Sturdy Boy

While ethnic conflicts still rage in Myanmar, thousands of rural inhabitants struggle to make ends meet without proper infrastructure, without energy, and without irrigation tools. For farm and household use especially, it is crucial for families to have a large constant supply of water. Without it, they will be prone to lose entire crops, thus jeopardizing their livelihoods and families.

The Sturdy Boy (Pyit Taing Taung) is an affordable ($23) 250-gallon capacity tank designed for complete portability, durability and affordability. Made of PVC-impregnated canvas with a plastic rim, the Sturdy Boy is stored flat and grows into a freestanding tank, as it is filled with water. When connected to a pump and a hose, or a drip set, it can help make irrigation a one-man, or one-woman, job.

Sturdy Boy is designed by the social enterprise Proximity Designs, based in Yangon, Myanmar. The company has made it their mission to turn grass-roots research into problem-solving, human-centered designs – products as well as services. Already, they have sold over 11,000 Sturdy Boys and continue to make it their mission and their business to help people live in extreme poverty by treating the lesser fortunate like important market consumers rather than charity projects.