The primary goal of ‘esc1’ is to help temporary and permanent climate refugees from wildfires to be resilient. Today, people’s lifestyles depend highly on electricity, radio transmission, and road network. When wildfires break out, people potentially lose their electrical power supply, internet connection, and mobility ability, which will make them helpless until the rescue comes. They need help and assistance to overcome the situations.

Using innovative technologies for the people who need them, ‘esc1’ is designed to help temporary and permanent climate refugees caused by wildfires.

'esc1' is a product for the community potentially affected by natural disasters, specifically wildfires. Even though many communities around the earth are located in expanding potential hazard zones, the residents are barely prepared for breakout situations. Especially people who are used to computers and smartphones are very vulnerable to these disasters due to their dependency on radio transmissions. The risks to communities these days by wildfires are rising rapidly more than ever.

The project itself is raising the alarm to society about global warming. A decade ago, the needs of this project must be substantially less compared to now. The existence and development of this product will trigger people to think about the environmental transition and the new reality we live in. It will help communities to be informed and prepared.

The world has been witnessing and experiencing intensified wildfires. Caused mainly due to aging infrastructures and worsening global warming, the days of wildfire season extended, the intensity of fire rose, and the affected area expanded yearly. Most importantly, the number of temporary and permanent climate refugees causes by these disasters keeps increasing. When incidents happen, people lose their electrical power supply, internet connection, and mobility ability.

‘esc1’ is designed to help these temporary and permanent climate refugees. It is a first aid energy/communication kit designed to help these people. This device can allow people to use emergency energy when an incident happens. The users can distress light signals to rescue helicopters or firefighters utilizing the device. They can also collect additional solar energy and charge their personal devices.

9 January 2023 - Patent registered in South Korea

March 2023 - Patent in Progress in the United States

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12-15 March 2023 - First Exhibition of the Product, SXSW 2023 Creative Industries Expo

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April 2023 - Final Round Selection Notified, 2023 International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) by The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA)

March 2023 - Silver Award, Panasonic i-PRO Future Design Challenge

The user can transform 'esc1' into three different formations; microgrid, wearable device, and light signal transmitter. According to the sequence of events, a user can pack, move and unpack the product to accomplish the specific function of each stage.

Formation A - Microgrid

During daily life, users can install 'esc1' in an interior or exterior space, such as a balcony, terrace, or backyard, with sunlight and collect electricity using the solar photovoltaic energy system.

Formation B - Wearable Device

When a wildfire breaks out, users transform 'esc1' into a mobile form and move to a safe location. Considering the travel process of the users, 'esc1' has been made with a light aluminum structure in a cylindrical shape. The users can fold the wings and legs of 'esc1' into this cylinder.

Formation C - Light Signal Transmitter

When people arrive at the safe location far from the fire, they transform 'esc1' into a light signal transmitter form. High-visibility LED units on the six wings will help them send signs to the rescue. On top of that, the users can gather extra energy when the sun comes out. They can also charge their personal devices using this system.

From a business perspective, this project can be an anchor project for the emerging market related to preparation for climate change. It is an emerging market with sharply growing demand due to the radically transitioning temperature. Since global warming is affecting more regions worldwide and more days of our daily lives than before, the preparation products' role in households is getting critical. However, the supply is not meeting the needs, and there is no evident project to lead a new production trend. This project will impact the market as a sole product and as a trigger project that can bring up discussions about the subject and inspire other companies to join the design and products dealing with similar issues.

The first minimum viable product of 'esc1' was exhibited during SXSW Creative Industries Expo in March 2023. Currently, fundraising meetings with local companies are going on.

‘esc1’ is specifically designed for the residents in California wildfire-affected areas. The project started when the team learned about California’s infrastructure, climate change, and future risks. Based on the studies about the living patterns of the residents, the history and the future of urban planning, and changing natural status of the state, the product has been designed.

During the recent showcase of the product at SXSW, many promising interests and feedback from the residents in California were shared. Several people wanted to purchase it even though it was a minimum viable product. One of the residents shared the on-site information: he had already experienced more than three times evacuations from the home because of the fire alert even before the wildfire season started. The urgency of this issue at the site is very high, and people need to be prepared.