Richard Kroeker

Gunjur Project

A design studio made up of West African university students was set up by Richard Kroeker and graduate assistant Todd MacAllan in the remote coastal village of Gunjur, Gambia. Meetings with the village council established that the main problems of the village were related to water-borne disease and drownings at sea. With no pumps and few pulleys for lifting water, lifting ropes were contaminated by contact with the ground, in turn contaminating wells. Drownings at sea by fishermen in open boats, with no weather reports and no emergency flotation gear also had a large impact on village life. The design studio set out to address these issues using local craft, tools, and material resources.