Solar Roller

Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday 29/3/2007 Page: 18

Reducing your impact on the environment isn't so difficult at this one-stop shop.

When eco-converts start throwing around terms such as "carbon neutral", who can be blamed for switching off? But Sydneysiders who frequent Todae, a new store on Glebe Point Road, not only bypass confusing eco-buzzwords, they stumble on easy ways to reduce their impact on the planet.

Todae offers a team of eco-consultants who not only explain how solar- and wind-powered products work but also install them. "We test everything to see that it's not only planet- but user-friendly," explains the store's owner, Danin Kahn, whose own lifestyle appears ecologically pristine. The 30-year-old powers his laptop and mobile with a solar charger, drives a petrol/electric car, shuns a television set and powers both his house and business with 100 percent renewable wind energy. In other words, he's "carbon neutral".

But he doesn't ask customers, who range from "conscious city dwellers" to "retirees who want to give something back", to shun the trappings of 21st-century life: "Our aim is to make it simple for people to make a difference."

Shelves are stocked with organic cotton bedding, boots made from old tyres, textiles from the streets of Brazil, recycled paper, toxin-free paint and bestsellers such as shower timers and power-saving light bulbs.

A favourite with city dwellers is the handheld/portable Solio Universal Solar Charger, which can recharge a mobile or iPod or personal digital assistant without generating even a gram of CO2, or - for couch potatoes - a mains outlet with remote that allows you to turn off your TV or DVD at the power point by remote control.

Kahn, who also runs a website, www.todae.com.au, travelled to 43 countries on six continents - and, yes, offsetting his carbon emissions - before settling on the idea of an eco-store and website. "Australians as a whole are ecoconscious, although the Government is not very progressive. How many countries do you go to where so many people are using green bags in the supermarket?"

To have an immediate impact on the planet, he suggests switching to 100 percent renewable energy; using a shower timer to shave four minutes off the average eight-minute wash time and save up to 80 litres of water and one tonne of CO2 a year; driving smoothly to use 25 per cent less petrol; buying fresh foods rather than frozen to save up to 10 times the energy needed to produce the latter; and composting your food to reduce landfill and CO2.

Todae. 83 Glebe Point Road. Glebe. Phone: 9660 7166.