Here are six of the most fascinating renewable energy and sustainability projects currently being researched –
1) High-altitude kites
Saul Griffith’s plan for harnessing wind power from kites made a splash at a 2009 TED talk. Griffith’s kite power company, Makani Power, was purchased in 2013 by Google as part of its research and development division ‘Google X’.
Makani is still working on developing its airborne wind turbine, which it says will use less material than conventional turbines and give access to more consistent generation at high altitudes.
Here’s Griffith’s TED talk from 2009 on the potential of kite power:
What do you think about all of this? Can you imagine any of the ideas above actually becoming mainstream? Or perhaps you have a better idea… Leave a comment below or tweet @edie to let us know your thoughts.
Matt Field