Inhabitat reader Joann Plockova writes to tell us about Rome’s newest attraction – the world’s first hotel made entirely of garbage! The Save The Beach Hotel ain’t pretty, but neither will Europe’s beaches be if its citizens don’t start cleaning up. Designed by German artist H.A. Shult as part of a publicity campaign by the environmental group Save The Beach, this trashy hotel is made of 12,000 kilograms of debris collected from Europe’s beaches.

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Post tags: beach garbage, environmental art, Garbage Hotel, HE Schult, ocean garbage, Rome Hotel, Save the Beach

Nothing attests to humans’ instinctual love of making stuff and taking it apart more than the Lego brick. The plastic toy has been featured in films and music videos and is the basis of some serious modern art projects — including Jan Vormann’s ongoing “Dispatchwork” pieces in Berlin and Bocchignano, Italy. Vormann identifies damaged buildings and plugs the gaps with brightly colored Lego bricks.

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Post tags: Art, berlin, Design, dispatchwork, green design, historical buildings, Jan Vormann, lego, lego buildings, LEGOs, Recycled Materials, social design, sustainable design

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Buckminster Fuller was an amazing visionary of a man: architect, engineer and one of the first true “green designers” of the modern era, so it should come as no surprise that we’re big fans of the man here at Inhabitat. In 1983 the Buckminster Fuller Institute was established by Bucky’s family to carry on the designers legacy and help people face the globe’s most pressing issues in the same mode the institute’s namesake did during his vibrant life. To keep Buckminster Fuller’s legacy of eco, ‘whole-systems’ design alive, the BFI institutes a bevy of programs directed towards designers. One amazing initiative that has always found inspiring results is the Buckminster Fuller Challenge, a design competition seeking to remedy the world’s most complicated social/environmental problems through whole-systems design strategies. Back in April Inhabitat followed the work of the BFI Challenge finalists, and we are now thrilled to announce the winner of this competition: Dr. Allan Savory! Not only did this talented individual walk away with a $100,000 grand prize, but you can find out more about him and his organization Operation Hope in our latest video above!

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Post tags: buckminster fuller challenge, buckminster fuller institute, Green Design Competitions, holistic solutions, whole systems solutions

With the latest release of Organic Exchange’s annual ranking of the top purchasers of organic cotton, we were more than pleased to hear that even in the face of a troubled economy, the global retail sales of organic cotton apparel and home textiles reached an estimated $4.3 billion—a 35 percent increase from 2008! But the most interesting bit of this news was to find out which retailers have taken the reigns of this movement. Take a look at Organic Exchange’s top organic cotton purchasers of 2009 – a few names that made this list just might surprise you!

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Post tags: Adidas, Anvil Knitwear, Coop Switzerland, cotton, eco-fashion, green fashion, Greensource Organic Clothing, h&m, Levi-Strauss, Nike, nordstrom, organic cotton, Organic Exchange, Sustainable Fashion, sustainable style, walmart, Williams-Sonoma

It’s quite baffling how far technology has come over the last few years. Thin, slim, high-def, flexible, this function and that… even the most tech-savvy person has gotta find it hard to keep up with all this. Well, there’s no stopping progress, and Sony has just previewed its new conceptual, solar powered Nextep Computer Bracelet featuring a flexible organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screen, holographical projection, and pull-out keyboard panels. This uber-thin and quite fashionable piece could soon be replacing those bulky, yes bulky, iPhones and iPods in less time than you think. Check out the impressive video ahead!

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Post tags: eco-fashion, green fashion, high-tech fashion, Hiromi Kiriki, smart fashion, Sony Nextep Concept Computer Bracelet, Sustainable Fashion, sustainable style, wearable technology

The car sharing heavyweight Zipcar filed for an IPO this week, looking to raise $75 million. With a fleet of 7,000 vehicles, more than 400,000 members (who can rent the car by the hour or day), Zipcar relies on the web, software, data centers, GPS, mobile networks and other communication tools to provide mobility as a service.

The founder of Match.com, and former owner of Sex.com, Gary Kremen, is now an investor in early stage greentech startups. Kremen told Earth2Tech that he “wanted to do something positive for society after doing evil porn for so many years.”

The new battle between phone companies AT&T and Verizon is over the power grid. Both telecom firms are looking at convincing utilities to sign up to run smart grid services over their cellular networks.

The semiconductor industry has been seeding greentech startups with executive leaders that want to do something good for the world and move into a growing market. Here’s 10 executives that left the chip biz to run greentech startups.

General Motors wants do be a venture capitalist. This week the automaker announced it has created a $100 million fund to invest in green transportation startups.

