A flat white human powered espresso

There is now an Espresso machine available in Australia that uses almost no energy to make an espresso coffee! The Presso is people-powered, in that it uses human pressure to make an espresso, and the only power requirement is heating up a cup of water. Presso is the revolutionary way to make espresso at home. With its simple and innovative design, Presso is one of the most affordable ways to make great espresso all by yourself.

In addition, Presso have also committed to planting a rainforest tree in the Daintree, through Rainforest Rescue, for every one of these human-powered machines that is sold this Christmas!

The only power requirement is heating up a cup of water

The Daintree is the world’s oldest rainforest having been in existence continuously for 100 million years. It is one of the most significant regional ecosystems in the world and is of international conservation importance. The Daintree is home to 122 threatened species of plants and animals, including the endangered cassowary. It is estimated that there may be a little as 1,000 of these magnificent birds left in Australia.

With more and more people giving differently than they have before, we are happy to support the Presso Green Christmas Special. It’s great to know that the focus is on giving something that gives back to the planet.

The donated trees will help restore the natural environment of the Daintree rainforest and provide essential habitat. They will also be absorbing carbon from the atmosphere and helping to reduce climate change.

Research conducted by Dr. Simon L. Lewis, a Royal Society Research Fellow at the Leeds University Earth & Biosphere Institute, has found that trees in undisturbed tropical forests are absorbing 4.8 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, or close to one-fifth of the CO2 that is released into the atmosphere from burning fossil fuels.

Results of the analysis of 40 years of tree records from tropical forests in the Central African country of Gabon show that trees have been getting bigger and are mopping up extra carbon. Based on estimates provided by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the research suggests that tropical forests throughout the world are responsible for around half of all land based carbon absorption.

“Tropical forest trees are absorbing about 18% of the CO₂ added to the atmosphere each year from burning fossil fuels, substantially buffering the rate of climate change” said Dr Lewis.

Assuming a carbon price of $20 Australian dollars per tonne, the value of intact tropical forest as a carbon sink would be just under $100 billion.