Biomimicry Global Design Challenge
(2020)
NEXTEP
Nextep is a temporary student housing concept that addresses the issue of student homelessness in the United States. It is easy to transport, assemble, and can be set up wherever extra space on campus can be found. It draws inspiration from nature to save energy and reduce the cost of production.
​
This project was completed in collaboration with Ashley Huynh, Eric Hoang, Andy Chi, and Adrian Morlett.
Nextep
A mobile housing unit with a passive airflow vent system and ridged walls to dissipate heat. The folding floors contain pop-up furniture such as tables, seating, and beds. Lightweight and portable, the units can be moved to and from wherever there is spare space on campuses, such as auxiliary parking lots.
visualization by Adrian Morlett
video by Noor Ali
problem
10.9% of the 482,000 students enrolled in the 23 California State Universities were "housing insecure" in 2018; meaning that at least once during the year, students did not have a place to spend the night and resorted to sleeping in cars, staying with friends or relatives, staking out in school facilities, or staying on the street.
​
At my home school of CSU Long Beach, only six emergency dorm units are available for such students. We set out to design a solution to alleviate the shortage of temporary housing.
Banner image courtesy of Daily Forty-Niner
https://daily49er.com/news/2021/05/09/basic-needs-program-assists-csulb-students-facing-housing-insecurity/
Crutchfield, R. M. & Maguire, J. (2018). California State University Office of the Chancellor Study of Student Basic Needs. Retrieved from http://www.calstate.edu/basicneeds
research
We arranged interviews and attended presentations with social work experts on the Long Beach campus to better understand the scope of the issue and learn how best to design meaningful solutions.
design process
As a team, we created a project board to clarify our workflow, stay on task, and share our findings and ideas. We marked solutions that had potential and collaboratively converged upon our final concept.
Our design drew inspiration primarily from the passive ventilation systems of Prairie Dog burrows as well as the heat-dissipating ridges of the Saguaro cactus to keep our housing unit energy efficient.
sketches by Ashley Huynh
prototyping
We created mockups representing two different concepts: a garage room combo, and a collapsible housing unit. We experimented with collapsibility, interior furniture, and passive ventilation locations.
prototype by Noor Ali
honorable mention
For our efforts we were awarded an honorable mention. We were delighted to have made an impression in our first competition!
what did I learn?
I learned the challenges and rewards of working closely with a team for an extended period of time. I exercised leadership skills and recognized the unique abilities of my teammates. I gained experience in ethnographic research and learned how to utilize the knowledge of experts to better address an issue.