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Post tags: clean tech, Earth2Tech News, Gary Kremen, General Motors VC, GM venture capital, green tech, greentech, match.com, sex.com, telecom, The Week in Green Tech from Earth2Tech, Zipcar, Zipcar IPO

Barely out of the gate, the iPad already boasts a grand collection of smart apps under its belt. So with over 2 million of these tablets already sold to date, we thought it was on point to give all these new applications a closer look and offer you the best bets on boosting your business and eco-factor all at once. Read on for our five finds that will help you streamline the way you work and make your company both leaner and greener.

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Post tags: 5 iPad Apps for Leaner, apps, e-reader, green design, green gadgets, green technology, Greener Small Businesses, iPad

We were absolutely enamored when we spotted this delightful tree shaped bookshelf by designer Shawn Soh at this year’s ICFF. Appropriately named the “Tree Bookshelf,” Soh sets up several loving tree branches for kids and adults to stack up their most treasured literature. A wonderful design that recalls nature and cultivates a love for reading, you’d also be pleased to know that the Tree Bookshelf forgoes the use of wood for a more eco-friendly option, steel, which boasts durability and can be recycled!

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Post tags: "green furniture", "sustainable furniture", eco furniture, eco kids, green baby, green kids, ICFF, International Contemporary Furniture Fair, kids furniture, metal furniture, shawn soh, storage, tree bookshelf

This new set of chairs by Analog Media Lab is more than just a nouveau ant farm, or an atrium fused with antique seating. Chair I: Rococo Armchair Retrofit and Chair II: Ghost Chair Retrofit are part of an experimental series created by a group of designers set on exploring the interface between human and insect life. By bringing nature into the home, particularly with domesticated insects (e.g. ants, termites, moths), individuals can examine the impact that human evolution has had on insects through time – insects which have consequently come to be considered only as unproductive and problematic pests that have a penchant for taking up house in our humble abodes.

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Post tags: "green furniture", Analog Media Lab, bug chairs, Chair I: Rococo Armchair Retrofit, Chair II: Ghost Chair Retrofit, living chairs, living furniture, living seating, plant chairs

Only a FEW HOURS left to vote for your favorite design!

If you still haven’t checked out the incredible batch of finalists in our Spring Greening DIY Design Contest challenging our readers to transform useless trash into new treasure, you still have a few hours left! The grand prize winner will receive a $250 gift certificate to the Inhabitat Shop as well as world-wide exposure to tens of thousands of readers, and you decide who it is so cast your vote now!

VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE DESIGN HERE >

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Post tags: diy projects, eco craft, eco design, green design, Inhabitat Spring Greening Finalists Announced, reclaimed design, reclaiming design, recycled art, recycled design, spring greening contest, sustainable design

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Post tags: "energy efficiency", adaptive reuse, Art, artist in residence program, eco design, eco friendly matierals, eco-art, green design, green materials, green renovation, greenovation, jesse matulis, lynne allard, New York., Pepsi, pepsi refresh grant, Sustainable Building, The Foundry

We’ve seen algae-powered cars and biofuel-powered planes, but European aerospace company EADS is the first to combine the two with an algae fuel-powered aircraft. The company’s twin-engine Diamond DA 42, set to be unveiled next week at the Berlin Air Show,  runs partially on biofuel made from 100% algae.

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Post tags: aircraft, algae, biofuel, eads, green design, planes

CGARCHITECTES designed and built this stunning “Crossbox” house composed of four prefabricated containers in Brittany, France. The modern residence is clad in a low-maintenance material for a sleek finish, while the inside is simply furnished and bright. The top of the bottom box features a green roof at either end, which provides an extra planting region for the home. Meanwhile the overhang of the top box provides shade for a deck area and a mini car.

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Post tags: CGarchitectes, container construction, crossbox, eco design, green design, modular, modular construction, modular housing, prefab construction, Prefab Housing, shipping container, shipping container construction, Sustainable Building

This beautiful “A La Lata” bowl’s elegant use of recycled materials and hand-crafted form has launched it into ranks of our Spring Greening Contest finalists. The bowl, whose name translates as ‘to the can’, is part of a larger collection of products made from soda can tabs woven together with zip ties. We love how the bowl’s zip tie structure gives it an airy appearance as if it were floating, and the added charm of this simple piece is that it can be turned inside-out to act as a holder for pencils or other desktop items. Our Spring Greening DIY Design Competition challenged designers to find innovative new uses for everyday materials – if you’re a fan of the “A La Lata” bowl vote for it now!

