October 22, 2010

By: James I. from St Paul, MN
Comments: 21

Posted By: James Iliff
On: 10/5/2008 10:55:02 AM

A colleague and I are working with our students on a design project where we are designing and building portable shelters for the homeless. I would love to know if anyone has an idea of where we can aquire some money to prototype and eventually build our ideas. The materials could run up to $500 given the number of groups we are working with.

Posted By: susanne donahoe
On: 10/7/2008 2:06:10 PM

Is it really possible to build portable shelters for under $500? Tents??????? Susanne

Posted By: Mary Romoser
On: 10/12/2008 3:42:07 PM

This sounds like an interesting project. I wonder if cities would support or allow portable shelters for the homeless? Perhaps organizations that offer food and shelter to the homeless could receive permits for using them.

Posted By: Thelma Kastl
On: 10/14/2008 10:29:28 AM

After I attended the Designing for the Other 90% Institute, I challenged my students to design a portable homeless shelter. My students researched various costs, materials, conditions etc. After they did all of that they decided to create a homeless shelter from the materials readily available to homeless people. They ended up making a floor from coffee cans. Thet covered the floor with cardboard and on top of that the created a mattress out of extra large trashbags packed with crumpled newspaper. They then created a tent type frame made of broken broom/mop handles. They covered the frame with plastic and pllastic bags. It was a very eye opening project for my students. They tried it out and allowed other students to try it also. Materials and material cost is always a problem. I would not allow the students to purchase their items. They had to collect and scrounge for the materials they needed. This also helped them appreciate the situations homeless people are often in. Their design wasn't the prettiest but they put a lot of thought into it and the design would definitely prove worthy especially in dire situations.

Posted By: James Iliff
On: 10/17/2008 6:57:30 AM

we started a website around the project. designteam.weebly.com The students created a survey to solicit information from the homeless. We established design criteria and drew sketches (not posted yet) We are now creating models of their ideas and soon will be looking for materials to actually build their concepts.

Posted By: LeQuyen Tran
On: 10/26/2008 3:30:21 PM

You might want to apply for a service learning grant through Saint Paul to get materials for your project. You can get up to $500.

Posted By: Phyllis Santiago
On: 12/28/2008 8:54:16 AM

I am interested to learn about this portable shelter project. With homelessness, esp. for families, on the rise in Philadelphia, it is an interesting endeavor. My students are often at a loss for what we should do a say with respect to the homeless population that are near our school. I think it's time for them to study the problem so that we can all better understand it.