Introduction
This blog follows Peacebuilding Solutions' attempt to produce a better refugee camp design and management approach. Our goal is to expose the next generation of leaders to this pressing global issue and hopefully make a positive impact on the lives of the world's poorest and most vulnerable people; refugees and internally displaced persons.
The Problem
This blog follows Peacebuilding Solutions' attempt to produce a better refugee camp design and management approach. Our goal is to expose the next generation of leaders to this pressing global issue and hopefully make a positive impact on the lives of the world's poorest and most vulnerable people; refugees and internally displaced persons.
The Problem
Currently there are millions of people living in refugee camps around the globe, each of which contains anywhere from a few hundred to many thousands of people, or more. These camps are meant to provide a measure of protection, shelter, and sustenance to individuals who have been forced to flee their homes in the wake of civil unrest, political persecution, or natural disasters. Unfortunately, a significant number of refugee camps are constructed rapidly with little regard for social aspects, provision of services, utilization of local materials, quality control, post-construction oversight, or the camp’s potential permanence.
The average amount of time that people must reside in these camps is 8 years, and some are as old as half a century. However most camps are little more than tents that degrade within a year. Further, multitudes of contractors and aid organizations often arrive on the scene, rapidly construct parts of a camp, and evacuate as soon as construction has been completed. Consequently, there are significant logistical overlaps and gaps, inadequate continued oversight, and a lack of sustainable accommodation for the refugees’ dynamic needs. As a result, refugees often suffer from exposure, illness, assaults, and death. Those who beat the odds still lose years of life in missed opportunities to be educated or to learn skills and trades. Essentially stagnating in these camps, refugees return home with little to no ability to compete in the local economy.
The Solution
The time has come for a new way of thinking about how refugee camps are constructed and managed. One problem that must be addressed is the provision of transportable, reusable, robust, and modularized refugee camps that can be utilized during post-conflict scenarios where the ever-shifting security situation could entail a need for rapid disassembly relocation, and reconstruction. These camps must be adaptable to varying environments, population changes, and social characteristics while simultaneously maintaining the ability to adequately provide basic services such as drinking water, sanitation, and appropriate shelters.
Wherever practical, camps should be constructed with local resources and simple technologies. Minimization of material and construction costs is also essential, but not at the expense of quality and reliability. Camp construction and operation must take into consideration the involvement of the refugees themselves from the beginning. This practice instills self-reliance, reduces dependence on outside sources, allows refugees to maintain a sense of purpose and dignity, and promotes long-term sustainability of the camp.
Finally, camp management must promote health awareness, mitigate health threats, and incorporate appropriate education and training in skills that will allow refugees to leave the camp with an ability to compete in the local economy. However none of these activities should be conducted within a vacuum. It is essential that strategic partnerships be established in the private, nonprofit, and government sectors in order to effectively bridge the logistical gap that currently exists with respect to refugee camp construction and long-term management.
We accompanied the Atlanta Professional chapter of Engineers Without Borders USA to Haiti in January and again in May of 2011 to evaluate the camps that have been in place since the devastating January 2010 earthquake. By utilizing their years of experience in the region, we were able to further evaluate the issues.
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| Greg Hodgin, Executive Director of PS |
We met with General Paul Cruz, a senior UN official with MINUSTAH, the UN stabilization mission in Haiti, as well as UN CIVPOL to further discuss the needs.
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| Greg Hodgin with General Paul Cruz |
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| Andrew Parks and Greg Hodgin of PS interview UN CIVPOL |
After returning with video footage from inside the camps, we began our marketing campaign for our refugee camp design competition.
Greg Hodgin and Andrew Parks summarize PS' mission
We also appeared on CNN Espanol to discuss our findings, the footage, and our competition.
Andrew Parks and Kay Guerrero are interviewed
The Design Competition
In early 2011, we partnered with both the Atlanta Professional and Georgia Tech Student chapters of Engineers Without Borders USA. Through this partnership, we established our refugee camp student design competition, "Designing for Good". Refugee camps are essentially small-scale cities, and an improved design must incorporate a multidisciplinary approach. With this in mind, we invited students from fields as diverse as engineering, public health, anthropology, sociology, political science, international affairs, and economics. Nearly 200 students from across the U.S. applied. Ultimately, we chose 140 students from a dozen universities including Harvard, MIT, Emory, Georgia Tech, and Georgia State University. Students formed 24 teams of 5, each of which included 2-3 from engineering, 1 from public health or urban design, and 1 from another social science.
