Paper Cycling EcoHelmet Wins Dyson Award

A recyclable, folding cycling helmet made of paper has won this year’s prestigious international James Dyson Award.

Isis Shiffer, a recent graduate of the Pratt Institute of Design in New York, made the EcoHelmet from layers of recycled paper woven into a honeycomb-shaped structure.

While the helmet keeps its shape to protect the cyclist’s head as it is being worn, when it is removed, the radial structure allows it to concertina into a flat object. The helmet is coated with a material that makes it rain resistant for between three to four hours.

To test the helmet, the designer took it to a crash lab at Imperial College London, where it passed the European safety standards.

Ms Shiffer will receive £30,000 to further develop EcoHelmet. She hopes to pilot the new helmet in New York in the spring, possibly offering it free to bike-share users at first.

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