Sustainability

To drive down the cost of biodiesel, researchers have developed an eco-friendly way of extracting triacetin, a combustion-enhancing additive, from an abundant waste source, cigarette butts, both reducing waste and providing a sustainable use for it.

A kangaroo riffing on his air guitar, a sentient snowball, a face-planting seabird, a comically depressed owl and a twinkle-toed otter are among the funny, candid images that shone brightest in this much-loved, feel-good wildlife photography contest.

More than 17 million US households now have chickens. The world's first smart Coop, which is an ideal gateway to help novices raise chooks, has now rolled out Cluck Talk, which can tell you just what your chatty birds are saying to each other and to you.

Researchers have made concrete 30% stronger by replacing a percentage of sand with spent coffee grounds, an organic waste produced in huge amounts that usually ends up in landfill. The method offers a greener approach to construction.

For all its uses, plastic is unfortunately one of our least sustainable materials. Now, scientists at Berkeley Lab have developed a way to engineer bacteria to produce raw materials that can be made into plastics that are completely recyclable.

Conventional breeding of trees takes time, but CRISPR gene editing should help speed things up. Now, scientists at North Carolina State University have used CRISPR to adjust the genomes of poplar trees to make them easier to turn into paper products.

In an effort to create low-cost, sustainable housing, researchers have created a composite material by replacing sand in concrete and mortar with a common, non-degradable waste product: used disposable diapers. But would you build your house with it?

A massive multinational grapples with the dual challenges of decarbonization and a shift toward sustainable materials. Michelin is pushing change on a generational timeline, and showed us some new prototypes, as well its latest-gen factory lines.

One of the ironies of salmon farming lies in the fact that although the salmon themselves aren't wild-caught, their feed is made up of fish that are. According to new research, it would be ecologically better if we just ate those feed fish ourselves.

Dubai's Expo 2020 recently began and Carlo Ratti Associatti and Italo Rota have created a pavilion for Italy. Aiming to produce a sustainable build that wouldn't end up in landfill, it's made from recycled bottles, orange peel and three boat hulls.

Given that the currently available BMW i8 and i3 are already fairly futuristic cars, one might wonder what form a Bimmer made 19 years from now would take. The German automaker is exploring that question, with its BMW i Vision Circular concept.

German startup Sono Motors has introduced new battery technology for its forthcoming Sion electric vehicle that promises to not only power the vehicle across longer trips but allow higher charging rates in between.