The competition was held from September 25 to October 1, 2011. Each team was assigned 1 of 3 design cases: shelter, water treatment and distribution, and sanitation. In addition to customized design requirements that were stipulated for each of the individual 3 cases, ALL teams were required to formulate their designs in adherance to the following hypothetical scenario:
The following scenario takes place over a period of 8 years. For the first 4 years, the refugee population will reside at Lake Tukele. For the second 4 years, the refugee population will reside at a location to the southeast of Lake Tukele. A sustainable refugee camp that will last for 8 years and is capable of adapting to the conditions of both locations must be designed.
Location I
The area southeast of Lake Tukele is an arid desert region, and rainfall occurs infrequently. There is no known surface water source, and all water will likely need to be transported to the camp on a continual basis. Outside ambient air temperatures can range from 0⁰C to 38⁰C, and sun exposure can be significant. The area is also vulnerable to sand storms. The groundwater table is 50 meters below grade, and the site geology is sand with a bearing capacity of 3,000 psf. A site map with the proposed camp layout is included below.
During the design week, students were mentored by field experts and professors. On October 1, each team submitted a report and presented their designs to a panel of judges that included refugee camp, public health, and urban design experts from the CDC, U.S. Military, private and non-profit sectors. Each design was ranked, and the winners were chosen based upon many factors including practicality, innovation, and cost-effectiveness. The 1st and 2nd place teams in each case were awarded from a pot of $15,000 in prize money.
Directly following the competition, we were profiled on Georgia State University's Andrew Young School of Policy Studies website, and our efforts were applauded by former U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Congressman, and Mayor of Atlanta Andrew Young:
We also again appeared on CNN Espanol to discuss the results and to reveal illustrations of the winning designs:
The following scenario takes place over a period of 8 years. For the first 4 years, the refugee population will reside at Lake Tukele. For the second 4 years, the refugee population will reside at a location to the southeast of Lake Tukele. A sustainable refugee camp that will last for 8 years and is capable of adapting to the conditions of both locations must be designed.
Location I
Eight years ago, Etanian refugees crossed the border into the northern region of Mocando due to internal conflict. Etania’s president had been assassinated by a rebel group, and the country had fallen into chaos. The country collapsed into civil war, with the fight being broken down upon ethnic and religious lines. Thousands of people were forced to flee their homes.
A group of exactly 250 refugees fled to the northern end of Lake Tukele. The refugee population, 75% of whom were women and children under the age of 55, were about 40% Muslim and 60% Christian. Because of the nature of the war, many of the refugees were hostile towards each other depending on their religious and political affiliations. War crimes had been committed in Etania by both sides of the conflict, but the pro-government forces had engaged in more atrocious crimes than the rebels had.
The average age of the refugee population was 30 years, and 20% were physically injured. Of that 20%, 15% were injured to the point of physical disability including but not limited to blindness, debilitating head injuries, and broken bones with overall infections. This section of the population was unable to travel beyond the vicinity of Lake Tukele without further immediate medical care. Some individuals required amputations and other medical procedures that would result in permanent handicaps. Approximately 30% of the population was infected with malaria, and 5 individuals arrived with cholera.
The local fauna at Lake Tukele includes crocodiles, lions, cheetahs, zebras, giraffes, and gazelle. While this area of the lake is low in salinity, the water is relatively stagnant. As a result, the taste, odor, and appearance of the lake water are undesirable, and harmful bacteria are present. Further, this area does not contain a fish population that is adequate for consumption. While the area is not subject to hurricanes, the location is vulnerable to winds of category 2 hurricane force. During the monsoon season, rainfall can average up to 220 mm in a month and up to 14 mm in a day. Outside ambient air temperatures can range from 10⁰C to 26⁰C. The groundwater table is as shallow as 1.5 meters below grade, and the site geology is clay loam with a bearing capacity of 2,000 psf. A site map with the proposed camp layout is included below.
Location II
After 4 years of protracted civil war, the government of Etania and the rebel forces ground themselves into a stalemate, and it remained impossible for the refugees to return to their homes. Unfortunately, the rebels managed to secure international backing from other countries and launched new offenses against the government. This lead to a breakdown of order, and pro- and anti-government forces poured out of the country.
As a result, the Mocando government declared that they were unable to fully protect refugee camps anymore. Therefore, the NGO running the 250-person camp at Lake Tukele was forced to move them further southeast, away from the Etanian border and further away from the fighting. The refugees remained at this new location for another 4 years until the conflict was resolved, and they were able to return to their homes.
The area southeast of Lake Tukele is an arid desert region, and rainfall occurs infrequently. There is no known surface water source, and all water will likely need to be transported to the camp on a continual basis. Outside ambient air temperatures can range from 0⁰C to 38⁰C, and sun exposure can be significant. The area is also vulnerable to sand storms. The groundwater table is 50 meters below grade, and the site geology is sand with a bearing capacity of 3,000 psf. A site map with the proposed camp layout is included below.
