Large numbers of people worldwide are homeless (live outdoors, under bridges, inside abandoned water pipes, sleep on park benches..) or live in shantytowns, in makeshift shelters constructed out of cardboards, wooden packing boxes etc.
I've always thought that the sorts of storage sheds shown below (for US homes, manufactured by Rubbermaid and others) have the potential to be repurposed as sturdy dwelling units for people.
Solar panels integrated into the roofs of structures like the above would help offset some electricity costs.. Low cost devices like the ones below (again, sold in home and garden centers in the US and elsewhere) can be scaled up to create free-standing lamp poles to line streets.
Thankfully now there are designs like the Abod that are moving us towards the dream of "solving" homelessness.
Also, this is a step in the right direction.
Another update, 1/21/13 - Steps Housing Systems (by Williams and Chen) is hoping to create 6'x8' stackable 'pods', and are looking to raise money to give them to the homeless.
I've always thought that the sorts of storage sheds shown below (for US homes, manufactured by Rubbermaid and others) have the potential to be repurposed as sturdy dwelling units for people.
Solar panels integrated into the roofs of structures like the above would help offset some electricity costs.. Low cost devices like the ones below (again, sold in home and garden centers in the US and elsewhere) can be scaled up to create free-standing lamp poles to line streets.
Thankfully now there are designs like the Abod that are moving us towards the dream of "solving" homelessness.
Also, this is a step in the right direction.
Another update, 1/21/13 - Steps Housing Systems (by Williams and Chen) is hoping to create 6'x8' stackable 'pods', and are looking to raise money to give them to the homeless.
