To help curb plastic waste, Pharrell Williams collaborated with Pentatonic to create a cutlery set from recycled CDs. 

As the pandemic continues to place new demands on the built environment, designers are tasked with creating spaces that protect the physical, as well as mental and emotional, health and wellbeing of those within them. But adaptability also is key. When considering return-to-workplace plans, designers must do more than keep people safe—they must also foster new and evolving human behaviors. The question that remains top of mind is: How, exactly?    

Tis the season for gingerbread creations and Ikea Canada recently released printable instructions to build half-dozen pieces of its signature furniture out of the sweet treat. 

IKEA, the multinational furnishing brand, is spotlighting the importance of limiting furniture waste by opening its first second-hand store in Eskilstuna, Sweden, on Nov. 2. Located in ReTuna Återbruksgalleria—an innovative mall for recycled and upcycled goods—the 74-square-meter store will open for six months as part of a pilot run as IKEA aims to become "a fully circular and climate positive business by 2030."

Meet Oceanbird, a cargo ship powered by giant wings meant to reduce carbon emissions typically released into the air by traditional engines. 

The grandson of famed oceanographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau plans to build a large underwater research station in the Caribbean that would allow up to 12 researchers to stay below the surface for months. It will take approximately $135 million to construct the facility, and it could make a big difference for deep-sea exploration.

In the Czech Republic, an artist 3D-printed a house in two days. It is expected to last 100 years and can be positioned on land or float on water.

In partnership with Aklan State University, a Filipino shipyard company is developing a hybrid ship that relies on wave energy, in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from water travel. The design is based off of the bangka, a traditional Filipino boat.

Take a look at how educators, architects, and designers throughout the industry are making strides to reduce their carbon footprints in the rise of "come-to-carbon" moments. 

When technology and design collide, there are often amazing outcomes. For the architecture and engineering firm edg, one such result of technology-driven design is the Synthesis 3D collection. This portfolio of cast-concrete furniture and wall paneling was developed with, and named after, edg’s own 3D printing software, which has vast ­­­­­­­­design and customization capabilities, as the new collection makes abundantly evident.

The Harvard University Graduate School of Design awarded Daniel Fernández Pascual the prestigious 2020 Wheelwright Prize to further his research proposal Being Shellfish: The Architecture of Intertidal Cohabitation. With the $100,000 travel grant, Fernández Pascual plans to examine the use of seaweed and discarded marine shells as sustainable binding agents for buildings. 

Design firm LPA created a California office space that consumes an estimated 70 percent less energy than one of comparable size, type, and location. How? A mix of smart lighting and space planning for starters. 

Adidas and Allbirds, the sneaker startup, are joining forces to design a performance shoe with the lowest carbon footprint ever. 

Afghanistan's all-girls robotics team, the Afghan Dreamers, found a way to build emergency ventilators out of car parts, arming healthcare workers with much needed equipment during the pandemic. 

Even NASA's technology experiences glitches now and then. About a decade ago, its Spirit rover got stuck in a sand trap on Mars, unable to wriggle free. But engineers at the Georgia Institute of Technology developed a series of motions that could help future rovers blaze ahead, even in challenging terrain. 

Researchers at the University of California San Diego are developing a  “thermal camouflage” material that enables wearers to hide from heat-detecting sensors, including infrared cameras and night-vision goggles. Can your jacket do that? 

Two Italian engineers—founders of a company that makes items such as earthquake sensors and silicone bandages—take their country's ventilator valve shortage into their own hands. 

With innovations in smart cities, self-driving cars, remote collaboration, and online mental health support, how will digital connectivity be transformed in the post-coronavirus era? 

Finnish design brand Marimekko, known for maximalist prints, partnered with a fabric innovation startup to develop wood pulp-based fabric, which requires 99% less water than cotton production. Plus, each garment can be recycled or composted at the end of its lifecycle. 

As the tech scene booms in Manhattan, The Company Building at 335 Madison, designed by SHoP Architects, is hoping to reap the benefits by appealing to creative workers with its coffee shop vibe. 

LEGO invited artist Camille Walala to create a whimsical public art installation in London, which incorporates the brand's new 2D tiles: LEGO DOTs. 

Since ancient times, humans have been altering the environment to create throughways for the transport of food and goods, not to mention travel and military defense. But over the course of thousands of years, little has changed regarding the way roads are built. It’s still a necessity to clear trees and disrupt layers of earth to make way for smoother, more durable foundations, but at what cost?  

As 3D printing gains momentum across sectors, it's proving to be a game-changer in healthcare. The technology is making costly prosthetics more accessible and improving neonatal care with 3D-printed holders for syringes used to feed premature babies. 

This hybrid between a yacht and a submarine skims the ocean's surface and travels deep beneath it, offering passengers an ultra-scenic ride while representing a new class of "mega yachts." 

Google has created a somewhat mythical office culture with its nap pods and upscale food options, but the company also has a knack for transforming old warehouses, factories, and storage facilities into sleek workplaces. Take a look at some of Google's most unique offices. 

The next wave of nuclear reactors won't look like this! One energy startup created a compact prototype reactor, which uses hardly any nuclear fuel and is small enough to ship to any location.

In medicine, diagnostic tools are essential, arguably as important as advancements in treatments. Take the thermometer. In the early 1700s, physicist Gabriel Fahrenheit discovered that adding a bulb of mercury to a narrow glass tube created a more precise and efficient measure of temperature, forever changing the course of medicine. While the mercury thermometer was hardly the first means to document temperature shifts—Galileo created a device to do this in the late 1500s—its minimalist design and precise readings made for a widely accessible innovation. When it comes to the human body, an infection or abnormality only can be cured, or treated, when its presence is known, which means advancements in diagnostic devices are constantly in demand. The same goes for our planet, and instruments that help measure, maintain, and restore its balance are as vital as ever.

This company wants to make drinking this high-end vodka called Air one way to save the Earth. How? Well, they claim the vodka is manufactured in a way as to take greenhouse gas out of the atmosphere.