Opportunities in Socially Responsible Design

"The future is not going to be the skyscraping cities of New York." How can a volunteer-run hot chocolate drive fund an entire school for 600 kids including class 3 classrooms and a rainwater collection system?  Even though Cameronn Sinclair gave this talk in 2006, the information is equally applicable today and in any geographical location. Creative, sustainable solutions to emergency and transitional shelter. Humanitarian efforts by architects and engineers to give local solutions to local problems by involving communities in the design process - from planning to building. With open source architecture inventors and designers are encourage to freely share their unique solutions with no fear of their ideas being stolen and profited upon by large companies.  A creative commons license allows people to implement a technology for non-commercial purposes - providing solutions during tragic and desperate emergency situations while protecting the rights of the inventor and while assisting in the testing of the idea in real life situations around the world.

RanDome to be Exhibited at The 35th Common Ground Country Fair at MOFGA

Meet Richard Fischbeck.at the booth at MOFGA.
Click to view more of this 2004 version made out of foam core.

The annual Common Ground Country Fair of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) begins on Friday, September 23, 2011 and continues through the weekend. RanDome will be there with a version of it's patented geodesic shelter in corrugated polyethylene plastic.  Stop by the booth and learn hands on how to make a RanDome emergency shelter at our educational geodesic activities table. Polyethylene is a very lightweight yet resistant material used to make a well known type of fishing boat.   How resistant is polyethylene plastic you ask?  When RanDome conducted it's search for yet another lightweight resistant material to use instead of aluminum for the upcoming fair we stopped by Hamilton Marine in Unity, Maine to ask some questions.  The salesman told us of an incident where a small polyethylene boat was on display outside the store.  A man in a pick up truck drove in, grabbed the boat, threw it on his truck and sped away. The police were immediately contacted and a chase ensued.  During the pursuit the boat flew off the pick up truck, bounced off the front of an 18-wheeler truck and bounced along the road finally coming to rest on the shoulder.  Fortunately no one was injured and the was returned to the store it was in almost perfect condition. It was placed directly back on display for the next interested store visitor. A few minor scratches were later quickly repaired by applying heat. In 2010 the MOFGA fair drew nearly 60,000 visitors over the entire weekend.