This nonprofit invented a genius coat that converts into a sleeping bag to help homeless people

An awesome nonprofit created a coat that doubles as a sleeping bag for homeless people – and they’re employing homeless people to make them.

Veronika Scott, founder of The Empowerment Plan, designed the EMPWR coat as part of a college assignment in 2010. Her professor told her to design something that “filled a need.”

"In Detroit, there's this large homeless population, and they kind of just disappear into the landscape," Scott said. "I wanted to design for this whole population of people that we just don't see."

The coat is waterproof, fully insulated, and with sleeves that snap together to double as a pillow. They’re designed to keep homeless people warm, Scott said, but also to offer some dignity.