Humanitarian Design

VOTE to help Project H Launch a High School Design Program in Rural NC!

by Inhabitat, 02/09/10

Project H Design, the design nonprofit founded in 2008 by Inhabitat Senior Editor Emily Pilloton, is in the running for a $50,000 grant from the Pepsi Refresh Project to launch Studio H, a high school design and vocational program in the poorest county in North Carolina. Studio H will be a one-year program, taught by Emily Pilloton and Project H architect Matthew Miller, combining design thinking, vocational shop skills, and community service to collectively build one big project per year in a rural county in need (first project: bus shelters for the school bus system!).

The $50,000 grant would fund Project H’s shop build-out at the high school, and the first year’s construction materials. To land the funding, they need votes to secure a spot in the top ten (right now they’re at #12!).

Vote daily through Feb. 28 to help Project H win a $50,000 grant >

**3 clicks if you vote using your Facebook log-in!

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Swirl: A Washing Machine in a Ball for Laundry in Developing Nations

by Beth Shea, 02/07/10

Imagine if you could kick, bunt and play your way to clean clothing. Well Swirl, an innovative new concept for easy laundering on the go lets people do just that. This colorful ball (which we wish had been entered into the Greener Gadgets design competition) designed by German-based designaffairs Studio lets people fill it up with dirty clothes, water and soap and then the rotational motion of soccer and play does all the work. This could be especially effective in developing nations where water sources are located a far distance from homes making hauling and washing clothes a real drag. Just be prepared to fend off the mobs of kids lining up and begging you to help you with the laundry!

GOOD Magazine Launches Design Competition to Rebuild Haiti

by Yuka Yoneda, 02/03/10

One of our favorite publications, GOOD magazine, has just joined forces with PRE and Studio X to launch a design competition to rebuild Haiti. The contest comes at a time when Haiti needs it the most, and offers a great opportunity for you to contribute your skills to do some good. They’re asking designers, architects and visionaries to examine the social, economic, governmental and residential areas of Port-au-Prince and come up with strategic, organizational, institutional, and/or architectural solutions for one or all of these institutions.

The winner of this month’s competition will receive half of the pooled entry fees, while the remaining half of the entry fees will be donated to the Haitian relief effort.

ENTER THE COMPETITION HERE >

Energy Generating Soccer Ball Brings Clean Power to Off-Grid Areas

by Mike Chino, 02/03/10

When the sun goes down many developing countries rely upon dangerous kerosene lamps, which emit hazardous fumes and generate 190 million metric tons of CO2 each year. Seeking an eco-friendly alternative to this trend, four Harvard engineering students developed the Soccket – a soccer ball that generates and stores electricity during play. Soccer is found in just about every African country, so the energy-generating ball has great potential to encourage healthy activity while producing clean electricity to light up the night.

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Upward Bound: LA Designers Create Happy Spaces for Homeless Families

A crowd that included actor/activist Don Cheadle gathered last week to celebrate the completion of the Upward Bound House Family Shelter in Culver City, Los Angeles, what is undeniably one of the prettiest and most cheerful homeless shelters we’ve ever seen. Once the site of a rundown motel with transient tenants, this 18-unit complex received a complete make over by an all-star cast of Los Angeles interior designers. With no budget at all, designers used their creative muscle to transform dark and dreary motel rooms into bright and uplifting spaces for homeless families in need.