An eco-friendly frog bike. An ambulance made of bamboo. Motorcycle footwear for the city.

These are just a few of the innovative projects created by Emily Carr Institute students to tackle some of the world’s most difficult challenges presented at this year’s Changing the World Through Design showcase, where advanced education minister Murray Coell presented the school with $150,000.

All of the projects address global issues, or a common human problem by incorporating creativity with functionality. For instance, “Reset,” is a transitional home for refugees in the Middle East. But Joji Fukushima, 28, and Satyan Gohil, 28 have taken the word “shelter” to a whole new level.

“Instead of tents that provide no privacy, this dwelling has separate spaces for men and women and also has a U-shaped structure which forms a courtyard and a sense of community,” said Gohil. “Those things often get overlooked when people are displaced.”
Cultural considerations aside, the humanitarian shelter also features eco-sustainable measures, such as cones on the roof to catch water, walls made of a high-temperature resistant material, ultra violet sensors to produce electricity and the shelter is made from blue pine—wood which has been “destroyed” by the Mountain Pine Beetle.

The two graduating students, who will be receiving their BA in Industrial Design, say there’s talk of sending two prototypes of Reset to Sudan, where there are thought to be over 600,000 refugees.

Suddenly a school project has wider implications.

After Alex Suvajac and Jonathon Igharas spent three months in Baguio City in The Philippines, they found that a lot of locals were turning their back on the country’s economy and the nation’s poor by focusing too much on the West. As a result, they have been working with Winaca Foundation, an organization that helps Filipinos utilise local resources, to invest in a potentially profitable housing industry.

“How they build homes now is largely based on foreign materials,” Suvajac said. “But what we wanted to do is help them develop and expand their bamboo industry.”

By working with the local industry, experts and non-profit organizations, Suvajac, 28, and Igharas hope to stimulate a local economy that uses sustainable materials and keeps money at home.

“By tapping into modern ideas, the Filipino people can really take ownership of their economy and lives,” Suvajac said. “We hope to help create a modular system that will build cost effective housing and will be eco-friendly.”

Suvajac and Igharas will be presenting a detailed model of their project at Emily Carr Institute’s graduate showcase in May.

“To the students, keep doing what you’re doing,” said minister Coell. “You’re making British Columbia a better place.” And the world.