Awards & Recognition
March 2021 - TRT WOrld
See this TRT World coverage on how ‘New-age greenhouses offer solutions to demand for clean water’. Seawater Greenhouse founder Charlie Paton discusses the technology and its potential applications across the world!
September 2019 - Ingenia online - “Farming in the Desert”
Written by Geoff Watts in the Royal Academy of Engineering’s website Ingenia Online, this article gives an excellent introduction to Seawater Greenhouse technology, the companies history, and the background to our project in Somaliland. It covers many of the engineering aspects behind Seawater Greenhouse ‘cool house’ design, and the technology’s potential for scale up in the Somaliland and beyond. Thank you Geoff!
December 2018 - Freethink Video - “Growing crops in the Desert with Seawater”
We were delighted to work with producers Freethink to create a video on our technology, water insecurity and the Somaliland project. They did an amazing job to capture the essence of the Seawater Greenhouse, and the problems we are trying to solve! Click through the title or the Freethink logo to watch the video.
June 2018 - Virgin "Earth Unscrewed Podcast"
This month we were interviewed by hosts Helena Scales and Seyi Rhodes as part of their multi-part series called Earth Unscrewed. The programme explores just that - how does humanity mitigate and repair the damage it has done on ecosystems? We spoke to the presenters about our project in Somaliland and how it could play an important part in "unscrewing" Earth. Click through to have a listen!
March 2018 - SHell Springboard Competition
Seawater Greenhouse was named regional winner at the Shell Springboard Competition! The award recognizes businesses that can help realize a more sustainable and low-carbon future. It comes with £40,000 of equity-free funding and a chance to compete at the national finals for an additional £110,000. Click through to an article by Business Green to find out more!
January 2018 - Business Green
Business Green have published an excellent article that describes our first harvest and the next steps for the project. Click through the link to read the full article on their website.
November 2017 - Desalination journal
We are very excited to announce the official publishing of our paper, Brine Utilisation for cooling and salt production in wind-driven seawater greenhouses: Design and modeling, in the journal Desalination. The paper is the result of several years of collaboration between Seawater Greenhouse and Aston University. We would like to especially thank Dr Philip Davies, Dr Sotos Generalis, Opus Igobo and Takeshi Akinaga of Aston for their tireless contributions. As with all of our work, the paper has been made open-access and available in the public domain.
October 2017 - Financial Times
We are honored to be featured in the Financial Times 50 Ideas competition that will find "50 ideas to shape the world in the future". As part of the competition, Seawater Greenhouse were invited to FT headquarters to meet other entrepreneurs and innovators to share ideas and insights. Click through the link to learn more!
December 2016 - IFAD
In December, Seawater Greenhouse was one of four organizations to be invited to IFAD in their Rome Headquarters as part of an event called "Innovations in Agriculture: Solutions for a food-secure future". SG Director Charlie Paton attended the conference and delivered a talk on using the cooling power of water vapour for restorative agriculture.
November 2016 - Institute for Development Studies
We are very proud to have been named on the list of 10 frontier technologies for international development by the Institute for Development Studies. IDS is a global leader in development research and communications. Click here to read the report.
November 2016 - Business Green Awards
At the annual Business Green Technology Awards, held in London, Seawater Greenhouse won the Clean and Cool International Impact Award and was finalist for Technology of the Year. The award recognizes UK-based SME's that represent the best of British clean-tech overseas.
The Best Climate Practices Observatory is a project of the International Center for Climate Governance (ICCG). The BCP aims to help propagate best climate practices, showcasing a compendium of existing climate change measures and practices, plus new initiatives.
2015 - Best Climate Practices
2013- Sustainia Awards
The Sustainia Awards identify the most innovative sustainable solutions around the world. Seawater Greenhouse was selected as part of the Sustainia100 for its positive social, economic and environmental impact on local communities. The award is a tool for investors, business leaders, decision makers and consumers as it provides insights to the most promising solution at the forefront of sustainable transformations.
2012- RDI Recognition
In 2012, Seawater Greenhouse Director Charlie Paton was elected to be a Royal Designer of Industry by the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA). The RDI is the highest accolade for designers in the UK who have achieved 'sustained design excellence, work of aesthetic value and significant benefit to society.'
2007- ST ANDREWS PRIZE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
The St Andrews Prize For The Environment – The Seawater Greenhouse was one of three environmental projects short listed from a total of 265 entries for the prestigious 2007 St Andrews Prize For The Environment. An environmental initiative by the University of St Andrews in Scotland , and the international integrated energy company, ConocoPhillips, the aim of the Prize is to find practical solutions to environmental challenges from around the globe.
Other news
New Zealand Herald - January 2018
10 ideas to shake up the world in 2018
Greenhouse PR - July 2017
Greenhouse Pioneer: Charlie Paton, Seawater Greenhouse
Financial Times - November 2016
Entrepreneur brings agricultural technology to the Australian Outback
The Guardian - April 2016
The greenhouse that acts just like a beetle and other inventions inspired by nature
Science Daily - July 2015
Seawater Greenhouses bring life to the desert
Global Water Forum - April 2014
Vapour Value
Bloomberg - February 2014
Using Seawater to Farm in the Desert
BBC Radio - August 2013
Using the sea to cool the land
Sustania - June 2013
Seawater Greenhouse Selected as Leading Sustainable Solution
The Observer - January 2012
The future of food
Columbia University Earth Institute - February 2011
Seawater Greenhouses Produce Tomatoes in the Desert
Published Research
- P. A. Davies and C. Paton: The Seawater Greenhouse in the United Arab Emirates: thermal modeling and evaluation of design options, Desalination 173, 2, 103–111 (2005) in press.
- P. A. Davies and C. Paton: The Seawater Greenhouse and the Watermaker Condenser, 3rd Int. Heat Powered Cycles Conference, Larnaca, Cyprus (2004).
- Goosen, M.F.A., S.S. Sablani, C. Paton, J. Perret, A. Al-Nuaimi, I. Haffar, H. Al-Hinai, and W.H. Shayya. 2003. Solar energy desalination for arid coastal regions: Development of a humidification-dehumidification seawater greenhouse. Solar Energy Journal 75:413-419.
- Charlie Paton, Novermber 2001, Seawater Greenhouse Development for Oman: Thermodynamic Modelling and Economic Analysis, MEDRC Series of R&D Reports, MEDRC Project: 97-AS-005b
- Goosen, M.F.A., S. Sablani, W.H. Shayya, C. Paton, and H. Al-Hinai. 2000. Thermodynamic and economic considerations in solar desalination. Desalination 129(1):63-89.
- P. A. Davies and C. Paton: The Seawater Greenhouse: a case study based on Morocco, Sustainable Development International, 2nd Edition, 99-103 (2000). ICG Publishing Ltd.
- Performance aspects of a seawater greenhouse - 23rd WEDC Conference Durban, South Africa, 1997 by A. Raoueche and B.J. Bailey
- P. A. Davies, K. Turner and C. Paton: Potential of the Seawater Greenhouse in Middle Eastern climates, International Engineering Conference Mutah 2004, Mutah, Jordan, 523–540 (2004).
- Sensitivity analysis of the seawater greenhouse - 22nd WEDC Conference, New Delhi, India, 1996 by A. Raoueche, B. Bailey and B. Stenning
- C. Paton and P. A. Davies: The Seawater Greenhouse for Arid Lands, Mediterranean Conference on Renewable Energy Sources for Water Production, Santorini, 163–166 (1996).