For the first time ever, a crew is trying to sail around the world using only solar energy to power the ship. Casey Kauffman went to meet the sailors onboard the world’s largest solar ship as it was docked in Doha.

As world leaders debate solutions at the UN climate change conference in Durban, a college in the Indian state of Rajasthan is teaching communities how to harness solar energy. The barefoot college, as it is locally called, trains women from villages on how to test and assemble complex circuits, which they can then use to set up solar projects back home. The lives of women, many from some of the world’s poorest countries, have been transformed as they are now assembling solar panels which are then sold in the market for 0 each. Al Jazeera’s Prena Suri reports from Rajasthan.

Darren Saravis is the founder and CEO of Nectar Design, a Long Beach-based engineering and product design consultancy dedicated to innovation and sustainability. For 19 years, Nectar has been known for design that pushes to the edge of art and function. The firm has worked successfully in numerous fields including medicine, high tech, green tech, and general consumer products. A socially conscious artist and musician as well as an inventor, Saravis’s newest innovation with Nectar is the Solarflora™. Suggestive of a tree or a giant flower, the sculptural device can hold as many as four solar panels and supplies up to 1.2 kilowatt-hours of electricity per day. Saravis envisions the Solarflora as a means of mainstreaming the use of solar energy into the contemporary urban landscape, contributing to a more ecologically balanced, and more prosperous, nation and world. “Darren Saravis fears we’re losing touch with the natural world. To Saravis the mountain climber and environmental activist, the notion is disheartening. To Saravis the designer and engineer, it’s a problem to be solved.” — O, The Oprah Magazine ABOUTTEDx In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event …

Japan’s nuclear crisis has pushed the country to take another look at its energy policy. The government plans to put solar panels on at least 10 million homes. In the mean time, many Japanese citizens are trying to do their part to help avoid a further power crisis by conserving as much energy as possible. Marga Ortigas reports from Tokyo. [June 6, 2011]

Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) — Mike Splinter, chief executive officer at Applied Materials Inc., talks with Bloomberg’s Margaret Brennan about opportunities in the solar and renewable energy markets. Splinter, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, also discusses the outlook for the semiconductor industry. (Source: Bloomberg)