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"If we live in a world where people are forced to live in cardboard boxes, then someone should at least invent a better box," said Pod inventor and founder of Icosa Village, Sanford Ponder, who, in "a moment of indignation" sought to find a solution to housing problems. Sam Rawlings investigates the Pod's progress so far and speculates on the future of this life-changing invention. The pod, designed by artist, composer, musician, photographer, inventor and visionary, Sanford Ponder, is able to withstand extreme weather conditions while providing a comfortable, homely living space. The finished design was inspired by the work of R. Buckminster Fuller, inventor, architect, poet, engineer, mathematician and cosmologist, well-known for his work with geodesic domes and spherical structures, and who mistakenly predicted the end of poverty by the year 2000. Sanford's Pods are constructed out of inter-locking, triangular panels that are lightweight, strong and recyclable, made from a "hybrid polypropylene", named Coroplast. The Icosa Village Pod company first showcased their homes at the Nevada Desert Arts Festival where they made ideal accommodation for the residents of the temporary city created during the festival. They were also tested in various other environments, including Barcelona, after which, the design was adapted to use extruded plastic rather then the previously-used fiberboard, providing water proofing. This both increased the Pod's life span and made the number of applications for which it could be used virtually limitless. Easily transportable and needing no skills or specialist tools to erect, the Pod was an ideal form of shelter for the victims of the recent south Asian earthquake. In the aftermath, many survivors were left in need of shelter as the freezing winter set in. Funded by the organisation, Medecines Sans Frontieres, or Doctors without Borders, Icosa Village sent 50 Pods to some of the worst affected and most remote areas of Pakistan. Now being used as hospitals and housing for medical staff, the pods are well suited to the rugged landscape, as the flat-pack design made it easy for large numbers to be transported to inaccessible regions. Markus Robinson, one of the Icosa Village team visited the Kashmir region Pakistan. "To say that the technology is a sensation, particularly among Pakistanis is an understatement," he said while teaching the locals how to erect the
structures and documenting the use of the Pods. "Medecines Sans Frontieres, MSF, is setting up a long-term hospital in Haittian, to serve about 30,000 people in the area. They will use 18 IcoPods, five-sided versions, as long-term housing for the medical personal," he said. Even in the sub-zero temperatures of Northern Pakistan, the Pods are providing shelter and warmth, bearing testimony to how the Pod can be used effectively in post-disaster areas. This successful emergency housing is certainly a milestone for Icosa Village, although temporary shelter is only one of the Pod's infinite uses. Already being considered as low-cost housing, they can be domestic greenhouses, saunas, studio's and even corporate meeting areas. From Sanford Ponder's dream of creating a "better box", a truly unique product has been created, that in its early years has been instrumental in saving lives. The original design specification was to create a light, sturdy, wind-resistant, waterproof, well insulated structure, which required no special skills or tools to assemble-perfect according to the inventor, for use as temporary housing in a war or natural disaster, although it is clear that the Pod can now offer much more than this: abundant solutions and endless possibilities. To buy a Pod or for more information contact: First printed in Living Lightly on the Earth magazine. This is one of many stories available from Positive News newspaper. For more stories like this please visit: www.positivenews.org.uk (In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.) |
The Pod