2. Lucent Water Bottles
For millions of homes around the world,
electric lighting is simply too expensive.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
3. Lucent Water Bottles
So as soon as the sun goes down,
the community is surrounded
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
4. Lucent Water Bottles
In complete darkness...
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
5. Lucent Water Bottles
But in 2002, Brazilian inventor Alfredo Moser
found a solution
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
10. Lucent Water Bottles
And it works like a little like this:
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
11. Lucent Water Bottles
Roof
Material
Bottle
+
tle
Bot ter + ch
Wa f Blea
so
liter of light/
client myshelter foundation
actors
transformations
worldview
owner
environment Member of community
x2
Cap
Design Phase
water
bleach
build phase
Very dark
in there
hole in
roof material
Sunlight
(input)
use phase
bottle
with no lighting
poor communities
with no lighting
light should be available to
everyone-- not just those who
can afford electricity
refraction!
illumination!
about 60 watts!
(output)
end of life
(rich picture produced for Systems Thinking course)
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
12. Lucent Water Bottles
And in 2011 Filipino entrepreneur Illac Diaz
brought the “solar bulb” large scale
through MyShelter Foundation
with a group called Liter of Light
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
13. Lucent Water Bottles
In one year, Liter of Light installed
over 200,000 bulbs
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
14. Lucent Water Bottles
And wants to grow that number to
1 million by 2015
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
15. Lucent Water Bottles
They even have a solar-charged LED bulb
for night time lighting!
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
16. Lucent Water Bottles
So while Liter of Light is providing lighting solutions
across the world with old plastic bottles,
billions of dollars are exhausted each year
in the bottled water industry.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
17. Lucent Water Bottles
The proposal, then, is to connect
two unrelated industries
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
18. Lucent Water Bottles
With two related elements
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
23. Lucent Water Bottles
The idea is simple
Sell bottles. Send light. Share Hope.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
24. Lucent Water Bottles
Sell Bottles:
Design and sell a reusable water bottle to cut down
on disposable bottle consumption, encourage healthy
drinking habits, and promote Liter of Light
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
25. Lucent Water Bottles
Send Light:
Partner with Liter of Light to help fund
lighting solutions around the world
through proceeds of bottle sales
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
26. Lucent Water Bottles
Share Hope:
Light is not just a resource.
It’s a symbol for something much stronger.
Hope.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
27. Lucent Water Bottles
So while Liter of Light is doing their part
to satisfy the needs of dark communities,
Lucent Water wants to satisfy their needs
while tackling some needs of our own.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
28. Lucent Water Bottles
How do Lucent Bottles meet unmet needs?
For People?
For Profits?
For the Planet?
For the Public?
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
29. Lucent Water Bottles
People
By creating a regular economic resource stream for Liter of Light actors, Lucent Water
brings opportunity and income to those who are otherwise operating on local economic
streams. While the income streams have been considerably subsidized by regular
donations, wider resource bandwidth means less pressure on donators, more energy
allocated towards existing actors, and greater opportunity to fund additional actors, which
could change thousands of lives—particularly the underemployed women that Liter of Light
has already begun to assist.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
30. Lucent Water Bottles
Profit
Liter of Light aims to bring low-cost lighting solutions to poor communities. Instead of
advancing the cause by encouraging affluent communities to cut back in order to give
more, Lucent Water redirects economic energy by celebrating the consumption of water
as a means to bring light to others. A 2013 Cone Communication Impact Study revealed
that 91% of American consumers want more products and social services that they use to
support a cause, and a Nielsen study states that 50% of consumers are willing to pay
more for a cause-related product or service. This means that Lucent Water, similar to the
premium tacked onto Fair Trade products to promote healthy development, could charge
an additional premium for greater impact.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
31. Lucent Water Bottles
Planet
The disposable bottled water industry might be one of the least sustainable business on
the planet. It has been revealed that for every gallon of bottled water sold, an additional
three to four gallons are required to manufacture, process, and transport the water -- and
all for conveniently buying a product one-to-ten thousand times more expensive than
local tap water (which, by the way, is usually what’s in the bottles anyway). Lucent
Water tackles this problem from two sides:
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
32. Lucent Water Bottles
1. By selling reusable water bottles, Lucent Water aims to cut the consumption of
disposable plastic water bottles, which means less wasted plastic, money, and water.
2. By directing proceeds towards Liter of Light, Lucent Water provides poor communities
with a means to better handle their own pollution problems by helping them turn plastic
bottles into sustainable lighting solutions.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
33. Lucent Water Bottles
Public
Lucent Water wants to bring light to the world—both in illuminating homes everywhere,
and in enlightening the world as to how their money can make a difference through
movements like Liter of Light. It will also highlight the global community and how
important our collaboration is to our continued growth.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
34. Lucent Water Bottles
And it wouldn’t be the first time
water bottles were used to promote
environmental and social causes.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
35. Lucent Water Bottles
Jointhepipe.org sells clear modular blue water
bottles shaped like water pipes, complete with
bends, runs, and joints, that can be combined
with limitless potential to form what Jointhepipe
calls the “world’s longest water pipe,” a metaphor
for the global relationship they’re creating by
selling water bottles to help provide clean
drinking water for communities around the world
(join-the-pipe.org)
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
36. Lucent Water Bottles
And in 2009 KOR unveiled their
limited edition “Thirst for Giving”
bottle line that featured artwork
of different natural habitats on the
bottles and donated proceeds to
non-profits working to save the
environment
(join-the-pipe.org)
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
37. Lucent Water Bottles
Perhaps Lucent Bottles can be
a similar product for
Liter of Light?
