Who’s Who in Green: Tom Szaky

When TerraCycle co-founder and CEO Tom Szaky was 19 years old and a freshman at Princeton University, he entered a business plan competition with a friend that would change his life and lead to one of the most inspiring, truly eco-friendly companies ever created. Little did he know at the time that despite not winning the contest – he came in fourth – Szaky had taken his first step on a relatively short path to the top spot at his very own multi-million-dollar company.

So, what was Szaky’s bright idea? Worm poop. What would become Szaky’s breakout product actually grew from a need for a better fertilizer for his pot plants. It turned out that worm castings did the trick, and Szaky was encouraged by the fact that what most people consider garbage could be so useful. So, he dropped out of Princeton and decided to give entrepreneurship a shot. TerraCycle worm-casting fertilizer was packaged in used soda bottles with spray tops donated by companies who didn’t need them. Soon, it was picked up by Home Depot and Wal-Mart in Szaky’s home country of Canada, earning nearly half a million dollars in sales in 2005. By 2006, TerraCycle debuted in the U.S. and earned over $2.5 million.

Despite the fact that he showed up at important meetings with big-shot head buyers of mass merchandisers looking like he just rolled out of bed, the young CEO charmed his way to success with passion and an intimate knowledge of the product he had created. It helps, too, that TerraCycle offers retailers huge margins on its products due to the fact that, as Szaky has said, worms don’t charge for their labor, never take a day off, produce their body weight in waste every 24 hours and double their numbers ever three months.

TerraCycle has since expanded to offer a range of products including reusable totes made entirely from recycled plastic bags, rain barrels, bird feeders, deer repellent, composters, potting mix, seed starters, natural cleaners, school supplies, eco-friendly fire starters and other items created mostly from post-consumer waste. Even the cleaners come in used 2-liter soda bottles. The plant food made from worm waste is still TerraCycle’s flagship product, and it’s all-natural, all-organic, absolutely goof proof, cheaper than conventional products and actually works better as well.

They’re products made from waste, packaged in waste, and the production process produces virtually zero waste itself. Technically, TerraCycle could be making even more money by being paid to haul away the garbage that the worms eat. Right now, they don’t – but if they choose to go that way, it could mean even more success. Szaky parlayed garbage into useful, eco-friendly products – it’s a win-win for everyone involved.  As the CBS evening news said in a profile of TerraCycle, “[the] story is a reminder about following your dreams. The pot of gold may require dealing with a ton of crap.”

Szaky is hoping to inspire others to create environmentally responsible business models with his musings on ‘eco-capitalism’, which can be read on the TerraCycle website. Given the success that TerraCycle has achieved, people should definitely take notice – we could all learn a thing or two from Szaky’s innovative ways of doing business.  He has provided a model for all eco-entrepreneurs to emulate, and we hope that it’ll inspire an army of new green businesses ready to change the definition of capitalism in the United States and across the world.

Tom Szaky’s Green Score: 72,945

Low-Tech Vertical Farming in Garbage Bags

The awesomeness of vertical farming just got even less expensive and easier to start and maintain. This weekend at Gothenburg’s Gunnebo ‘castle’ Future Gardens exhibit, giant yellow trash bags with holes poked in them poured forth an abundance of edible goodies including lettuce and corn. The construction debris bags were turned into vertical farms by designer Topher Delaney.

From Treehugger:

The orange and yellow Big Bags used in Gunnebo’s gardens are familiar to any large town or city dweller in Sweden - these polypropelene bags (which are recyclable) fill the streets near construction sites yet are less intrusive and more easily picked up for transport of construction debris to recycling facilities than the trash containers used in other countries.

They also seem to make fabulous planter bags - and lots of curious attendees (including this TreeHugger) at the weekend farmers’ market and exhibit at Gunnebo stood snapping pictures of the bags, eager to try this at home - the bags and organic compost were sold on site. Unlike some higher-tech vertical alternatives, this one was just $15 for the bag! But BYOD…

Benefits to this idea abound… like no weeding, total control over soil quality, and great moisture-retaining abilities. They take up barely any space yet are capable of producing so much food. They may not be the prettiest gardens ever, but way to recycle an old bag and use it in a fab new way. Smart.  Green and smart!

Link [Treehugger]

Indoor ‘River Ecosystem’ Aquarium and Hydroponic Garden

French designer Mathieu Lehanneur has created an incredible item that serves as an art installation, aquarium, fish hatchery, hydroponic vegetable garden and home décor at in one. The refrigerated aquarium houses freshwater fish, with vegetables growing in glass pods on top. The vegetables get their water from the tank, and then filter and purify the water for the fish. It’s its own little mini river ecosystem indoors.

I don’t know about the snakes, but all in all this is a pretty sleek and sexy design, and an interesting approach to dealing with the global food crisis. Check out the video of the installation below:

Via [Inhabitat]

Foldable Modular Greenhouse Makes Gardening Easy in Small Spaces

Cool new gear for people living in apartments, condos or other places where green space is impossible to come by: there’s a new ‘foldable greenhouse’ that takes up virtually no space at all when it’s not in use, but expands to become a garden bed with a protective covering.  Designer Daniel Schipper created this lightweight, flexible modular greenhouse specifically for places where garden space comes at a premium.  It’s frameless, and built from recycleable plastic.

This product isn’t yet available retail, but the designer is looking to produce it for the masses.  If you can help, send him a message through his website.

Link [Make] + [Daniel Schipper]

Awesome! Rainwater Harvesting Vertical Garden

Now here is a really cool and smart bit of green designing! Ontario College of Art and Design student Michael Tampilic created this rainwater harvesting vertical terrace, which has been entered into the Rocket 2008 Industrial Graduation Show and Competition. The way it works is pretty brilliant: it connects with your gutter downspout and stores water in a tank, which waters the greenery you plant in the planter boxes. Cotton wicks transport the stored water to the plants.

From Rocket 2008:

Vert is a rain terrace: a rainwater harvester and vertical garden. This project establishes sustainable water practices through the harvesting of rain, and brings the advantages of a living wall to the backyard through vertical gardening. Vert alleviates a homes reliance on public utility systems while beautifying unused vertical space.

How cool would it be to have one of these to grow food in? Talk about a smart use of space and water! Vertical gardening is definitely a smart idea for urban areas, and with this cool design, you can harvest your own herbs and veggies even if you live in a tiny apartment, as long as you have just a bit of outdoor space and a gutter downspout available. Plus, it’s pretty. We likey.

You can read more about how it works at the Rocket 2008 website.

Link [AzSustainably] + [Rocket 2008]