
© Max Kessler 2025
Disaster Relief Sleeping Bags
project leader of TravlerPack
Cambridge, MA
Idlib, Syria
Bekaa Valley and Beirut, Lebanon
July 2017-present
.jpg)
A friend and I started TravlerPack when we became aware of the millions of people who have been displaced from their homes during the Syrian civil war.

the weather is one of the greatest challenges

many refugees do not have the proper means to stay warm
We built TravlerPack, a disaster resilience tool that addresses basic needs like secure storage and mobility while providing warmth.


talking to people on the ground, we realized we had to rethink and redesign the "sleeping bag"
In the past three years:
-
we spoke to refugees and nonprofits in the Middle East to learn about their needs
-
we sewed our first prototype together in a dorm kitchen
-
my friend tested and verified our bag by spending the night outside in a snowstorm
-
we negotiated with manufacturers overseas to find a partner who makes the bags affordably
-
I created this video for our campaign:
-
we launched fundraisers and applied to and won grants, raising over $70,000
-
we sent 1,160 TravlerPacks to Syria and Lebanon
-
we solicited user feedback, redesigned the bag, created a user guide, and made a website

at a refugee camp in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon

distributing bags to families, we learned about their lifestyles and needs
Most recently, we donated bags we had in storage in Beirut to people who lost their homes during the August 2020 Beirut explosion.