MakeShift

By William Lidwell

Photograph by Jill Butler and Jason Holden

This MakeShift challenge is brought to you by Dean Kamen and the creative team at DEKA. Dean and his team will also be participating in the analysis and winner selection. And remember: Don’t be afraid to kiss frogs!

The Scenario: You’re driving through a remote region of Mexico currently experiencing drought conditions. From the road, you see a family working desperately to keep their crops irrigated by carrying buckets of water. A quick scan of the farm leads you to believe that you can help. You pull over and introduce yourself (en español, por supuesto). You learn that the pond level has dropped due to the unusually dry summer, and the stream that it normally feeds has stopped flowing. This family of five has been doing its best, but it is clear that they are doomed to fail given the severe heat, distances, and carrying capacities involved. These crops represent food for the winter, annual income, and seed for next year’s crop. Una solución elegante a este problema difícil es necesaria.

Send a detailed description of your MakeShift solution with sketches and/or photos to [email protected] by Dec. 31, 2005. If duplicate solutions are submitted, the winner will be determined by the quality of the explanation and presentation. The most plausible and most creative solutions will each win MAKE T-shirts and a SWISSMEMORY™ USB Victorinox 512MB. Think positive and include your shirt size and contact information with your description. Good luck! For readers’ solutions to previous MakeShift challenges, visit makezine.com/makeshift.

William Lidwell is a consultant with Stuff Creators Design Studio and co-author of the book Universal Principles of Design.