This little beauty was plugged in when I found it next to the Arno. You can see the plug station below the jump.

What would pass for eco thinking in the US is a regular part of Italian life. In particular, their many, many small car designs are fascinating, playful and reminded me of the scenes in Star Wars where different droids are lined up to be sold. Many of these vehicles are electric, with power stations in the city center. In addition, I've included a pic from our hotel room, where they used an ingenious key card system to keep energy use low...

This card is both the key to our room and the key to our electric supply in the room. When you leave for the day and remove the key, all of your lights and power sockets turn off. It's really an ingenious unconscious way of regulating your energy usage. You can NEVER leave lights on in your room this way. I also discovered that you can't charge your computer when you are gone as well!

>> Previous Italy Posts: Doors, Walls, Stone & Graffiti

(Images: Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan)

posted originally from: AT:New York