Humanity now has a great number of sustainable solutions that can be of help to people and the planet. Here at the SPADES Community we hope to get as many of these solutions out to those who are on the frontline, which is one reason why we allocated 10% of the SPADES Tokens for charitable awards. In this blog, we share some of our favorites solutions.
Plumpy'Nut
Plumpy’Nut is a peanut-based paste, providing children suffering from the most serious form of acute malnutrition with all of the essential nutrients and calories needed to rebuild their strength and restore them to health.
One 3-ounce packet delivers 500 Calories per serving. Plumpy’nut isn’t perishable and travels easily.
It is used directly, as is, without prior dilution. This avoids any risk of bacteriological contamination by polluted water.
Peanut allergies have not been found to be a problem in usage due to a lack of allergic reactions in the target populations
The success of therapeutic Ready-to-Use Foods (RUFs) in crisis situations has encouraged the humanitarian community to adapt this tool to the pre-emptive treatment of children threatened by severe acute malnutrition—before they reach the crisis stage.
Plumpy’Nut has a two-year shelf-life and requires no water, preparation, or refrigeration. Its ease of use has made mass treatment of malnutrition in famine situations more efficient than in the past. Severe acute malnutrition has traditionally been treated with therapeutic milk and required hospitalization. Unlike milk, Plumpy’Nut can be administered at home and without medical supervision.
NOTHING BUT NETS
Nothing But Nets is a global, grassroots campaign to raise awareness and funding to combat malaria.
Every two minutes, a child dies from this disease caused by a single mosquito bite. Malaria is preventable and treatable, with a life-saving, insecticide-treated bed net and other malaria prevention tools
With a small contribution, Nothing But Nets provides long-lasting, insecticidal bed nets (LLINs) as a simple, cost-effective solution to protect families from malaria while they sleep. Join the global fight against malaria by sending a net and saving a life.
SOLAR POWERED ATMOSPHERIC WATER GENERATORS
Above is a rendering for the EcoloBlue 400,000 Liter/Day Atmospheric Water Generator Station Concept.
These water stations are also scalable to create up to 1,000,000 liters of water a day.
An atmospheric water generator (AWG) is a device that extracts water from humid ambient air. Unlike a dehumidifier, an AWG is designed to render the water potable. AWGs are useful where pure drinking water is difficult or impossible to obtain, because there is almost always a small amount of water in the air that can be extracted. Water is life, certain places in the world would benefit greatly from this technology.
The Incas were able to sustain their culture above the rain line by collecting dew and channeling it to cisterns for later distribution. Historical records indicate the use of water-collecting fog fences. These traditional methods have usually been completely passive, requiring no external energy source other than naturally occurring temperature variations.
Several inventors have developed air wells as a way to passively collect moisture from air.
ROCKET STOVES
In collaboration with local communities over the past ten years, Aid Africa’s engineers have designed, tested, and re-designed the Rocket Stove.
The current design uses just a third of the fuel for cooking than an open fire, produces about 75% less emissions, is designed to be very inexpensive, easy to mass produce with local materials, and intended to help the most people.
ROOM TO READ
knowing how to read makes people safer, healthier and more self-sufficient — yet over 750 million people are illiterate and two thirds are women and girls.
That’s why Room to Read’s innovative model focuses on deep, systemic transformation within schools in low-income countries during the two most critical time periods in a child’s schooling: early primary school for literacy acquisition and secondary school for girls’ education.
AIR CARS
Compressed air is a viable form of power that allows the accumulation and transport of energy.
A compressed-air vehicle is fuelled by pressure vessels filled with compressed air and propelled by the release and expansion of the air within a Pneumatic motor or motor adapted to compressed air.
With the incorporation of bi-energy (compressed air + fuel) the CAT Vehicles have increased their driving range to close to 2000 km with zero pollution in cities and considerably reduced pollution outside urban areas.
PAULOWNIA TREES
The Paulownia Tree is the fastest growing Hardwood Tree on the planet. Also called the Empress, Kiri, Princess, or Dragon Tree, it is a truly miraculous solution for beauty, cleaning air, sustainable agro-forestry for wood needs, phyto-remediation, reclaiming surfaced mined-lands, and decreasing pressure on indigenous forests.
The Paulownia can achieve a growth rate and tree size in only three to five years that would normally take other tree species 25 years. It can regenerate itself or be propagated from root cuttings and tissue cultures. It can be invasive in certain areas, but utilized properly the Paulownia is a truly miraculous gift of nature.
It is used for making furniture, veneer, panels, and as the raw material for paper, and biofuels. It is water-resistant and with amazing resonance which makes it highly valued and sought for musical instruments.
Also very important, many Paulownia species resist illnesses, insects and pests which are killing many of the trees today. The use of Paulownia in Japan dates back to 200 AD. Traditionally, when Japanese couples have a daughter, they plant a Paulownia tree. When the daughter is ready to marry, they cut down the tree and make a dowry chest, furniture and other items out of it for wedding gifts. Ancient Lore has it that if they planted a Paulownia tree near their house, the legendary Phoenix would come across their land and bring prosperity and wisdom to them.
I hope you enjoyed the content shared in this blog. There is so much available to us in order to live more sustainable lives, solve problems related to water, energy, education, and health. In the future we will share more great solutions, and some of our favorite organizations that are working to tangibly provide those solutions.
All the best to you, yours, and everyone.
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