I am trying to launch a project aimed to significantly improve conditions in refugee camps, through use of technology. The idea is to bring together innovative materials, fabrics, water purification, sanitation, energy supply… from different engineering sectors and put them together in a practical way so that the tens/hundreds of thousands of refugees can benefit, ideally before winter.



I am thinking cheap flat-pack homes that can be built very quickly, possibly with solar panels on top (for those stranded in Jordan, Syria and Turkey), new fabrics to create light thermal clothes, perhaps waterproof … rather than just sending ‘normal’ clothes and blankets.



It ought to be achievable, with the breadth and depth of knowledge covered by the IET members, to quickly pull the relevant resources and come up with a practical plan. Ideally, if I can get the names of the right people, I am hoping the IET would organise/lend a room, for a public launch event (maybe also a competition launch). Needless to say, involvement of the IET would guarantee the credibility and pull in the media, which in turn would attract donors. But it would also make it clear how engineering makes a real difference to real people and attract the young people to pursue the engineering careers…