Bio-Based Ideas

These are thoughts that I had on this topic. Fact: 1.) Burning of fossil fuels leads to release of CO2. 2.) CO2 is a greenhouse gas that leads to warming of the planet, and all of us are directly responsible through the burning of CO2. Therefore 480 gallons of gas releases 9600 lb of CO2 per year. Since we have to reduce our carbon emissions by a lot, why don't I arbitrarily ask if it is possible to reduce emission by 90%, that is go from 9600 lb of CO2/year to only 960 lb of CO2/year. We need a 10-fold improvement in GHG emissions reductions What are possible menu options one could chose from to get to this point? 1 .) Reduce the distance from home to work The fold improvement is a direct result of how much closer one can move to work. For instance, if one were to reduce the distance to commute to work by half, this would lead to a 2-fold reduction in GHG emisions. There are other side benefits of moving closer to work which include reduced car maintenance costs...

This is an important topic and so I want to get the most important things out of the way first: Chemical sunscreens containing the following ingredients contribute to coral bleaching:  Oxybenzone Octinoxate Octocrylene (used to also stabilize avobenzone) 4-methylbenzylidine camphor Anything containing Parabens Don't be part of the problem and avoid using them! It's important to note that claims on sunscreens are not regulated and therefore, companies can put the wording "coral reef safe" on the packaging even though they contain the above chemicals. This is misleading if not outright false. Instead use "physical" sun screens that contain non-nanoparticle zink oxide. Physical sun screens differ from chemical sunscreens in that the sit ontop of the skin to reflect or scatter UVA/B rays away from the skin before it reaches it. Chemical sunscreens absorb the UVA/B rays instead to neutralize them. To be clear, I am not proposing not using sunscreen! I...

In today's post, I want to just get on paper thoughts I have had around e-mobility. Please forgive the wordy rambling. I don't know about you, but to me 2018 has been the year where I have seen a lot more movement around e-mobility lately. GM, Ford, Mercedes, BMW, Toyota, Nissan, Hyundai, Kia, Honda...you name it...every major car manufacturer has at least on paper a hybrid, plugin hybrid or EV on offer. Some of you probably will say that I forgot to mention Tesla at this point. I have not forgotten about that company at all. I am actually rooting for that company the most because all other car manufacturers are more or less tepidly entering the market. Only Tesla is in it full-force. I really do hope that Tesla succeeds for so many reasons because their success will light a fire below every other car manufacturers. The question would arise why it is that traditional car manufacturers were not the first one to go full force producing and selling ALL EVs...but I digress.

It's 2018! In search for more ways to be more sustainable, I thought that I want to reduce the trash output this year. These are 3 things I think I can easily implement this year: 1.) Zero-Waste Cleaning Products If you look around, ALL personal care products found in any supermarket use plastic containers. Method's line of products (and similar companies like 7th Generation etc.) are better because they use 100% recycled plastic, and are themselves recyclable. Method also offers refillable bags on some of the products which also reduces plastic waste generated. Just yesterday, I came across a company that goes a step further, named Plaine Products . This company like the above makes responsibly sourced, paraben-free, sulfate-free, cruelty-free cleansing products. However, a big plus is that the products get shipped in reusable aluminum bottles with reusable pumps. When you run low on the products, the company sends you another bottle with a return shipping label for the...

One man's trash is another one's shoe! Since Earth Week is starting tomorrow, I wanted share with you some concrete ways of how individuals like you and me can make an impact on a wider scale. I then also wanted to use this example to challenge everyone to think creatively about the larger context. So you know how the saying goes: "One man's trash is another one's treasure." Today, I want to talk to you about garbage. Plastic garbage specifically. Plastic is quite a wondrous material. Made from oil by man with just a few additives can turn this polymer into so many different sorts of plastics with so many different properties from thin and flimsy plastic bags, to the carpet on which I am standing, to this plastic bottle from which I am drinking.

