One of the big changes to the urban landscape over the past 10 years has been the number of solar panels on roofs. A combination of government incentives and aggressive marketing has made them an attractive  proposition for many home owners. But now, there are opportunities for renters to get in on the act too.

CloudSolar enables anyone to support solar energy. The company sell physical panels which can be installed at a remote CloudSolar farm. The company is currently crowdfunding on Indiegogo. Those who want to sign up can purchase a physical solar panel from CloudSolar for a reduced price of $750. After the campaign, pledgers can either have the panel sent to their own home or add it to CloudSolar’s farm, where it will be installed and managed by the company for 25 years.

As the currency suggests, this is a US based company. Could something similar be done here? I see no reason why not. I’ve been saying for a few years now that the best place for solar panels is on a remote farm rather than on a domestic roof. This isn’t a quick or simple opportunity, but it’s a massive one for someone with the right skills.

Website: www.gocloudsolar.com

The global leather goods market was worth £25 Billion last year. I just read about two ladies by the name of Heidi and Adele who, spurred on by a desire to tackle both the ethical issues with leather and the waste products coming from the fishing industry, have gone into business producing bags and purses made from discarded fish skin. Their company turns the bi-products of the eel and salmon industry into attractive, strong and ethical alternatives to traditional animal skin products. Their range includes clutches, purses and shoulder bags.

I’m not sure what objections and misconceptions you need to overcome to sell  bags made from fish skin …there’s an undoubted ‘yuck factor’ I think…but they seem to be doing okay. Perhaps there are other natural waste products which could be turned into clothing or accessories. If you can come up with something, you’ll certainly have an interesting PR story to tell, and might even help to save a bit of the planet.

www.heidiandadele.com

Mainstream news reporting seems to be driven by what you might call ‘flavour of the month’. Today it might be Ebola in West Africa, and then that gets forgotten about and the emphasis shifts to the Ukraine,  ISIS or whatever. Coda news is a new collaborative initiative involving experienced journalists from the likes of  the BBC and New York Times. It’s aim is to continue to focus on individual, single track crisis situations long after the focus has shifted elsewhere. The rationale is that there are people who want and need a much more long term and in-depth coverage of a situation than the mainstream provides.

You’re probably not in the news business but it’s an interesting metaphor for something which could make you a lot of money. Within every market, there’s usually a hardcore of people who want something more serious and ‘in depth’ than that provided by the mass market providers who are skimming the surface. This will mean different things in different markets, but these more committed individuals will often pay a substantial premium to get exactly what they want.

www.codastory.com

Moving home  is stressful for anyone, but when you’re getting on a bit, it’s even more stressful still. That’s the fact behind the emergence of a relocation services called ‘Caring Transitions’, which aims to take the strain out of the process for senior citizens.

‘Caring Transitions’ is a US based franchise operation with operators in 150 locations. Services provided include sorting of personal belongings, packing, shipping, selling off of excess possessions, clearing and property cleaning.

Is there a service like this, targeted at UK senior citizens? I’m not sure, but there certainly isn’t one with a national presence like this. With an ageing population, there’s a huge opportunity for somebody with this.

There’s no money in poetry, or at least there didn’t used to be. But I just read about a trio called ‘The Haiku Guys’ who are hired by corporate organisations to provide entertainment at events. Their corporate client list includes Bloomberg, Google, Barnes & Noble, Steve Madden, and J. P. Morgan.

The trio dress to the nines, and sit behind old fashioned typewriters in front of a sign that says “Free Haiku”. The idea is to entertain guests by writing them poems carefully tailored to their mood or interests.  Charging between $200 and $250 per hour, The Haiku Guys are able to rake in serious money by attending up to six events  a week.

This is a labour intensive business, and therefore something that’s difficult to expand. It would be quite easy to copy in another area though, provided you have the right skills and personality. Big companies are always on the look-out for something different to entertain their employees and clients at corporate events.