Inventor Spot

In the past, when I packed my daughter's lunch I tried my best to use reusable containers as much as possible, but it proved to be a bit of a challenge and not always as environmentally friendly or as convenient as I hoped. The Wrap-N-Mat has given me a longer lasting eco-friendly alternative to Tupperware, sandwich baggies and foil paper.

A press release on September 6, 2007 announced that Greenfeet, together with ChicoBag, has come up with an eco-friendly bag for this upcoming Halloween.

Because Cinderella was kind and worked hard she was rewarded with an elegant gown and a pumpkin carriage to carry her away to the ball. You are not Cinderella, but you have been good and worked hard too so don't you deserve something special? Unfortunately there is no magical pumpkin carriage awaiting you today, but there is hope. Give the Pumpkin Swing a try.

Picture this, you are out eating with your family and you stop by the restroom to go "potty". When you are done with your business you wash your hands. Right!? Then you look for paper towels, except there are no paper towels to be found. You then look for a hand dryer, but instead you see a Veltia in its place.

If you thought drinking toilet water was just for the dogs, think again. A new $300 water bottle now allows you to join in and share toilet water with your dog or anyone else you wish to share it with. Think I'm kidding? Then you probably haven't heard about the Lifesaver bottle.

What if you didn't have to worry about cleaning your dishes? Or finding storage space to put them away? What if you could make your dishes on demand when you needed them (like a party) and then recycled them at home when you were done? An innovative prototype called the DishMaker may make this a possibility in the future.

It's been proven. Schools can be green and fabulous.

A new state-of-the-art school, T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Virginia, has won the Green Innovations Award in the Best Institutional Project category at the Virginia Sustainable Building Network's annual meeting.

Earlier this week, on August 23, Sony announced the development of a bio battery prototype that generates electricity from sugar. A bio battery is an electricity generation device that uses energy sources such as carbohydrates (ex: sugar), protein, amino acids and fat by digesting enzymes. The bio battery works by pouring sugar solution into the unit, where enzymes break it down to generate electricity.

Today, there are hundreds of websites for kids. Kids can go online and play games, learn about space, discover how-to crafts, dress up there virtual dolls, learn how to read with their favorite cartoon characters or just chat online with pen pals from all over the world. As many websites as there are for children, there are few environmentally focused websites specially made for kids, that is until The Greens came along.

Close your eyes and imagine a neighborhood without loud lawn mowers in the morning or the afternoon or the evening. Imagine a yard where your garden waters itself and saves water too. Imagine a yard that is so green even the tiles and the lighting are environmentally friendly. Now open your eyes and meet the alternative eco-friendly design, the Verdi Lawnscaping System.

According to the Eco-Libris website, about 20 million trees are cut down every year to produce books in United States alone. So, how can we keep reading without leaving behind a heavy carbon footprint in the process? We can print books on recycled paper, buy used books and we can also offset the environmental damage we've already made through Eco-Libris .

Invented anything “green” lately? Good! How about showing the rest of us what your eco-creation can do on Trippin’ The Green Fantastic. Trippin the Green Fantastic is a new environmental TV series coming to the Science Channel in the late fall. The show is a team effort between the Science Channel and Peace Point Entertainment Group. The goal: to find inventors who have made life a little greener with their eco-inventions.

When I first read about the solar energy boat race, Solar Splash, I was immediately intrigued. Though I don't like open waters; therefore, will not get on a boat, the combination of solar energy and cleaner transportation in competition has had me tempted to face my fears and give these solar powered boats a try. I think it's an innovative idea with wonderful educational opportunities and a great start to the building and using of non-polluting, fuel-free vehicles (land, water and air) of the future.

It is getting easier, cheaper (sort of) and more interesting to buy solar powered lights lately. They are in every gardening catalog, on every gardening website, and slowly popping up around homes. As Amazon.com rapidly turns green you can even find them here. Here is a quick list of solar lights that will help bring your electric bill down and light up your home in very colorful and interesting ways.

I love solar energy, because it frees us from high electric bills and because it allows us to use the sun to power our electronics. If you want to learn about solar power the Waterproof 12V Solar Panel from Scientifics is a smart simple way to introduce you and your family to the power of the sun. It is light weight and 3 1/2 X 3 X ¾ inches in size. It is also encapsulated in a strong clear plastic shell which makes it durable, sturdy, waterproof and corrosion proof for outdoor use. In other words it can take the heat and a beating.