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.