Sago Studio 2011 will take place with the remote Papua New Guinean communities of Laukanu and Kelkel, vibrant fishing villages located on the Huon Gulf of Morobe Province. A detailed process of community consultation, village mapping and water testing has confirmed a series of water and sanitation needs that community members are actively seeking to address. The projects will be driven by a collaborative effort that will bring together local community members and students from both the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and PNG University of Technology (Unitech) to explore village patterns and problems and undertake four design-build projects to effect positive and immediate change with the intention of fostering ongoing community development by the communities of Laukanu and Kelkel:

03 Washing

Close consultation and mapping of current patterns of community life will lead to a design proposal and construction new washing station near the community’s ground water source that will to ensure appropriate separation of water uses for the washing of people, clothes and dishes while mitigating the effects of regular tidal ingress to Laukanu’s primary stream.

04 Waste

Community efforts to design and construct ventilated improved pit toilets will be supported with community members, students and sanitation experts seeking to improve upon existing designs and aim to commence an ongoing community roll-out of facilities to remove all waste practices from the sea.

02 Water

Existing wells provide an opportunity to be rehabilitated for immediate access to a previously valued water source with the retrofitting of new hand pumps and the re-design and activation of the public spaces and pathways surrounding each well.

01 Master-Planning

Village mapping and planning studies will seek to understand the social and spatial patterns and surrounding landscape that shape the communities of Laukanu and Kelkel and arrive at a master-plan that coordinates the delivery of the current water and sanitation projects and considers the possibilities for future continued development.