I have been a surfer since the age of 8 and passionate about conserving the environment for generations to come. This has led me to use and develop my design skills in new directions. I have been developing a surf product using recycled local plastic waste streams. I believe we need a 2 pronged attack to try to use design for good and find solutions to our environmental challenges (if not more). We need to look at how we can find new and better ways to work with existing plastic waste as well as designing new materials that we can replace plastic and unfriendly materials with. With this in mind I have recently been exploring bio materials and whether we can design new materials that can be good for the planet.
I am currently exploring this exciting and new field of #biodesign. I have successfully managed to make a robust material from used coffee granules as well as a bioplastic and am exploring and designing some potential products. The coffee waste came from a local coffee shop, Friska, are based in Bristol and have 12 locations now. They very kindly gave me some material to work and experiment with. This is one of my first prototypes. After initial tests I have made a new mold and it is now in funky new shape. Made with a variety of additional bio ingredients, surprisingly hard and robust once air dried! It will make a good planter for certain acid loving plants due to its natural acidity.
The bioplastic of which you can see below in the video is an initial test of a completely eco, sustainable and biodegradable plastic alternative. Made from biomaterials it's a very flexible, robust material and could be a great alternative to traditional plastics which are not biodegradable. I am excited about this material and continue to explore its potential! Find out more at www.ecotribo.com which is my ecobrand I am currently developing. At the moment it is work in progress! I am dedicated to finding design solutions to our eco challenges and use this platform to document and explore ways in that might happen.
