We recently attended the Collision Conference in Toronto. It’s known as the fastest growing tech conference in North America…and we saw why! There were more than 25,000 attendees! And celebrity-entrepreneur speakers like Joseph Gordon-Levitt; Seth Rogan; Steve Aoki; Terrell Owens; Akon; Timbaland; Kara Swisher (anyone who knows tech knows this woman’s work); and a personal hero of ours, the inspiring Christiana Figueres (who was instrumental in bringing the 2015 Paris Agreement to life!). It was quite an incredible few days!
We were awarded the privilege of having a stand for one day, which left two days to see as much as we could possibly see. And we liked it! There were some amazing creations in the VR field; wonderfully weird robotics and very innovative concepts for transport. But obviously what we were really interested in were those who work within the sustainability space. And we weren’t disappointed! In fact there was one whole day of a whole stage dedicated to Planet:Tech, which featured an incredible line-up of presentations and panel discussions on all things planet Earth, and maintaining human life here.
We wanted to give you a run down of our favourite 5 companies who we ‘collided with’, who are working on helping save our planet. Maybe you can help them in their quest, or grab yourself some excellent products, but it’s great to even just be aware of their excellent work.
As we recently featured an article on sustainable travel on our YouTube channel, I’ll start with Wayaj. These guys are determined that we can maintain our wanderlust, sense of adventure or need for R & R while doing so with respect for our environment. So they bring you “sustainable and socially responsible destinations and experiences from around the world”, in a user friendly App or website. Their service is free for users and accommodations alike, and the App is available on iOS and Android. Their name is from a Kreyol word for travel/voyage, and with their App you can certainly do just that! They rate the accommodations which apply to be listed with them based on 7 criteria: impact on local community; water conservation; management; energy; waste management; local product purchasing policies; and indoor environment. They even have projects which you can choose to carbon offset with. Visit Wayaj to learn more and discover sustainable destinations, whether you’re looking for a personal getaway or going on a business trip.
Whilst you’re on vacation, you may be sipping cocktails. Possibly through a straw. Of course we would hope you’ve declined the straw unless it’s eco-friendly…and enter our next Collision discovery: Loliware! Chelsea Fawn Briganti, CEO, is right up front in the charge for a plastic free future. Her problem with current plasticware: “Single use plastics should never be built to last, they should be designed to disappear”. So she has teamed up with material scientists, food technologists, seaweed biologists and biopolymerists to invent a 100% plant based, hyper-compostable, marine degradable, gluten free, sugar free and non-GMO drinking straw! And why would it be important that it’s sugar free and gluten free?? Because you can eat it! I saw Chelsea EAT A STRAW!! This was on stage during the pitching competition – which Loliware won first place in! Of course if you don’t want to munch it down, it will completely degrade in only a few days. Wow! These straws have already been a huge success, with Marriott Hotels being one of their Fortune 500 partners.
Do you worry about how many plastic pens you use? Do you ever wish you had more greenery or flowers around you? Well, meet Eco-P! They wanted to tackle the issue of millions of plastic pens ending up in landfill every year. So they have produced the Eco-Pen, which is made from recycled paper, with the ink cartridge being made from recycled plastic, and they are 82% degradable. Their Eco-Pencils are made from newspaper and 100% degradable! Using green writing implements would probably be enough for most people. But Eco-P are going further…there’s a small capsule at the end of each pen and pencil which contains seeds! Once the implement is finished with, plant the water soluble capsule directly into soil, and voila, you have some basil or lucky clover! You’ve avoided using a plastic biro AND you’ve contributed to the greening up of the planet! They’re available to buy in bulk for promotional purposes, or individually, from their website. And if you order more than 500 you can have the seed of your choice! Soon they’ll be putting flower seeds in, to help the bee populations…a great decision if you ask us!
With summer heating up, we’re often switching on the A/C. But when do we switch it off? Is the thermostat accurate? Is the timer accurate?? Ecobee Founder Stuart Lombard struggled to find a system which performed as it should. So he designed one! And the result is sleek and beautiful to look at, easy to use, and wonderfully functional. Ecobee make wi-fi enabled (and now voice controlled!) smart thermostats for the heating and cooling in your home or commercial space. Stuart was driven by reducing his family’s utility spend and their carbon footprint, and is now on a mission to help other families do the same. But he’s not just helping families when they buy his product, he has a very active social conscience. They have donated nearly 800 thermostats to Toronto Community Housing and 150 thermostats to Habitat for Humanity! Stuart’s mission is certainly bigger than just controlling the heat and cold in a room! Visit the website for more information or to place an order…get that carbon footprint and utility bill on the way down!
All this talk of carbon needing to be reduced…but is there any good which can come from carbon?? Actually yes. Carbon Upcycling Technologies (CUT) is working to “flip the script on carbon”. Rather than capturing, neutralizing or merely offsetting carbon, this diverse team of scientists, engineers and chemists have decided they want to see a future where CO2 is helping us towards carbon neutrality. Sound a bit like double dutch? Let me explain: they chemically absorb CO2 emissions into inorganic solids to create fine nanoparticles which can be added to other materials for the purpose of making them stronger; less corrosive; less permeable; better for pharmaceutical delivery; or protected from UV rays; for example. Perfectly clear on that now? Yes, it’s a little complex and very technical…so luckily this team of award winning experts have it in hand! Just know that these carbon containing nanoparticles can be added to concrete, plastic, coatings, adhesives, solar panels or L-ion batteries, and that’s a good thing! Visit their website to learn more (thoroughly!) on how they’re making CO2 green.
Technology is an impressive area of work. Collision was an impressive conference. And these companies above are doing some impressive and important work for the future of our planet. So jump onto their websites and learn more about them, like how to incorporate them into your daily challenge to reduce your carbon footprint – buy some pens or get better climate control or book a sustainable getaway. And watch with a keen eye as these companies with sustainability and environmental preservation top of mind bring positive change to our world.
