Sparks Sustainability

Circularity & Waste Mgmt in Developing Regions via Water Treatment

Starting circularity sounds difficult anywhere, but how can it even be attempted in cities in Developing Regions? Wastewater treatment plants can help start circularity, drastically help waste management, and of course help water quality as well. 

Spurring Sustainability & Circular Economy Innovations with Prizes

In this episode I look to the early history of the aviation industry in the first decades of the 20th Century for inspiration on how best to spur the advancements and innovations needed to move us toward circular economies.

Forest Preservation Around the World - Fighting Deforestation & Biodiversity Loss

Deforestation is causing biodiversity loss all over the world. How can we provide regular payments to landowners for preserving forest areas just as they are, and how can each of us have a much more immediate connection to those forests? I discuss one possible way.

Dual-Use Battery Capacity for the Home and Electric Vehicle to Share

We buy an EV with a large battery capacity that isn't needed 95% of the time, and then we get another large battery for our home. In this episode I discuss the idea of having a battery capacity that can be shared between them both for less wasted capacity.

Initial LCAs for the Architecture and Contruction Industry

Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) of the total environmental impact of a building or construction project can be done, but always towards the end when it is too late to make a difference. In this episode I discuss a way to have an LCA done towards the beginning of a project, early enough to motivate improvements.

Rethinking Architecture for a Circular Construction Industry

Currently there isn't much of a way for materials from deconstructed buildings to be used in new construction, as there isn't really a good way for an architect to know exactly what circular materials will be available years in advance. What's needed is a modification/revamp of architecture to allow for the use of these materials.

(cm)2 - Circular Materials Commodities Market

In this episode I discuss an online forum/marketplace on which companies can form industrially symbiotic relationships by posting their own available waste streams, and finding other's circular streams for their own inputs and needs.

Rooftop Solar by Electric Utility Companies

In this episode I discuss a strategy of, rather than having individual homeowners responsible for investing in rooftop solar, electric utility companies make use of residential & commercial roofs for installing their own solar panels. Power generation inside of the city, decentralized, and without the cost of buying land and building the transmission infrastructure. The owner gets credited an amount monthly based on the kWh installed on their roof.

Rethinking the Model for Electric Vehicle Batteries

Right now we buy electric cars with 250-300 miles of range and then almost never use it. How can we stop wasting capacity when we don't need it, and yet have access to it when we do? Here I discuss an idea for a different way to think about powering electric cars.

Sustainable Fashion: A Circular Economy Business Model for the Clothing Industry

The clothing/fashion industry is one of the most wasteful in the world. People are buying far more clothing, far cheaper, wearing all of it far less, and most of it ultimately ends up in a landfill. In this episode I discuss a business model for the fashion world that changes the paradigm of the industry to a circular one.