Blue Freedom – Providing reliable first aid electricity from hydropower

Electrical power supply is among the first critically important services in disaster areas. Especially natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes or floodings lead to a destruction of the installed power grid and portable electricity becomes indispensable. One innovative solution is Blue Freedom Portable, a lightweight hydropower generator with 5W output capacity. With a weight of […]

Design for Disaster Response Conference

Call for papers: Design for Disaster Response Conference Design for Disaster Response is a cross disciplinary conference to share research and actions around approaches to preparing for, and delivering responses to, disaster on local, regional and global scales. Date and Location Friday November 13, 2015 UNSW Australia Michael Crouch Innovation Centre UNSW Sydney, Australia Conference […]

A Litter of Light – Solar Energy for Low Income Housing

The green energy solution for low-income communities known as “Litter of Light” was designed to provide lighting to homes in areas where energy is either unavailable or unaffordable to residents. This low-cost sustainable building solution was designed at the grassroots level to serve those most in need. The Litter of Light project makes use of […]

The Modern Yurk – A Possible Design for Relief Scenarios?

The Scottish company Trakke has redeveloped the nomadic yurt shelter and created the Jero Yurt. The temporary housing innovation is a lightweight dwelling that pops up and was designed to be used for events such as backyard parties or off-grid camping experiences with a modern twist. The Jero’s compact design even allows it to be […]

IKEA Starts Producing Flat-Pack, Durable Shelters For Homeless Refugees

By Yap Yen, 25 Mar 2015 IKEA has started producing 10,000 of its flat-pack temporary shelters designed specially for refugees whose circumstance is due to conflict and natural disasters.Working together with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), IKEA will supply the ‘Better Shelter’ units that will be distributed globally later this year.The prototype for ‘Better […]

Garrison Architects Releases its Self-Sustainaing Post-Disaster Housing Prototype

The Brooklyn building design firm Garrison Architects has developed a full-sized post-disaster housing prototype to secure safe and stable last-minute housing in the wake of natural disasters. This is just one example of their many architectural projects sustainably designed to help in disaster relief scenarios. The company believes that well designed environments support social cohesion, […]