ANewPhilosophy

ArthurHuangdesignsbuildingsandotherproductstohavethesmallestcarbonfootprintpossible.Thismeanshewantsaproducttoproduceaslittlecarbondioxidegasaspossiblewhenthatproductisbeingused.GuesswhatthecarbonfootprintoftheEcoArkis? Zero!


Thebuildingrunswithoutproducinganycarbondioxide.Evensystemsthatrequireelectricity,likethefans,pumps,andlights,gettheirpowerfromwindandsolarenergy,notbyburningfossil fuels.

SolarpowercapturedduringthedayrunsEcoArk’sLEDlightingsystemsat night.

HuangridesaskateboardmadefromrecycledwasteattheMiniwizofficein Taiwan.

Upcycling

TheEcoArkisjustoneexampleofhowArthurHuangturnstrashintotreasure.Heisconvincedthatmostofthewastepeopleproducecanbeusedasresourcestomakesomethingelse.Andthenewproductcanbemorevaluablethantheoriginal.Thisideaiscalledupcycling. 


Toturnthisideaintoaction,HuangstartedthecompanyMiniwiz.Thenamecomesfromthecompany’smotto:“Itiswisetominimize.”Hisgoalistohelppeopleminimizetheircarbonfootprintbyusingupcycledproducts.Thatwillalsoreducetheamountofwasteintheworld,especiallyplastic.Plasticdrinkbottles,forinstance,wereupcycledtomakepolli-bricks.Thisisonlyoneofabout1,200newmaterialsMiniwizhascreatedfrom trash.

TheSky’stheLimit

Whenitcomestomaterialsandproductsthatcanbemadeofupcycledtrash,thesky’sthelimit.Literally.Miniwizhasdevelopedamaterialfromplasticwastethatisusedtomakewingsforaone-personairplane.That’soneinventionthatreallyputsthe“up”in upcycling!


WhatotherwondershavecomeoutofMiniwiz’s“trashlab?"Howaboutfurnituremadeoutofcigarettebutts—themostlittereditemintheworld?ThentherearesunglassesmadefromCDs.Anddon'tforgetsneakersmadefromupcycledplasticthatcomepackagedinaclearshoeboxthatcanberefoldedintoa backpack.

Thesesunglassesaremadefromrecycled materials.

Trashpresso

Oftenthetrickiestpartofupcyclingisfiguringouthowtodoit.Howdoyouactuallychangeplasticgarbageintoausefulmaterialorproduct?Sometimes,youhavetoinventamachineandawholenewwayofdoingthings.That’sexactlywhatthecreativemindsatMiniwiz did.

Huangdesignedshoesandtheboxtheycomeinoutof trash.

Trashpresso

Trashpressoisanassemblylineofseveralmachinesworkingtogether.Theprocessbeginsbyshreddingtheplastictrash,usuallybottles,intoflakes.Theflakesarethenwashed,dried,andplacedintomolds.Theflakesaremeltedinanovenandpressedintotheshapeofthemold.Mostoftheshapesaresix-sidedtilesthatpeoplecanusetobuildwalls,floors,orceilings,orfordecoration.Trashpressoisdesignedtohaveazerocarbonfootprint.Itdoesn’tburnfossilfuels.Instead,solarpanelscapturesunlightandturnitinto electricity.


OneofthemostimportantfeaturesofTrashpressoisthatitcangojustaboutanywhere.ThisportabilityallowsHuangtousehisinventiontoeducatepeopleeverywhereabouttheproblemofplastictrashandtoinspirethemtodowhattheycantobepartofthe solution.

Trashpresso

1: SHREDDER

breaks down plastic trash into tiny flakes.

2: WASHER

cleans trash to remove impurities.

3: DEHUMIDIFIER

dries the wet flakes.

4: WATER PIPING

carries dirty water away.

4: DRYER

further reduces moisture.

5: WORK BENCH

is where flakes are placed into molds.

5: WATER TANKS

stores water  for the process.

6: ELECTRICAL STATION

contains the electrical system to make the machine operate. 

6: AIR FILTER

prevents the release of toxic vapors that might be produced during the melting stage. 

6: OVEN

where flakes melt in their molds, forming finished files.

6: WATER FILTER

purifies the water and cycles the water back through the system.

CIRCULARECONOMY

Mosteconomiestodayarelinear.Thismeansresourcesareusedtomakeaproduct.Theproductisusedandthenthrownaway,producingwasteandpollution.Butinacirculareconomy,wasteisusedasaresourcetomaketheproductagainortomakeanotherproduct.Sotherereallyisnosuchthingaswasteinacircular economy.

recycle

make

use

reuse

remake

CIRCULARECONOMY