From transportation to housing to lighting, energy alternatives and conservation are all the rage. New hybrid and electric cars are one example of green opportunities. At-home charging stations often require electricians to upgrade the wiring in their owners' homes, as well as add hardware that helps identify the most efficient times to juice up.
As more people choose to pedal around, bicycles are getting their own upgrade. The Gates Corporation in Denver offers a belt-driven bike with a carbon cord and polyurethane mechanism that lasts longer than chains and operates without messy oil for lubrication. Racks of electric bikes at big stores signal a growing demand for improved horns, baskets, frame locks and other accessories.
Electric conservation calls out for ingenious solutions. Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs are steadily displacing incandescents, but CFLs themselves could soon give way to organic light-emitting diode (OLED) lighting, a technology already found in some high-end cell phone screens.
Along with banks and utility companies badgering consumers to "save paper" by banking and paying bills online, innovative computer experts are coming up with countless paperless software programs.
In a South Delhi garage, two Indian brothers concocted Eko Financial Services, whose software converts mom-and-pop kiosks into virtual banks where migrant workers can store their earnings.
With diners taking a grimmer view of the Colonel and the golden arches, the growing food revolution offers opportunities in farming, nutrition and devising new dishes. Nutrition counselling, diet awareness schemes and fitness programs all are prime to be developed into full-fledged businesses. Food delivery systems can't be overlooked. Some Chinese subway stations feature machines dispensing live crabs. To encourage healthier snacking, refrigeration engineer Jerry Parle of Des Moines, Iowa, is designing a new vending machine that won't bruise fresh vegetables and bananas.
Eco-experts are convinced carbon constraints will inevitably convert consumers to low-impact products and services and a whole new way of life.
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