In light of the current drought in California, I have revisited this issue since the last time I wrote about it . Water conservation must be one of the easiest things we can do. According to an article posted by the Sierra Club, the three biggest sources of water consumption are:  The toilet (26.7 %) The clothes washer (21.7%) The shower (16.8%) The article mentions that there is huge variability of course, and it is not clear what is used as a base line here (a 1.6 gal/flush toilet or something with higher consumption, what kind of clothes washer, and what showerhead etc.). At any rate, changing out a toilet can cost anywhere between $200-$500. Changing out a decent clothes washer can run anywhere from $700-$2000 for high-end clothes washers. A showerhead, however, will at most cost about $80 for which you will get a luxury showerhead while having the potential of cutting the water usage more than half! So they are affordable compared to replacing a toilet or washing m...

It's great to hear how people are thinking about using supply chains to have a positive impact on the environment. This is just great! I will let him speak.

Oh boy, it has been too long since I last posted here. It's time to get the cycle started again. Today's post falls into the category of sustainable living. My current shoes are getting old. Living in a free-market society, I thought that every dollar spent is like a vote that the consumer casts. I also thought that shoes these days are not very sustainable: all those volatile organic vapors, all those synthetic materials that don't break down. So I was wondering if there is a way to buy more sustainable products. Many sports wear companies are realizing that people with healthy life styles desire products that reflect their values. I first found a site that ranks these companies according to a standardized list of questions (http://www.rankabrand.org/sportswear-sports-shoes/New+Balance). From there, I found that PUMA is leading the pack. This is not necessarily a company endorsement, but as I was trying to explore shoes that are more sustainable, I came across this video t...

I want to apologize to my readers for not having posted anything in a long time. Ironically, working within the sustainable chemicals field sometimes makes posting about new topics even harder. I have become even more busy over the last couple of months. But my determination to keep this page going has strengthened even more since I have become a father. And the reason for this is simply that preserving the environment or at least helping to setup a frame-work that makes sustainable living possible in the future has become even more important to me now that my son was born.

This is a brief post while I am still mostly writing my thesis. I found another TED video with an interesting way to combine fashion with bio-based products - very interesting indeed.

I have been for a while thinking now that it would be good to have a clear labeling system for products that are produced in a sustainable way from sustainable raw materials (which usually means bio-based). Well, today the USDA announced that a new, voluntary "Bio-preferred" label system was introduced that clearly labels bio-based products which the USDA defines as "those composed wholly or significantly of biological ingredients – renewable plant, animal, marine or forestry materials." The USDA hopes that the labeling system acts as a low investment high marketing return measure to promote the increased sale and use of these products in the commercial market and for consumers who wish to make educated and sustainable purchasing choices for their families. The labeling system is a small part in an overall strategy to decrease dependence on foreign oil, and increase the creation of domestic, green jobs.   For further details and regulations about the detail, I ...

It's been a while since last I talked about my families' path on going on a more sustainable life style. Today, I want to talk about recycling. Like many other houses in the neighborhood, we have 3 trash cans outside: One blue can for recycled goods, a green can for "garden" waste, and a regular black one for trash that will just go to the land-fill. We have in the past sort of haphazardly made use of these containers. I mean: the tons of spam we receive ends up in there, and cut grass goes into the green container. But really, a lot of other stuff just ended up in the black trash bin because it is just so much easier to throw everything into the same trash can in the kitchen. We had a nice and big 13 gallon trash can with a sensor, but since the cheap sensor recently broke, and the lid became suddenly useless, I decided to make recycling easier by purchasing a less technology-intensive trashcan (less complexity = less can break) that, however, has three compartments...

TED talks are ever so inspiring. Earlier in the year , Sylvia Earle was speaking about the need to protect our ocean's resources. It appears that ocean protection is getting more on the radar screen of the general public. Today's post features yet another talk with a very inspiring story on protecting our ocean's resources.

Introduction It's been a while since last, I posted here. Today, I want to introduce another blogging series which I call "Sustainable Living - One Step at a time" In the past, I have often written and talked about interesting new technologies and ideas in the biological field, some of which could be used to reduce the impact human kind makes on the environment. Although many dedicated brains are tackling these interesting challenges, there are even more who are not working in these kinds of fields. What can other people do to reduce one's impact on the environment? Generally, by adapting a more sustainable approach of living.  Because so many habits and other aspects of life would need to be changed, many people may not feel that it is worth pursuing these efforts because the perceived sacrifices would be too big. Alternatively, one may not know where to start. I do not exclude myself it the latter group. So, instead of trying to do everything at the same tim...