Fire-resistant coconut husks to save trees worldwide?


It is always saddening to hear about the number of trees being cut down every year. According to research published in Nature, 1.5 billion trees are chopped down every year, and approximately 46% of…

Canada to ban single-use plastic items by the end of 2021


Canada is working to achieve zero plastic-waste by 2030! As a step towards success, the country's Environment and Climate Change Minister announced in October 2020 that single-use packages/objects…

Algae facade system innovation


In 2013, the world's first bio-reactive facade generating renewable energy from algal biomass and solar thermal heat was installed in Hambourg (Germany). The integrated system developed…

Hawaii’s sunscreen ban in effect


Since January 1st, 2021, the sale of sunscreen containing the coral-harming chemicals Oxybenzone and Octinoxate is banned in Hawaii - the first state in the US to take such action! Although this…

EU Plastic Waste Ban


In 2019 and 2020, it made the news that many developed countries such as the US or the UK used developing countries as a dumping ground for their plastic waste. In May 2020, Greenpeace published a…

Billions of Birds Saved


Pollution regulations designed to protect human health can also have beneficial effects for other species. As it turns out, the improved air quality and reduced ozone pollution that followed the 1970…

An End Date to Oil and Gas


In December 2020, Denmark brought an immediate end to new oil and gas exploration in the Danish North Sea. This decision was made as part of a plan to phase out fossil fuel extraction by 2050, 80…