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
38. Lucent Water Bottles
But how would it work?
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
39. Lucent Water Bottles
Well there are really two parts to the proposal:
The partnership, and the product
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
40. Lucent Water Bottles
So let’s take a quick look at both
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
42. Lucent Water Bottles
Selling a product with the interest
of donating proceeds is called
“cause marketing” or “charity marketing.”
Establishing a successful brand or product
with charity woven into its DNA
requires transparency in three things:
identity, amount, and frequency
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
43. Lucent Water Bottles
Identity is easy.
Lucent Water contributes to Liter of Light
But how much and how often?
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
44. Lucent Water Bottles
Some experts suggest donating quarterly
to establish reasonable expectation
for your consumers and your cause
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
45. Lucent Water Bottles
As to how much?
Really, that’s up to the consumer.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
46. Lucent Water Bottles
But if we look at it from the other side, from what
would help Liter of Light the most, we might get a
better idea of what would be helpful.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
47. Lucent Water Bottles
Since it costs about $2 to install a regular solar
bottle, and it costs about $12 to install a LED bottle,
we could say that $12 dollars of each sale
goes towards Liter of Light.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
48. Lucent Water Bottles
That means selling one Lucent bottle
would fund one LED bottle,
tor six regular solar bottles
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
49. Lucent Water Bottles
And the partnership has more than one way
to become a reality
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
50. Lucent Water Bottles
It could start from the ground up with the hard work
of a motivated team of entrepreneurs
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
51. Lucent Water Bottles
Or an already established bottle manufacturing
company could adopt the model
to gain exposure and credibility.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
52. Lucent Water Bottles
Once established, Lucent Water could run
independently of Liter of Light, promising their
continued support
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
53. Lucent Water Bottles
Once established, Lucent Water could run
independently of Liter of Light, promising their
continued support
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
54. Lucent Water Bottles
Or Liter of Light could establish a co-op business
venture to better direct the bottles mission, visibility,
and funding while still directing the bulk of their
attention towards their own mission
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
55. Lucent Water Bottles
Or, if Liter of Light felt led, they could own Lucent
Water outright as a product-providing wing of their
foundation
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
56. Lucent Water Bottles
All roads lead to cleaner water and brighter homes.
Some are simply shorter than others.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
57. Lucent Water Bottles
While the partnership is the real MVP of the
proposal, it would be an injustice to ignore the
opportunities the bottle presents. Keeping in mind
how Jointhepipe and KOR have used their bottle
designs, let’s take a closer look at Lucent Water
bottles.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
58. Lucent Water Bottles
“Lucent” has the connotation of being bright or clear
(a reference to the quality of the water
as well as Liter of Light’s mission).
So Lucent bottles ought to be the same.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
59. Lucent Water Bottles
In addition to that, Lucent would want to design a
bottle that is transparent, fashionable, durable, easy
to use, easy to clean, has room for a clip, fits in a
standard cup holder, and is BPA-free. Many of these
are just givens as far as bottle design is concerned.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
60. Lucent Water Bottles
However, “lucent” also means glowing. So why not
remind the consumer of the cause in the same way
that Jointhepipe does with their bottles?
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
61. Lucent Water Bottles
That is, why not make Lucent Water bottles glow like
the Liter of Light bulbs?
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
62. Lucent Water Bottles
Lucent bottles could borrow
the solar-powered LED cap
technology that is already on
the market
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
63. Lucent Water Bottles
OR Lucent bottles could explore installing miniturbine-powered LEDs into the bottle’s lid that charge
as the consumer drinks water.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
64. Lucent Water Bottles
This would open the market to consumers that don’t
spend as much time in the sun, and would likely
encourage more frequent water consumption
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
65. Lucent Water Bottles
In the end, what the
bottle looks like is fairly
inconsequential. So long as
it holds water, cuts pollution,
and promotes Liter of Light,
it’s a good design
Bottle
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
66. Lucent Water Bottles
(but here are some ideas anyway)
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
68. Lucent Water Bottles
In conclusion:
Lucent bottles provide a way for consumers to
contribute to a cause that not only helps change
lives by bringing light into the dark, but also cleans
up their own lives by cutting disposable bottle
consumption and promoting healthy drinking habits.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
69. Lucent Water Bottles
Many element of the proposal has already proven
effective in other scenarios, and through the
collaborative efforts of the consumer culture and Liter
of Light, Lucent Water presents an opportunity to
change the way we buy water to help change the
way we live.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13
70. Lucent Water Bottles
Sell bottles. Send light. Share hope.
gabe Pyle | Intro to Sustainable Design | MCAD | 12.10.13