Monday, January 07, 2013

Life In a Box

One bright idea that has received almost no attention in North America is Britain's ShelterBox.   Yet these compact little lifesavers in their thousands are beginning to make their way to relief zones around the world.    Here's what a ShelterBox looks like unpacked:


It's survival for ten people.  Tools, shelter, blankets, stove and cookware, water containers and purification products all in one neatly stackable, easily transportable box.

It doesn't look like much except to anyone who doesn't happen to have any of these things, someone who has lost everything to conflict or natural disaster.   Then it looks like a lot.

The ShelterBox kits even come with activity packs for children and the contents can be specifically geared to the nature of the disaster or conflict they're being sent to.

6 comments:

LeDaro said...

Let us buy one of these. Then buy one way ticket for Timbuktu and send Harper there.:)

Owen Gray said...

A terrific idea. Julian Fantino should spend some money and send a large shipment to Haiti.

Anonymous said...

OK, but due to fiscal restraint, let's save the cost of the box.

Beijing York said...

How does this work? Is this a non-profit that provides these ShelterBox kits to emergency response NGOs? They say that they cannot be purchased directly or through the internet.

If their intent is to help with disaster relief that bravo!

The Mound of Sound said...

Hi B.Y. Yes, as I understand it, ShelterBox is a non-profit that operates through grants and donations. Their product isn't for sale to the public. They kit it up and then ship the boxes en masse to hard hit places like Pakistan, etc. They're now getting ready a large shipment for Syria.

I've been following them for a year or two and they seem to be quite active. The neatest part is to get all this comprehensive kit into a single box that's easily doled out when they get where they're needed.

Rev.Paperboy said...

Brilliant - too bad they aren't available to the general public, they'd be great for a scout troop. At the same time I can see how the group producing them would want to reserve them for the people who really need them. it would be great if service clubs in Canada like the Lions or the Rotary could buy them to send to places like Haiti, Syria or even for the Red Cross to stockpile and distribute in emergencies. I expect the kits already include a bunch of this stuff.