The current food crisis is inspiring forward-thinking scientists to develop solutions for farmers in developing nations. Here is just one example I read about this morning: an 82-year-old scientist who was once dubbed the father of India’s Green Revolution is inspiring a perpetual revolution.

Forty years ago, Monkombu Sambasivan Swaminathan helped rescue the world from growing famine and a deepening gloom over the future of food supplies by developing a hybrid wheat seed that allowed Indian farmers to dramatically increase yields. Now he is researching new ways to put farmers on the right road to unending growth.

In the twenty-first century’s “Evergreen Revolution”, as he calls it, he predicts conservation farming and green technology will bring about sustainable change that could allow India to become an even bigger supplier of food to the world.

That would be welcome news for the millions of impoverished people and food-importing nations who are struggling to cope with the surge in basic crop prices over the last year, caused in part by protectionist trade bans by some exporters, including India.

I completely agree with his statement that, “in every crisis is an opportunity and this time it will lead to an evergreen revolution,” and I look forward to reporting more about innovative ideas that will feed millions in this time of need.

If you’re headed to Britain from any European nations this summer, you’ll get some face time at the security gate. It’s part of a new technology that will scan the faces of every passenger. European air travelers to Britain will be screened with automatic facial recognition technology in a bid to tighten security and ease congestion.

Citizens of Britain and all European Economic Area countries will pass through unmanned clearance gates which will scan passengers’ faces and compare them to data held on their biometric passports.

The European Economic Area includes all 27 European Union countries as well as Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. The technology being used has been programmed to err on the side of caution to ensure that travelers on security services’ watch lists are not allowed to freely pass through.Because of that, some passengers may be held up and redirected if the clearance gates cannot match their faces to the records on their passports.

The government had not yet decided on how many airports would take part in the initial trial this year, but I imagine that if all goes well we most likely will see this innovative technology in airports across the globe.

A special thanks to our new team member at Innovationedge, Dave Labno, for sharing his thoughts today on the Fortune Brainstorm Green 2008 Conference that occurred last week in Pasadena, California —Cheryl

Fortune Brainstorm Green 2008 Conference
By Dave Labno, Guest blogger

Four hundred leading thinkers and doers in the world of business, science, government and NGOs joined together April 21-22 to showcase remarkable changes in world over the last few years.

Who would have imagined a successful partnership between Greenpeace and McDonalds? Dozens of similar partnerships and discussions took place. Disagreements still exist but a general sense of urgency and collaboration has emerged between previously distant groups.

Several leading CEO’s and environmental leaders told me this would not have happened even 3 years ago. A sea change has taken place and an exciting era of innovation and entrepreneurship in the world has begun.

There were too many great innovations to list but here is a sample:

According to P&G, heating water to wash cloths accounts for 3% of the US residential energy use and using laundry detergent that that does a great job in cold could alone reduce our countries carbon Emissions by a stunning 1%.

Michael Dell shared how remote web assistance cuts greenhouse emissions by 90%, reduces costs and improves customer satisfaction as you don’t have to send your computer away or wait for days to have an outside technician visit your home or office.

He also unveiled a desktop computer smaller than a laptop, made of 90% recycled materials and uses 30% less power. Even the case is recyclable – you’ll have your choice of recycled wood exteriors when the product is released at the end of 2008.

Shai Aggasi has a simple goal – make Israeli oil free by 2015. This will be achieved primarily through business model innovation. The former executive at SAP has billions in investment from Renault/Nissan, the Israeli Government and private investors. Over a half million electrical outlets will be placed at shopping mall, office, and on street parking locations around Israel. Outlets will be connected with GPS so your vehicle will know where to “fill” when you aren’t driving. The most intriguing part is that you’ll have the option of free or low cost cars. The cars will work more like your cell phone – you pay for the recharges, not the car itself and you can pre pay for recharges, have a set plan per month or unlimited minute with multiple year contracts.

The message is clear, government regulation and the environment itself will require us to change how we live but not at the expense of the bottom line. This is one of the most exciting times for innovation in history.

This month we’ve welcomed two new members to our team, and I encourage you to click on these links to Dave Labno and Julie Gerstle to read more about how they’re already jumping in with both feet to contribute to create innovative solutions for our clients! Both of these fearless champions of innovation are passionate about what they do, and bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to our team.

With the addition of these members we’ll be able to offer a wider portfolio of offerings to help clients define their strategy, develop capabilities, design a winning organizational structure and deliver breakthrough innovations.

“Green is he new black!” That’s a slogan on a T-shirt that stores like Wal-Mart are selling, and I’ve seen quite a few of them around today. Green has indeed become quite a fashion statement that transcends Earth Day.

Earth Day has come a long way since it first launched 39 years ago, and today across the United States, schools, businesses and government agencies are finding new ways to draw attention to caring for our planet. From where I stand, environmental issues are bigger news today than ever before. Environmental sustainability is a mega-trend that is inspiring innovative new products.

What is sustainability? Simply put, it’s how we meet our resource needs (water, food and energy), without compromising our ability to supply for future generations. Sustainability is how we impact the environment, our economy and our society. Innovative companies embrace sustainable “Green” policies with business strategies that are three-fold: Environmental, Economic and Social impact.

If you are truly innovative in your corporate sustainability efforts, you should be embracing new ways to decrease your environmental footprint, improve your financial bottom line and improve your interaction with your employees, your community and your world.

This year I’m teaming up again with Breakthrough Management Group for two Chief Innovation Officer seminars!

