INTERNATIONAL: And finally, a recycling enthusiast in Cairo, artist and founder of Mobikya Company, manufactures mobile shelters from upcycled tyres to keep stray cats warm during winter. Cairo felines have a warm place to sleep in these upcycled mobile shelters made out of old tyres that aim to protect the animals during the cold winter months.
Eco-friendly artist, Ibrahim Abougendy, is creating a prototypes, a “Mobikya” house, to be distributed in various locations in the busy streets of Cairo, as the country has been witnessing changing weather conditions in recent years. The company is cooperating with Petman, an e-commerce store for pets as part of the "Sheltire" project, offering mobile units that can accommodate up to five cats each.
Artist and founder of Mobikya Company, Ibrahim Abougendy says cats live in very difficult conditions, especially If there’s snowfall and heavy rainfall in Egypt as a result of climate change. Stray animals need to be protected from the temperature even 10 degrees warmer will make a huge difference for them.
He has said, his design has offered a safe and thermally-insulated shelter that can accommodate five cats. Its size it not too big to put in front of your house. This is the simple prototype; he can add more options including how to put food for them that can be distributed equally to the five cells so that the cats don't fight with each other. This will all be based on the feedback that we will get from the cats themselves, people in the street and those who will help us by keeping these units on the spaces that belong to them.
He has added; he has always been thinking how to use tyres, which people throw away while having unique characteristics including thermal insulation, in order to offer a mobile shelter to accommodate four to five cats that with time can be put in each street.
The mobile shelters are designed to fit in an urban setting, made of upcycled car tyres that are thermally insulated, as well as other recycled material like wood.
Users can order the units or donate to manufacture them to be put in streets, donations from outside Egypt are also accepted through the project's website.
Rare snowstorms have been hitting the coastal cities of Hurghada and Alexandria this winter, with Egyptians reporting lower temperatures in Cairo and other cities in recent years.
