Placer County’s school kids' Fire Guard
Early warning system uses internet.
Stand-alone solar cameras and the WWW. That’s the solution for fast detection of forest wildfires. Of course, you say? Well, it took a bunch of Californian primary school kids to figure it out. Now electronics giant Sony has joined their design team. The world may profit, as the climate heats up.
Andrew Wood en Alejandro Vega (both 13) come from a little town, called Meadow Vista. But last December, during the Copenhagen climate conference Bright Green ‘technology’ exhibition, they had their very own corner in the Sony stand. “Amazing”, they keep saying. Yet, the honor was well-earned.
Competition
Together with four other class mates, they designed a clever early warning system for forest wildfires during a Lego Toys inventors’ competition in which their school took part.
Their find was not an idle luxury: “Due to the changing climate, almost each and every summer we have raging forest fires threatening our town”, both guys explain. People have to stay inside because of the thick smoke. Or they need to run of be evacuated. Last summer the homes of some of our team only just escaped being burned down.”
Solar
“For the Lego pitch we had to invent something that would be really useful for our own community. Straight away we went for something to discover forest wildfires in an earlier stage, and so to keep them from spreading and releasing CO2 into the atmosphere.
“What if we put solar driven monitoring cameras on strategic high spots in the forest? And connect them to a website, where everyone can check their continuous images all day? That way, the community itself becomes an online fire watch network. And who’s most often online? Right: the kids!
Open source
Both the Lego jury and Sony Company - one of the competition's sponsors - were thoroughly impressed. Sony helped the Meadow Vista school team install five solar test cameras on the Tahoe Forest hills aroung their town.
Sony’s executive Morgan David proudly shows one of the Fire Guard 'robots', with a 360 degree view CCTV camera in its perspex dome ‘head’. Sony has pledged to put the technical details on an open source on the internet, so everyone around the globe can build a similar protective monitoring tool. Dutch version...
More info on:
http://planetgreen.discovery.com/tech-transport/forest-guard-solar-warning.html
http://presscentre.sony.eu/content/detail.aspx?NewsAreaId=2&ReleaseID=5215
Photography: © Michel Robles
Martial Art
Once they were bullets, pistols or grenades. Now under the deft hands of Mozambique’s possibly most famous sculptor Goncalo Mabunda they have been transformed into Art.
Recycling AK-47's and other arms from the one-time civil war has become the trade mark of Mabunda and a couple of his fellow artists. I saw some of the results in a small B&B in Antwerp. But even the British Museum and the Bill Clinton Foundation acquired pieces from the 'Arms into Art' programme. Read more…
Photo: © Michel Robles
High on FSC
Ten years ago the Netherlands were an admired environmental pioneer nation. Nowadays, due to a shortsighted neoliberal policy we are almost tail-end Charley within the European Union. Belgium, on the other hand, is a real runner-up. Last December (2010) the Flemish Leukenheide distillery presented Dennenknopje (Pine Bud). Dennenknopje is the world’s very first jenever (traditionally a truly Dutch strong drink), made from a Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) labeled wood product. The gin-like softbooze is distilled from pine cones from the Pinus silvestris. The pines grow in Flanders’ vastest, FSC certified forest region Bosland. A local high from an okay forest. Innovation can be anywhere.…
Questioning Plastiki pride
The newly designed cradle-to-cradle catamaran Plastiki has recently arrived is Sidney after a publicity voyage from California across the Pacific Ocean. The designers claim extreme recyclability. But, contrary to earlier announcements, the ship will not be up-cycled now that it has reached its destination. The builders say they've become too attached to their newborn baby. Of course, the vessel can be a showcase for years to come. But, hey, isn't this kind of attachment of people to their achievements precisely the reason why our earth is becoming such a cluttered place? www.theplastiki.com
Sweet C2C
Cradle-to-cradle handmade beauty: go haunt the town's antique and recycle shops and flea markets for a bunch of elegant (or maybe you prefer funny or modern design) plates, saucers and wine glasses. Wash them well, sand the glasses' brims lightly and glue things together with strong porcelain glue. Any shape, size and design you fancy, will do.
Lo and behold: you have now created your own home grown bonbonnière! For sweets, cookies, fruit - or sandwiches if you like. Ladies love'em! Dozens were sold in a fashion shop in my home town. Enjoy more...
Photos: © Michel Robles
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