VOTE FOR THE A LA LATA BOWL > SPRING GREENING FINALISTS >

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Post tags: A La Lata, bowl, green, hoyos, recycled, soda can tab, spring greening contest, Sustainable, Waste, woven material, zip tie

This bright idea by designers Annisa Fardan Nabila and Aulia Amanda Santoso minimizes waste by re-purposing incandescent light-bulbs into a gorgeous set of spice containers. The fragile nature of each light bulb provides a delicate modern container that is every bit as elegant as fine china. These beautiful pieces are more than just functional — they are sure to add personality to any kitchen. The RECYCLAMP SERIES is one of 23 finalists in our 2010 Spring Greening Competition, which challenged designers around the world to come up with innovative new uses for common household objects. If you think this design should be our grand prize winner, vote for it now!

VOTE FOR THE RECYCLAMP SERIES > SPRING GREENING FINALISTS >

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Post tags: Annisa Fardan Nabila, Aulia Amanda Santoso, eco design, green design, Inhabitat's Spring Greening Competition 2010, Recyclamp series, recycled light bulb, spice rack, sustainable design

Nokia has released a pedal powered cell phone charger kit slated for developing nations where the power supply is limited, unreliable or expensive. The kit includes a bottle-dynamo, like the ones used to power a bike light, plus a cell phone holder that attaches to the handlebars. Nokia hopes to begin selling the kits by the end of 2010 for around 15 euros in countries that have a large bicycling population. These dynamos are great sources of renewable and human power and make it that much easier for people to want to choose biking as their main mode of transportation.

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Post tags: bike charger, bike-powered cell phone charger, cell phone, cell phone charger, dynamo, eco design, green design, green gadget, Greener Gadgets, human power, Nokia, pedal power, sustainable design

Along with the most extensive high speed rail network, China also has the world’s fastest train, which rolled off production lines last week. The 380A built by Changchun Railway Vehicles Co., Ltd, can go up to 380 kph (236 mph), which is a slight decrease from previous claims, but still very fast. This new line of high speed trains will run on the railway between Beijing and Shanghai when it is completed in 2011.

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Post tags: alternative transportation, china, eco design, greeen design, green transportation, high speed, high speed rail, high speed railway, high speed train, HSR, world's fastest train

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Buckminster Fuller Institute (BFI) is an organization after Inhabitat’s own heart. It was formed by the visionary eco architect/designer’s family in 1983 to champion Buckminster Fuller’s amazing legacy and provide the design world — and the rest of humanity, for that matter — with the tools we need to solve the world’s most pressing problems. Buckminster Fuller was a “full systems thinker” — he was a renaissance man who foresaw the problems we are facing now decades before anyone else, and came up with innovative, thoughtful ways to solve humanity’s most pressing problems around energy, shelter and natural resources. Sadly, this amazing man is no longer with us, but The Buckminster Fuller Institute marches forward in his name with a handful of thought-provoking programs for designers. Their flagship initiative is the Buckminster Fuller Challenge design competition to provide solutions to complicated social/environmental problems. Inhabitat covered the BFI Challenge finalists back in April, and we are thrilled to announce the winner of the competition here in our latest video! Watch our video profile (above) to learn about BFI, Bucky’s legacy, and the inspiring winner of this year’s $100,000 prize.

Read the rest of VIDEO: Buckminster Fuller Institute Announces 2010 Challenge Winner!http://www.inhabitat.com/wp-admin/ohttp://www.inhabitat.com/wp-admin/options-general.php?page=better_feedptions-general.php?page=better_feed

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Post tags: buckminster fuller challenge, buckminster fuller institute, Green Design Competitions, holistic design solutions, holistic solutions, whole systems solutions

Students in Israel at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have developed new technology that allows blind people to “see” objects around them through a simple radar system. The device consists of a computer, two video cameras and a scanning light source that audibly alerts the individual of objects that are close in proximity. The system scans surrounding objects and their distance from two points, much like the human eyes. Currently, vision impaired people need either a sensor cane or a guide dog in order to walk freely, both of which take up the use of one hand. This invention could prove to change all of that.

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Post tags: blind can see with radar, blind person, en-Gurion University of the Negev, guide dog alternatives, radar assistance, radar inventions, vision assistance devices

Green building is making big strides in Texas as evidenced by this cute little zero-energy home in Fort Worth, which opens for public tours today. The Zero Energy Casita, erected by the award winning green builder, Don Ferrier, is a two bedroom, 1,051 square foot home packed with sustainable features. A residential wind turbine supplies power for the energy efficient home built from reclaimed materials. If you’re in the area, definitely take the time to check it out and see all of the green building techniques first hand.

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Post tags: "wind turbine", don ferrier, eco design, eco home, ferrier homes, fort worth, Green Building, green design, net zero home, reclaimed wood, renewable energy, SIP, Sustainable Building, texas, wind energy, Zero energy, zero energy casita