1 Nov 2008

HEINEKEN WOBO: The brick that holds beer

Upcycling is a 21st century term, coined by Cradle to Cradle authors William McDonough and Michael Braungart, but the idea of turning waste into useful products came to life brilliantly in 1963 with the Heineken WOBO (world bottle). Envisioned by beer brewer Alfred Heineken and designed by Dutch architect John Habraken, the “brick that holds beer” was ahead of its ecodesign time, letting beer lovers and builders alike drink and design all in one sitting. Read story
It never happened, so Buddhist monks from Thailand's Sisaket province took matters into their own hands and collected a million bottles to build the Wat Pa Maha Chedi Kaew temple. It puts every other bottle building we have shown to shame. Read story

3 comments:

  1. Anonymous2.11.08

    Next time you're in Margaret River, check out the Random Valley organic winery. They made their builing out of used wine bottles, filled with water to insulate. The owner is very friendly and was happy to chat with us about it.

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  2. Thanks for the tip, will sure have a look next time when in Margaret River.

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  3. I went to this organic winery just to be chased away by a grumphy old man... :( never was able to come close to the building...

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