The King of Malaysia presented the trophy to the grand winner David Wendell, left, at the Earth Awards at Marlboro House in London on Thursday.

David Wendell wants to revolutionize renewable energy by taking a page out of nature’s book, and improving it. His new technology captures carbon and transforms it into sugar — something that plants do naturally — more efficiently using artificial photosynthetic foam.

The foam developed by Mr. Wendell and his colleague Carlo Montemagno, both professors at the University of Cincinnati, was one of six finalists at the Earth Awards 2010 held yesterday in London, eventually winning the $50,000 prize.

Wendell said: “There are other fuels, such as soya and corn which produce less carbon dioxide than fossil fuels, and Switchgrass which is essentially carbon neutral. This is the first technology that actually consumes more carbon than it generates, and unlike soya or corn, doesn’t need to use arable land.”

The Earth Awards, founded by Nicole Ting Yap in 2008, aim to showcase viable designs in diverse fields from architecture and consumer products to high fashion. While some of the ideas are in production others are some years away from commercial viability.

Anthony Clarke, Chairman of the British Business Angels Association, advised contestants to develop clear investment proposals. “You need to show investors what pain you solve”, he counseled.

Several contestants highlighted the difficulties of measuring the ‘social’ benefits of their designs. Architects Peter Rich and Michael Ramage developed ‘sustainable shells’–an architectural innovation that enables the construction of vaulted designs using pressed tiles. Their recent project, the Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre in South Africa, won the World Building of the Year award in 2009.

Rich said: “Our structures cost 25% less than  similar structures using reinforced concrete. But the big benefits are ‘social’ — we employ locals and transfer valuable skills to them — how do you measure that?”

While angel investors may have their eyes firmly on the bottom line, ex-investment banker Jamie Lim believes that consumers want to make socially responsible choices, especially if they can see exactly what their money goes towards.

Ms Lim founded KAYU in 2007 with a vision of moving fashion beyond aesthetics. Proceeds from her line of bamboo sunglasses fund sight-restoring surgeries in India on a one-for-one basis. This year she premiered handbags whose sales are used to purchase school supplies for Cambodian children.

“The key is that each bag funds one backpack, each sunglass funds one eye surgery. The concept of one-for-one appeals to consumers more than, say, 20% of profits being earmarked for charity projects”, said Ms. Lim. This idea of ‘sustainable fashion’ is gaining currency, with the London Fashion Week, which begins today, showcasing eco-friendly creations from designers such as Stella McCartney, Vivienne Westwood and indeed, Ms. Lim.

By Wall Street Journal