The honour was awarded at the WDC Gala in Lahti in February. Presented jointly by the city of Lahti and the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID), the prize is to be handed out by all future Design Capitals.
The award was accepted by Janice W. Muthui and Debbie Donde on behalf of Kenya’s Planning Systems Services Ltd, which developed the system.
The Community Cooker is a shared kitchen made of recycled materials, using waste as an energy source. It gives local residents access to cooking, baking and clean water with minimal cost and ecological load.
WDC Helsinki 2012 Director Pekka Timonen was impressed when he saw the model in action last spring in Kenya and met its designers.
“They’re a really captivating bunch,” he says. “They work in one of the world’s biggest, most chaotic slums, which is home to a million people. There, if anywhere, design has a very high impact. Creative, simple and human-driven solutions can affect huge numbers of people.”
