Pens may not be significant contributors to landfill and soil pollution, but still can be harmful to the environment—especially when thrown away carelessly, as most of them are single-use. To solve this problem, Carlo Ratti Associati – people behind Scribit, a programmable vertical wall drawing device—creates the world’s first fully compostable marker.
The designers thought about the number of single-use markers that could be used on the tail of the success of their vertical wall drawing robot. Carlo Ratti – the founding member of Carlo Ratti Associati – said that they were proud of Scribit’s success, but concerned at the same to see the amount of plastic waste produced by the one-time use markers that the robot uses.
The Italian design firm took the initiative to find a sustainable solution to the problem and came up with the idea of the Scribit marker that is fully compostable.
The outer housing of the marker is made from sawdust, bioplastic, and anodized aluminum while on the inside, the replaceable cartridge and nibs are made from hemp fiber and non-toxic ink. Scribit claims it to be certified edible; even so, recommended not to drink it.
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The marker is specifically designed to be used with the company’s Scribit wall drawing robot.
Carlo Ratti, who is also director of MIT’s Senseable City Lab, said,
“We were troubled by the amount of plastic produced by the markers that the Scribit robot uses. By developing the new Scribit Pen, we can turn one of humankind’s primordial acts – drawing – into a fully sustainable one.”
Carlo Ratti
According to CRA, approximately 35 billion markers end up in landfills annually. These markers are typically made of different materials, including plastics. CRA’s new marker design is a positive step in the direction of reducing landfill waste due to markers and pens.
The fully compostable marker is still in the development stage. There is no word on its mass production and availability.
