Short-term fabric shelters –
Canvas Tents, tarps and plastic sheeting can provide inexpensive temporary shelter from the elements at minimal cost
Advantages – cheap, portable, easily acquired, some relief agencies prefer explicitly temporary shelters that encourage refugee populations to disperse and/or return home
Disadvantages – fabric tends to rot, canvas and plastic both disintegrate upon exposure to water and UV rays, minimal protection from the elements, feeling of impermanence and physical vulnerability
Local materials –
Thatch, straw bale, stone and adobe can be used to create viable shelters that are relatively inexpensive and semi-permanent. These technologies require a local knowledge base for construction or technical support and training from outside organizations.
Advantages – relatively inexpensive and potentially permanent, participation of future occupants promotes self-reliance, respects local knowledge
Disadvantages – can be time-consuming to construct, require technical skill for construction
Links –
Shelter for Life International’s adobe construction in earthquake-affected Afghanistan
Towards Sustainable Shelter Solutions in Emergency Situations
http://www.shelter.org/Website_2004/documents/Nahrin.pdf
Prefabricated solutions –
A number of prefabricated shelter solutions are available on the market at a discount to humanitarian aid agencies
Advantages – usually fast to erect, allows quick response to disasters, shippable, well-designed prefab structures can be more comfortable than canvas tents, above-average protection from the elements compared with canvas tents
Disadvantages – can be prohibitively expensive, some concern that importing prefabricated solutions from abroad does not promote local initiative
Links –
Global Village Shelters
Icosapod
http://www.icosavillage.com/pod_features.html
Uniteam Quick Shelter
http://www.uniteam.org/storage_container/accommodation_with_quick_shelter.html
Sandbag Emergency Structure –
Cal-Earth’s emergency shelter uses “the materials of war” (sandbags and barbed wire) to create a semi-permanent to permanent structure.
Advantages – primarily constructed of earth (to fill sandbags), minimum amount of purchased material, allows participation of future inhabitants, good protection from elements and disasters
Disadvantages – requires purchase of some materials, may not be appropriate for all climates, may not conform to local housing models
Links –
Cal-Earth Emergency Shelters
http://www.calearth.org/emergshelter.htm
Aga Khan Award for Architecture awarded to Cal-Earth
http://www.akdn.org/agency/akaa/ninthcycle/page_03txt.htm
Bamboo –
Bamboo is readily available in some regions and can provide a sustainable source for both temporary and permanent structures
Advantages – may be locally available, environmentally sustainable, allows inhabitant participation in construction
Disadvantages – requires structural knowledge for construction, vulnerable to rot and insects, may be in limited supply
Links –
International Network for Bamboo and Rattan – prototypes for housing uses
http://www.inbar.int/housing/main.htm
Viviendas Hogar de Cristo – low-income bamboo housing prototype in Ecuador
http://www.inbar.int/housing/Hoger%20de%20Cristo-new.htm
Building and Social Housing Foundation – award to Viviendas Hogar de Cristo
http://www.bshf.org/en/about/whawards/projects.php?pID=00025
International Organisation for Standardisation (very) technical information on bamboo structural design
http://www.bwk.tue.nl/bko/research/Bamboo/ISO%20N313%2022156.doc
Other design solutions –
Architecture for Humanity has initiated a number of design projects, including international competitions, that offer good models for the application of design to relief endeavors.
Links –
Transitional Housing for Returning Refugees: Kosovo
competition to design five-year transitional housing for the returning people of Kosovo.
http://architectureforhumanity.org/kosovo/index.htm
Architecture for Humanity program in Bam, Iran
http://architectureforhumanity.org/programs/iran.htm
Wired article about Architecture for Humanity
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,64409,00.html
Back to Home