2015 Winner – Modified Airdrop System
Kenyan cover 581,309km2 and is divided into 70 districts supporting over 44milion people, the main water source in Kenya comes from surface and groundwater. However, these both rely on rainfall to replenish the natural system, unfortunately due hot air from Indian ocean the climate is mostly hot and humid with low annual rainfalls of around 600mm. this means the Kenya struggles to meet the minimum demands of 5.5l/person/day. This means a new source of water is required. This project looks at the possibility of extracting moisture directly from the air, by adapting and modifying a new technology which was developed in Australia for crop irrigation. The main focus these modifications would be to backwards engineer this technology and redevelop it in a low tech, low cost way which could then be utilized by the people of Kenya.
2016 Winner – Biochar Kiln
An efficient, reliable, functional kiln designed to provide farmers and communities access to biochar. Biochar is the burning of organic material at a high temperature produced in an oxygen limited environment. Biochar is a porous carbon material that has many benefits. Biochar can be used as a natural sustainable fertiliser that can increase crop yield.
2016 Runner Up – EmaP
The proposal is a visual and aural First Aid app to enable a mobile phone to provide immediate emergency response information in an emergency environment. In order that, the effected or the people would know how to act “insitu”. That information will be approved by a health specialists. Using graphic resources and an audible explanation in English and translated into different languages throughout Nepal. The app will allow people to access health information without the need to attend a doctor or clinic. Therefore what makes this app different from the others is the visual and aural method for transmitting the information instead of using small images or text.
2017 Winner – LifeLid
Life Lid is a pocket sized device which produces chlorine from salt and water. The device has a bottle cap fitting allowing it to easily screw onto any standard bottle. The salt water solution is put into the bottle and when the device is turned on the current starts to turn the solution to chlorine. This chlorine could be used to purify drinking water.
Life‐Lid was created with the aim of combating the current water crisis happening in Nepal. Our goal is to provide cleaner drinking water to the Nepalese. Currently 80% of people have access to dirty drinking water. The water sources contain a number of contaminants that are causing life threatening illnesses to the Nepalese whom consume them. 44,000 children are dying from water borne illnesses every year.
2018 Winner – TIDE Tooklit
Over half the displaced population are women, and they are suffering both physically and mentally. Girls are dying from a lack of resources, knowledge and awareness about menstruation. They do not have access to sanitary products or underwear. Instead they use cloths, leaves, rags, or tin cans. ‘TIDE.’ is a menstrual tool kit designed for displaced women. The tool kit includes four reusable sanitary pads, a washing device, underwear and infographic instructions, to avoid language barriers. One kit will be supplied per woman, and it will last for approximately 6.25 years, to be used during each menstrual cycle. When not in use, the pads can be stored within the washing device.
2019 Winner – Chaleur
Chaleur is a product for well being, dignity and health. The project aims to help fight skin disease. Athlete’s foot, trench foot, scars … the most common skin diseases in camps involve feet. These diseases, besides being very painful, may keep the refugees from continuing their journey.
The problem occurs because the refugees are often forced to keep their shoes on to keep warm, and sometimes even wear them while sleeping. Their feet are never totally dry and neither are their clothes. The damp environment they live in causes the dermatological issues.
2019 Runner Up – Crutch Kit
Crutch Kit is an adaptable joint that allows refugees and migrants to construct a crutch themselves. By providing the complex part of a crutch- the joint, all that is up to them is to cut a pole to length, insert it and clamp it in place with the hand screws.
During my research mobility came up time and time again as a big issue for refugees, it’s hard to imagine how difficult they’re lives must just as a refugee, let alone as a refugee that is injured and can’t even move from place to place. I found lower limb injuries among the people of Rohinya very common as a result of their flee from ethnic cleansing in Myanamar. The violence there left many immobile with gunshot injuries or broken/sprained ankles. For these people a crutch can make all the difference in getting them to safety.
2019 Runner Up – Plantern
My concept is called Plantern. It is a lightweight portable planter made for people living in the Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. Many women and children in the camp suffer from malnutrition due to lack of food in the camp. This is partly due to the large influx of people daily, and insufficient resources to accommodate them. The aim was to make something simple that could open a gateway to more nutritional and flavourful food. To create a way for camp residents to take some control over their food production and the flavour of the rations they get. The product is made from paper, beeswax, dried compressed soil and seeds. It comes in multiple sizes depending on the plant it will grow. The plants come in a wide range, they are all dictated by different purposes. The main three purposes I choose to focus on were herbs and spices for cooking, medical plants and plants with natural pest deterrents. They include plants such as garlic, chili, chrysanthemum and many more tropical and temperate plant seeds. I envision my product being used to promote small scale horticultural practice in the camps. To give the residents the opportunity to grow plants they will enjoy, as well as the stress reducing activity of gardening. I also hope to see it as an educational tool for
children. To show them the value of agriculture and to add colour to their lives.