34 Different Recycling Boxes!

Some people find it difficult to recycle with only a mixed recycling box, never mind 34 different ones. Yes, that’s right, Kamikatsu, a town on Shikoku Island in eastern Japan, requires it’s residents to sort their recycling out into 34 different types. Watch the short BBC News video below for more info (if you can’t see it please go here). Whilst I applaud efforts for more recycling, this might just result in more illegal dumping (called “fly-tipping” in the UK). What do you think?

[Via: My Zero Waste]

Vivo Barefoot Shoes Eco Product Review

More and more people are looking for ethical footwear and also ones made out of recycled material. The pair I own that meet that criteria are the Vivo Barefoot Dharma. I got mine from Male Organics although made by Terra Plana they’re widely available.

The thing about them isn’t just they’re made from as much recycled materials as possible or its eco-design, but these shoes are meant to mimic walking barefoot. Hmmm doesn’t sound good for you? Well according to Terra Plana it is. In fact it’ll improve your posture and strengthen your feet which have been protected by traditional shoes.

Saying that, they do take some getting used to. The soles seem very thin and you feel every stone. But they are puncture resistant and don’t seem to get worn down very quickly at all. After a few test walks where I was unsure, but I gradually got used to wearing them and like them a lot. Supposedly they’re ideal for playing sport in, but maybe not the Dharma, there are other shoes in the range which are probably more suitable.

I was a little worried about them starting to smell as I don’t wear socks but they are treated with an anti-bacterial lining and seem fine so far. They’re pretty unusual too so I get lots of nice comments and my next footwear purchase will definitely be an eco one.

Echarger Emergency Charger Product Review

Charging things like MP3 players and phones on the move has become big business. After the car charger was invented, then came the question of how to charge away from the home and the car. You can now get mini-turbines and solar panels like the Solio Hybrid we reviewed. This emergency charger from Echarger is basically a way to connect an AA battery to any device and give it a charge in an, er, emergency.

And it works pretty well actually. I was impressed with it. You just find the right connector and connect it to your device and let it do it’s business. You can use a normal AA battery or a rechargeable one - other size batteries doesn’t fit.

I used a 2700 mAh rechargeable battery to charge my MP3 player through a mini USB connection and after about 45 mins it filled up one bar - which doesn’t sound a lot but is similar to the main and gave a good hours worth of listening. And even when the battery couldn’t charge anymore it the little LED flashlight still worked on any residual battery life that remained. It won’t light up a whole room but could help you find you keys in the dark.

It comes with a wide range of connectors, although the Sony Ericsson adapter was the old style so I couldn’t check how well it charged my phone - you can contact Echarger for a new one. Another nifty feature is that if you put a rechargeable battery in it then you can connect it to your computer and charge it up off the USB.

I find it a handy little device to have around, it measures only about 8cm long so you can even keep it in your pocket when you’re out hiking. As with all these charging devices, the product itself isn’t made from environmentally-friendly materials, but if you used a rechargeable battery and plug it into the computer while it’s on ayway, then you have a pretty green way of charging.

Available from Echarger, the emergency charger costs £15.

Are You Still Getting Junk Mail?

Most people I know and speak with have opted out of junk mail (aka direct mail) by using www.mpsonline.org.uk in the UK or http://www.greendimes.com or similar in the US).

However if you’re still getting junk mail, you can return them to sender with a nice new stamp on them - Return to Waster. Available for $11 from here I haven’t used the stamp personally, but apparently demand has been high. You get a nice 4″ x 1″ hand made wooden rubber stamp and a red ink pad.

[Via: Green Upgrader]

VerTerra Natural Dinnerware Eco Product Review

VerTerra dinnerware are plates, bowls and platters that are made from 100% fallen leaves.

No glue, chemicals, varnishes, or bonding agents are used. The plates go through three levels of sterlization: steaming; high-pressure spraying; and UV sterilizing (while recapturing at least 80% of the water) and then are heated in an oven. It has taken them two years to perfect a safe product.

I’ve embedded a video below to show the plates in more details. If you’re reading from RSS and can’t see the video, please click here.

Each piece is made from 100% renewable and compostable plant matter and water. You can even use it to reheat in the microwave, bake in the oven, or cool in the fridge. The plates were really strong when I tested, destroying them took a lot more effort than paper or plastic. They worked well when wet and can simply be dried off and used again with no ill effects.

They are made in South Asia, and the leaves will biodegrade when composted in about 2 - 3 months. Check out their products at the VerTerra website.

Green Graffiti - Why Use Paint When you Can Clean?

Avertising uses up paper and graffiti can be unsightly but even when it’s done well, the paint is hard to clean off (and toxic). Let me introduce GreenGrafitti, a Netherlands-based company which makes adverts by cleaning walls with water. A simple idea which can last a surpisingy long time - up to six months. Using a template they just spray a dirty pavement or a wall with a high-pressure water jet to create the adverts or messages for magazines like Elle and car company Smart.

Via: Springwise

Act2 GreenSmart Messenger Bag Review

Finding alternative green materials to the most commonly used synthetic materials out there is often a challenge. I was delighted to be sent a Act2 GreenSmart horizontal messenger bag. The bad also comes in a vertical version and in Storm Blue.

I’ve put together a quick video of the bag so you can see all it’s features. If you can’t see the video please click here.

It features front and back zipped pockets, magnetic snaps on the front, three smaller inside pockets, two large inside pockets, with the second one divided into two and padded for your laptop. Using 30 16 ounce PET (plastic) drink bottles as the material, this is the easiest plastic to recycle (symbol 1).

The bag is great, certainly large enough to contain everything, er, a messenger bag should contain. It’s stylish (my wife loved the colour!), strong in my tests, and it certainly looks like it’s durable and tough enough for day to day use.

My only slight concern is the price. At around $70 - $75 it’s not the cheapest bag out there, but looking at ones of similar style, build and quality (as far as I could tell) it is only about $10 more than comparable “non-green” laptop messenger bags that I could find. Of course you can get bags for $30, as you can for $300, so although it may seem expensive it’s a matter of getting what you pay for, and in this case I think that’s a lot.

Made by Act2 GreenSmart they are available from a few places including agreenplace4u for about $74.99. The vertical version is $69.99.

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