Segway Inventor Takes His Island Home Off the Grid

Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway, has turned his tiny island retreat of North Dumpling Island, off the coast of Connecticut in the Long Island Sound, into the poster project for what America can do to try to get off the energy grid — or, at least slow it down.

According to NPR, Kamen purchased the three-acre island as a retreat in the 1980’s — it comes complete with a lighthouse. When the U.S. Coast Guard told him electrical service was being cut off and the lighthouse was switching to solar power, it was Kamen’s chance to go off the grid and make a statement to the rest of energy hungry Americans. He has a wind turbine attached to a generator, installed solar panels, uses only LED lights, and, of course, uses Segways to get around the island.

The beauty of rich and eccentric people is that they do fun and eccentric things. Karmen has taken to calling himself Lord Dumpling, his North Dumpling Island is an “independent nation.” He  also claims to have his own currency, and he offers visas to visitors of his island.