The Doane Nets Project
Making mosquito nets from shopping bags.
Breaking the Chain of Dependence
Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.
The base material is made out of eight layers of plastic bonded together by heat from a household iron. Get details on making the base material.
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| In the villages of Karandi we used coal box irons to make the base material as no electricity is available. |
This base material is extremely strong and can be use for a wide variety of projects including mosquito nets. The holes for the net are generated by making a modified sewing machine needle and using electric or treadle sewing machines.
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| You can see us shaping the needle with a triangle file and using it with a treadle sewing machine. Get specific instructions on making the modified needle. |
Here are samples of the Doane Nets.
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| The orange sample on the left was made in Africa. Compare that to the white sample on the right made in the US. |
Damaged nets (manufactured and homemade) can be fixed in minutes simply by patching holes with scraps of plastic and an iron.
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| This is a double sided patch and is a quick permanent fix to a damaged net. |
This project is simple to understand, simple to do, and easily deployable. The world only needs to be taught.
The teachers:
This group of 25, mostly subsistence farmers (now expanded to 50), formed the first conservation self-help group in Kenya. They are now the world’s experts on converting plastic bags into mosquito nets.
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| Collecting plastic in the local village. | The members of the group in attendance on the day the group was officially formed. |