The first is coming up June 2nd and 3rd, and the next opportunity is October 6 & 7th. Both events will be held in Denver, and I highly recommend you come if you haven’t done it before. This two day executive education program is for business leaders who are leading the charge for growth and innovation inside their organizations or who are poised to take on that role.

Many companies are taking that bold step of putting a Cheif Innovation Officer in place, but how are they making this emerging role a success? The curriculum we have developed will dive deep into how to establish this role and incorporate best practices of innovation. We’ll also cover topics like Open Innovation, how to protect your intellectual property (IP), portfolio management, structured processes and tools, and sustainable growth. The seminars are packed full of case studies from cutting-edge global corporations and useful “how-to” information you can incorporate into your business strategy right now.

Whether you are already a CIO or are about to become one, I will lead you through a program specifically designed for your unique company to give you the knowledge, insight and tools you need to excel at one of the most exciting new corporate positions created in decades! To register or for more information, click on BMGI’s Website.

I’m getting ready to help showcase a “Workshop of the Future” at the FAB LAB at Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton, Wisc. The event is April 30th 4 to 6 p.m., and is designed to connect people and their ideas to the world!

I invite you to check it out. You’ll be able to create, collaborate, learn and build just about anything you can imagine, and then connect to experts who personally help make innovators’ dreams into reality.

A little FAB LAB background: The Fabrication Laboratory concept was created by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor Dr. Neil Gershenfeld and his team at the MIT Center for Bits and Atoms. It integrates local expertise, global resources and bench top fabrication technology to deliver personalized fabrication or rapid, proof-of-concept prototyping.

The FAB LAB at FVTC is only the 16th in the world and first production facility in the USA outside of MIT. It’s also the first to focus on entrepreneurs and developing businesses in partnership with the FVTC Venture Center. I’m proud to champion this resource!

If you’re an existing business, a student, a “garage inventor” or a creative soul with a great idea, you can have access to personalized product prototyping. The FAB LAB is open to FVTC students, our partner organizations and the general public, through a variety of packaged options.

he FAB LAB is a unique “Innovation Center” that provides innovators/inventors the knowledge base and resources to translate their idea into a prototype product. We provide industry expertise at FVTC in engineering and manufacturing who will help you make almost anything on specific technology needed for product prototyping. Learn how to use laser engraver cutters, CAD programs, milling machines and more.

If you’re an existing business, a student, a “garage inventor” or a creative soul with a great idea, you can have access to personalized product prototyping. The FAB LAB is open to FVTC students, our partner organizations and the general public, through a variety of packaged options.

Check out this link to learn more.

Scientists in the U.K. are taking the first steps in a project to create the first real-life Transformers - those toys that can change shape from, say a car, into a robot. The project has echoes of last year’s Transformers film about alien robots that disguise themselves as cars, motorbikes and lorries to wage war on each other.

It’s actually called the Symbrion project, a multi-million dollar experiment funded by the EU. Scientists will attempt to build swarms of tiny robots, each the size of a sugar cube, that move around on their own and connect together to form larger, intelligent machines.

Researchers say the first swarm of autonomous, intelligent, shape-changing robots could be in use within five years.

The scientists are very excited about the possibilities about saving lives. Here’s a quote:

“They could be used in medicine, in space exploration and in search and rescue missions,” said a spokesman for scientists at the University of the West of England in Bristol and the University of York. “You can imagine dropping hundreds of these small robots into a crevice after a building has collapsed. They would find each other and maybe connect together to form a snake-shaped object that could wriggle through the wreckage.”Then they could re-form into a spider to climb over a wall - or a robot with an arm that could lift rubble away. The possibilities are endless.”

Here’s the link to the University of York’s media alert, but you also might find this link about the SYMBRION project helpful as well.
Each robot would have wheels or tentacles, allowing it to move around independently. It would contain a small computer brain, making it as intelligent as an iPod or iPhone, and use infra-red to find other cubes. It sounds like it’s straight from children’s comic book or adventure movie!

Here is a highly-caffenaited concept for your morning: A coffee mug that acts as your own personal computer! The Yuno PC is a concept designed to help you get the most out of your morning without holding you back or constraining you to a desktop PC.

This mug incorporates all the important morning alerts such as weather, time, traffic, stocks, and all your latest e-mails on its touchscreen display. You can also display your own images as a screensaver if you just want to relax.

Designed by California State University Long Beach student, the concept isn’t on the market yet–but it is on the radar screens of high-tech gadgetry reviewers around the world. I’m guessing the Yuno PC is not dishwasher safe, but who knows what the next generation will bring?

Global concerns about terrorism have taken us down a path of new inventions designed to keep us more safe. A British company is launching a camera that can detect weapons, drugs or explosives hidden under people’s clothes from up to 80 feet away in what could be a breakthrough for the security industry.

ThruVision has designed the camers with what it calls “passive imaging technology” to identify objects by the natural electromagnetic rays — known as Terahertz or T-rays — that they emit.

The high-powered camera is effective even when people are moving. It does not reveal physical body details and the screening is harmless, the company says.

As with many cool innovations, ThruVision came up with the technology for the camera collaborating in an open innovation partership with the European Space Agency. This technology has both military and civilian applications and could be used in crowded airports, shopping malls or sporting events.

All people and objects emit low levels of electromagnetic radiation. Terahertz rays lie somewhere between infrared and microwaves on the electromagnetic spectrum and travel through clouds and walls.

So how great is this technology? Depending on the material, the signature of the wave is different, so that explosives can be distinguished from a block of clay and cocaine is different from a bag of flour!