In Italy, Fablab Milano made critical medical equipment like ventilator valves, CPAP devices from scuba diving masks using 3D printing and reverse engineering. Similarly, In India, the M-19 initiative scaled production of protective face shields from 1,000 to 100,000 in just a few days by involving medical students stuck in university hostels and building on the collective power of makers spaces across the country. In this case, these were workshops in Universities where people with shared interests gathered to work on projects while sharing ideas, techniques and knowledge.

This initiative was led by Maker’s Asylum, an organization that, true to its name, helps people make, break and tinker with tools and technology to build rapid prototyping driven solutions for some of the most pressing development challenges.

To rapidly test ideas and create an enabling environment that fosters innovation, UNDP and Maker’s Asylum have launched SDG School Program, an experiential learning initiative that brings interdisciplinary and multicultural groups together to work on problems and lead community action for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

"It is important to not only have concepts and ideas but also actionable solutions. Rapid Prototyping helps creating that quick frugal solution to test out all the assumptions to move quickly forward in the creation process. In the context of the SDGs, this is important as time is of the essence!" says Richa Shrivastava, Director, Maker’s Asylum.

During the 10-day boot camp of the SDG School programme, participants collaborate and test solutions, ranging from creating lifestyle products out of repurposing waste medicine blister packaging to demonstrating safe on-site bathing spaces for migrant women laborers and designing a unique paper-based disposal system for sanitary napkins. Their projects underwent multiple iterations before arriving at the final solution.