Saul builds a solar-powered scooter called the Lightfoot – Photo: ABC
Creating comics helps kids be environmentally conscious
Then, on stage, with chestnut brown hair, he projected onto the screen a large graph with parameters that calculated the carbon footprint of every action in his life.
As the founder of a wind power company and a bike commuter, Griffith still feels embarrassed when she learns she’s consuming more energy than the average American. “I thought I was at the forefront of the environmental movement, but I am not,” he said.
Since his TED talk more than 10 years ago, Griffith’s San Francisco lab has raised $100 million in capital from investors and spun off dozens of companies.
As a graduate student and PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in 2004 he and another student created HowToons – a comic book that teaches children to “turn” everyday objects into everyday objects. Interesting inventions, including the electric motor.
In the story, a young boy imagines a future where he can go to school on a winch suspended from a cable, instead of enduring a “smelly school bus” all the way.
Shuguang Zhang, one of his professors at MIT, commented: “Saul has been amazed at how energy affects people long before people notice it.”
The man, who is over 50 years old, won a MacArthur “Genius” grant in 2007 for his “global common good” inventions, which ranged from new ways to treat home water to a series of educational cartoons for children. In addition, he has also spent over a decade tackling climate change through technology.
And the solution this inventor is aiming for is mass electrification.
Saul’s team (Electrify 2515) convinced 1,500 households to electrify their homes and use renewable energy – Photo: ABC
Decarbonize every home
While most environmentalists target the fossil fuel industry, Griffith wants to reduce carbon emissions for every household in America.
Griffith counts several things for his ambitions on American soil: About 250 million gasoline cars will be electrified, about 90 million roofs will harness solar power, and about 120 million homes will be replaced with electrical appliances. Replace all gas stoves and fireplaces with electric appliances.
Because homes are a huge source of emissions, according to Griffith, and that problem requires a complete replacement of fossil fuel-powered appliances in the home. Otherwise, efforts to achieve net-zero carbon emissions would be futile.
OtherLab, the group that Griffith co-founded more than a decade ago, is where scientists, engineers and even entrepreneurs are trying to find ways to stop global warming. One of the group’s current projects aims to completely redesign the offshore wind platform.
Another small team is in charge of designing a set of solar powered scooters for an early launch. He also created a tracking system that helps solar panels follow the Sun’s orbit throughout the day.
Joan Huang (special projects lead) and Hans von Klemm (engineer), both working for OtherLab, are working on designing modular blocks that can be stacked in garage corners to store excess energy from rooftop solar systems. Can be kept neatly.
The heating and storage systems are being tested in several homes, including Huang’s in California. Their hope is to store some power from solar panels at a much lower cost than lithium batteries, making the technology accessible to more people. OtherLab’s projects have received grants from the US Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Laboratories, the US Navy, and NASA.
By digging deeper into past energy use patterns, the Griffith team came to this conclusion: how to meet climate goals and meet today’s energy needs without forcing Americans to downsize their homes or cars, use public transportation, or become vegetarian. How to consume less than half the energy. To electrify everything.
In 2020, Griffith started a non-profit called “Rewiring America” to promote the idea of mass electrification. He spoke to lawmakers in Washington, including Senator Martin Heinrich, who, inspired by Griffith’s suggestions, introduced a resolution in the US Senate on 18 May calling for widespread electrification of American homes and businesses.
Speaking at the press conference, Mr Heinrich said the technology is now capable of supporting electrification, so the US needs to invest, collaborate and train the workforce in this area to turn the goals into reality.
trouble and hope
According to The Washington Post, although he is considered a genius and a visionary, this does not mean that all his projects bring the desired results.
In 2006, Griffith co-founded Makani Power, a kite-powered wind power company based on a former naval air station in San Francisco Bay. The inventor’s idea is to produce giant kites that can fly high enough to catch the strongest and most steady winds, thereby generating clean and sustainable energy.
Unfortunately, the cost of energy produced with conventional turbines has gone down as more and larger turbines have come on the market. Makani’s kite is not strong enough to compete with his opponents. The Google X Foundation acquired Makani Power in 2013 and spun off the company in 2020.
That failure didn’t discourage Griffith, on the contrary, she learned more valuable lessons for herself in her journey to change the status quo on climate and the environment.
He admitted: “I am a scientist, engineer, inventor and simply a father who wishes for his children to live in a better world. The facts convinced me. That there is a reason for me to maintain hope.”
It is the hope that the generations to come will live on a safer and healthier planet. And that great future requires my partnership with you today…
While many environmental activists focus only on the somewhat bleak prospect for Earth, Griffith believes climate change can be solved and is still hopeful for a positive future. which we are facing now. Huang shared, “Saul always tries to answer his own questions: How can I make the most impact? New technology is often inaccessible?”
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Within moments, the young man lost many of his friends and relatives in the landslide. Since then, he has made it a point to call for planting more trees instead of cutting them down.
Next Time: Plant More Trees Instead of Cutting Them Down
