Biography
Hello, My name is Jacob Kennedy, originally I am from a small town called Pukenui in the far far north. This upbringing in the far north shaped my deep passion for the ocean, especially diving. Every chance I get is spent around, on and in the ocean. One of my passions is underwater hockey which is a very niche sport but combines my love for diving and a physically demanding sport.
I went to boarding school in Whangarei where I found my interest in design through DVC (design and visual communication). Originally I thought I wanted to become an engineer so I started studying electrical engineering at the University of Waikato. I quickly discovered it wasn't for me and changed into industrial design and haven't looked back since. Design has been a great experience for me and this degree has shown me this is what I really love doing. The process of taking a brief or initial idea through the design process and seeing how it turns out fascinates me.
The way I will start reading a brief and will have ideas jump out at me. My mind starts flowing then I start working through it and the end product is so much different to what I thought. The way that no two designs are the same and how there is limitless potential inside of a design. With industrial design being able to have designed a different thing every project has been amazing and made every project exciting. This is how I want to go further into design and be able to have the chance to work on so many different kinds of projects and ideas.
Project Description
Fresh start is a simple product designed to help lower income households get a better source of nutrition. This was formed from the brief of fitting within New Zealand's sustainability goals with this project having a focus on goal 2 (zero Hunger) and goal 3 (good health and well-being). This product helps people who may not be able to afford vegetables the chance to easily grow their own.
Growing vegetables can be a tedious task and requires attention and watering everyday. Fresh start requires zero power or electricity to function and is designed to be paired with an upcycled item. Items such as tyres, drums, old containers, tubs or anything that has the ability to hold a volume of soil can be used. The user then fills a plastic bottle of their desire onto the fitting, flips it into the watering system and the use of suction prevents the water from emptying through the pipeline. Then the use of wicking allows the water to be drawn from the pipeline and dripped to the garden to maintain soil moisture. Once the garden is set up and functioning the user no longer has to worry about watering everyday.