Designer Seetal Solanki has released a book exploring natural and manmade materials that could be used to reduce human impact on the planet. In a Dezeen exclusive, she picks out five of the most innovative examples. More
Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Ellie Birkhead has developed a process of brick making that incorporates local waste products from the Chiltern Hills, in an attempt to "forge a future for local industry". More
Sportswear brand Reebok has revealed the first product from its sustainability initiative Cotton + Corn — a pair of trainers with a bioplastic sole. More
A compression top with an auto-tightening collar that promises to reduce whiplash and concussion is the first product from Canadian sports tech start-up Aexos. More
Sportswear brand Reebok has applied a texture-changing gel used in NASA's spacesuits to make a bra that adapts to support different levels of movement. More
The American Institute of Architects has denounced a US government proposal that could allow the manufacture of new asbestos products, following a significant backlash from the architecture community at-large. More
Cornell University engineers have made a robot that gets goosebumps or becomes spiky to communicate its internal state. More
Melbourne-based designer Josh Carmody has designed a system of clamps that can connect architects and designers' unwanted material samples to create tables. More
Kingston School of Art graduate Oksana Bondar has created a dressing table stool from human hair to demonstrate the design possibilities of the material. More
Royal College of Art graduate Lingxiao Luo has combined 3D-printing with traditional knitwear techniques to create a series of pieces that evoke the playfulness of children's toys. More
Industrial design student Tobias Trübenbacher has used pig bladders and cow intestines to create furniture, in a bid to discover the "inner values" of animal offal. More
Graduate Roza Janusz has created an alternative to plastic food packaging, which is made from organic material and can either be eaten after use, or composted. More
Dutch collective Envisions will present its latest material research for wood brand Finsa during this year’s Milan design week, in an exhibition that combines process pieces with final collections. More
Natural materials sourced from Iceland's volcanic landscape were used to make this piece of furniture by Reykjavík studio Innriinnri. More
A team of scientists in the UK have developed a biodegradable construction material made from desert sand – a resource that has until now been useless for construction. More
French designer François Bauchet used a composite material made from sand, resin and concrete to create this furniture collection for Galerie Kreo, which features clover-shaped details. More
Japanese designer Jin Kuramoto has created a "100 per cent biological chair" using flax fibres – a completely biodegradable material that is most commonly used for banknotes, tea bags and linen. More
The winners of a lucrative competition tasking designers to come up with new materials to replace plastic packaging have been revealed. More
Joe Doucet has used Reebok's new Flexweave material to to create an "imaginative fitness prototype" that helps prevent runners from getting lost. More
A Dutch company has developed technology for 3D printing floors in an endless variety of colours and patterns. More