Check out this cool new kit that provides a solar panel and enough robot parts to build six different toys that will even power up indoors. An excellent way to teach kids (or adults!) about the effectiveness of solar power as well as the importance of energy conservation.

The robot kit costs £13.00 (UK) from Red5.

Turn your kids green! Rather than burning power to keep their MP3 players (and other portable devices) charged, this backpack has a built-in solar panel that will provide energy while they’re on the move. It uses no batteries and will even work with indoor light.

The backpacks sell for $129.95 at Green And More.

Instead of relying on an automated timer for your garden’s sprinkler system, Cyber-Rain uses your Internet connection to check local forecasts. It then adjusts the watering schedule to increase or decrease appropriately, saving up to 70% on landscape watering costs.

The Cyber-Rain system costs $399.99 from Smarthome.

We’ve all been guilty of leaving appliances on standby when we could turn them off. Rather than having to remember, this power strip detects when a one device – like a computer – is turned off, and automatically switches off all the dependant peripherals – such as a printer and monitor.

The strip costs $26.50 Amazon

Create an Oasis with Greywater Choosing, Building and Using Greywater Systems By Art Ludwig 2006 $20.95 from Oasis Design

This great book, Create an Oasis, 5th Edition, on oasisdesign.net which has 145 pages including 53 diagrams and 130 photos which comprehensively explains how to dramatically reduce your water usage by reusing your laundry, shower, sink and dishwasher water for landscape irrigation instead letting it all go down the drain.

The book also discusses grey water sources, requirements for irrigation, plumbing and irrigation issues, which cleaning solutions are compatible, maintaining soil quality, and much more. Even if you don’t want to buy the book their website is a great resource with tons of info on greywater systems.