 As we come to the end of the Oil Age, there is a general acceptance that the next era of human existence will have to be powered by renewable energy sources. This level-headed, non-cranky analysis examines how the three key alternative energy sources - solar, wind and biomass - are being developed for everyday applications and how they point the way towards genuine energy sustainability for future generations. |  With the industrialisation of countries such China and India, the amount of waste we produce is spiralling out of control. But hope exists. German chemist Michael Braungart and American designer-architect William McDonough are fundamentally changing the way we produce and build. If our waste can become food for the biosphere or the technosphere, then production and consumption could actually become beneficial for the planet. Their Cradle to Cradle concept proposes that every product be designed in such a way that at the end of its lifecycle its component materials become new resources. |