Swiss Students Develop Blue Nomad, a Clever Floating Habitat for the Future

That is also the assignment that was given to a group of students at the Institut auf dem Rosenberg, a highly-acclaimed private boarding school based in St. Gallen, Switzerland. The students took the assignments very seriously and came up with an impressive solar-powered structure designed to float in the ocean and help people of the future better withstand climate change.

The prototype floating dwelling is called Blue Nomad and is inspired by both tiny living and conventional ocean-going vessels, though featuring a futuristic aesthetic. Floating communities already exist in flood-prone nations where sea levels rise and frequent storms cause waters to swell, so the idea of creating a habitat on the water is nothing new. The novelty of this project is that it is designed for the future and focuses on sustainability, from the materials it is built of to the propulsion system and energy source.

The students at the Swiss Institut auf dem Rosenberg designed the Blue Nomad floating habitat in collaboration with engineering experts and designers from SAGA Space Architects, a Danish tech design agency specializing in developing habitats for Earth and space.

Though it might seem more like a project fit for college students due to its complexity, the Blue Nomad was developed by pupils aged 6 to 18 years old. This kind of assignment is not unusual for this prestigious private school, whose curriculum focuses on coursework with real-life impacts and classes that balance human value and technology.

"By partnering with forward-thinking enterprises and industry experts such as SAGA, we enable our students to solve real-life problems, with the goal of creating a better future for all," said Bernhard Gademann, president of Institut auf dem Rosenberg.

The students envisioned a dwelling able to function as shelter for the modern nomad who will travel and live on the water full time. They studied the first Polynesian nomadic settlements and then used AI to bring their vision to life.

The Blue Nomad floating habitat is made from woven flax fiber combined with other sustainable materials, including algae tiles and cork walls meant to ensure insulation and fire resistance. It is powered purely by solar energy, with no less than 48 large solar panels mounted on the roof to generate energy for propulsion, electricity, and food production.

The conceptual craft boasts an asymmetric design with a layout that comprises a living space in the larger boom, bunks, a small galley, and a workspace. It can accommodate two people and two guests, but its modular design allows for multiple units to be fused together and create shared living spaces.

As for dimensions, the floating habitat measures approximately 22 by 16 feet (6.7 by 4.9 meters), so it is compact enough to fit through the locks and channels found on European waterways.

Taking the futuristic structure from conceptual sketch to mock-up stage was a daring endeavor that involved the entire school and encompassed every discipline and subject. The Blue Nomad full-size mock-up took six months to complete, and students were given age-appropriate tasks within the project, highlighting the school’s individualized approach to learning. For instance, some took care of the technical aspects and studied buoyancy and the physic behind the system, while others dug deeper into historical precedents.

An actual prototype is currently being built, with the team planning to exhibit it at two events this summer: the London Design Biennale in June and the Monte Carlo Energy Boat Challenge in July.

In terms of interior design, they plan to furnish it with minimalism in mind in order to provide compact but comfortable living. There is space for two double beds on two levels, a functional kitchen, a bathroom with plumbing, and an outdoor space with seating. A water filtration system and an aeroponic tower for growing vegetables are also part of the project.

The idea for the Blue Nomad concept came after a student trip to the Norman Foster Foundation in Madrid and is not the first project developed with help from SAGA Space Architects. Last year, the Swiss private school collaborated with the Danish agency on the Space Habitat, a 3D-printed structure for two people that is meant to fit inside SpaceX's Starship rocket.

"When our students work on projects and have the opportunity to physically create something, then the learning experience is so much better," explained Gademann.

The team has much more ambitious plans for the next years, though these do not involve students anymore. They plan to take the Blue Nomad floating habitat on a maiden voyage on the North Sea in late 2024, an endeavor that will be taken on by the experts at SAGA.

Blue Nomad might be just a conceptual floating habitat for the time being, but with the shifts in temperatures and weather patterns, the world's oceans could become a platform for housing solutions and this kind of dwelling could turn into the house of the future.