Jacquie Ottman's
Green Marketing Blog
Running On Human Power
July 11, 2011 by Jacquelyn Ottman
While researchers are 
looking to the sun, the wind and even ocean tides to source renewable energy, some have found an answer much closer to home: the gym. This notion dawned on the owner of a string of gyms in Hong Kong, who rigged cycling and cross-training machines to power a gym’s lights and store extra energy in batteries for later use.
The Human Power Trainer, made by Windstream Power LLC of North Ferrisburg, Vermont, works on the same concept. It mounts a bicycle on a frame. The rear tire turns a turbine that generates power. The power is stored in a 12-volt battery, which, in turn, powers household appliances.
Consider the possibilities. An average person can produce between 100 and 150 watts over the course of a typical workout enough power to run a pair of speakers, an electric hand mixer, or a small television.
Excerpted from The New Rules of Green Marketing: Strategies, Tools and Inspiration for Sustainable Branding (Berrett-Koehler 2011) by Jacquelyn A. Ottman
Jacquelyn Ottman is an expert adviser on green marketing to Fortune 500 companies and the U.S. government. Her firm’s website is http://www.greenmarketing.com.
Recent blog posts:
• Let the Consumer Decide “What is Green?”
• New Nissan Ads Shift the Way Car Buyers Evaluate Options
• Why Eco-Innovation is the Best Response to Greenwashing
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