green electricity to Cambodia's small rural industries is to produce gas from agricultural waste such as rice husks, through installing biomass gasifiers.