During the design week, students were mentored by field experts and professors. On October 1, each team submitted a report and presented their designs to a panel of judges that included refugee camp, public health, and urban design experts from the CDC, U.S. Military, private and non-profit sectors. Each design was ranked, and the winners were chosen based upon many factors including practicality, innovation, and cost-effectiveness. The 1st and 2nd place teams in each case were awarded from a pot of $15,000 in prize money.
Directly following the competition, we were profiled on Georgia State University's Andrew Young School of Policy Studies website, and our efforts were applauded by former U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Congressman, and Mayor of Atlanta Andrew Young:
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| Andrew Parks, President of Engineers Without Borders Atlanta and Director of Business Development for PS |
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| Andrew Parks and Greg Hodgin discuss PS' mission with Andrew Young, former U.S. Ambassador to the UN |
Andrew Parks is interviewed
The Winners
Our winners were:
Shelter Design Case
Moinak Bandyopadhyay (Georgia Tech)
Chandim Chatterjee (Georgia Tech)
Shaleen Jain (Georgia Tech)
Mudit Manu Paliwal (Georgia Tech)
Catherine Wong (Georgia Tech)
Water Treatment and Distribution Design Case
Jasdeep Singh (Georgia Tech)
Jonathan Callura (Georgia Tech)
Jason Leung (Georgia Tech)
Julian Gardener (Georgia State University)
Onika Anglin (Georgia State University)
Sanitation Design Case
Bilal Bari (Georgia Tech)
Ke Du (Georgia Tech)
Kristen King (Georgia Tech)
Joshua Lee (Georgia Tech)
Kate Wharton (Georgia Tech)
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| Winners of the design competition with CH2M Hill executives and staff |
The Designs
Portions of the winning designs in each case (shelter, water, sanitation) are illustrated below. With assistance from the teams, each design was evaluated and improved by professionals at CH2M Hill, a leading global infrastructure firm.
Shelter
A single shelter can be disassembled and can fit onto a single pallet. The assembled shelter requires a minimum use of tools and may use local material to fill wall components, thereby protecting inhabitants from assault, hurricane force winds, and temperature changes.
Water Treatment and Distribution
Equipped with a unique queueing system (designed by a GA Tech Industrial and Systems Engineering major on the team) that minimizes waste and maximizes the efficiency and speed at which the population collects water within the 1-2 hour time frame.
Equipped with a unique queueing system (designed by a GA Tech Industrial and Systems Engineering major on the team) that minimizes waste and maximizes the efficiency and speed at which the population collects water within the 1-2 hour time frame.
Sanitation
The composting latrine can be readily assembled and separates urine from fecal waste. The compost can subsequently be used for small gardens or to sell in the local economy.
UN ECOSOC Status
In January 2012 we traveled to UN headquarters in New York City to attempt to gain consultative status with the Economic and Social Concil of the UN (ECOSOC).
ECOSOC is responsible for discussing the world's most pressing environmental, social, and economic challenges, and formulating policy to address these issues. To do this, ECOSOC invites like-minded NGOs from around the globe to act as advisors on such matters, and to network with one another in order to effectively implement such policies.
All NGOs who wish to participate must first go through the arduous process of gaining consultative status. This is no easy task, and the Council must be convinced by the applicant that it is a viable organization. The process can take many years, and the majority of applicants are not accepted.
Following our meeting with ECOSOC, the Council voted to approve our application based upon the fact that they believe us to be an innovative NGO, with the potential to bring value and unique expertise to the table. With this approval, we are now authorized to attend any ECOSOC conference. This positions us to eventually win UN contracts.
Final Shelter Design
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| Greg Hodgin, Director of Outreach Rachel Lewis, and Andrew Parks at UN NYC |
All NGOs who wish to participate must first go through the arduous process of gaining consultative status. This is no easy task, and the Council must be convinced by the applicant that it is a viable organization. The process can take many years, and the majority of applicants are not accepted.
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| The Council, comprised of many nations, votes on our acceptance |
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| Greg Hodgin, Andrew Parks, and Rachel Lewis at the "twisted gun", a peacekeeping symbol |
As it turns out, there was no single design produced by the student teams that was capable of meeting all requirements we set forth in the competition. Therefore, the decision was made to incorporate the positive attributes of each into a single design, and search for a product that matched those attributes. Our search revealed the U-Dome, a 5 person shelter produced by World Shelters. This shelter meets EVERY requirement. With such promise, we felt it necessary to purchase one shelter in order to test its performance. The results were astounding. We were able to assemble and disassemble the shelter in 4 hours.
While we did note potential improvements, overall the shelter is superb for our intended use.
Andrew Parks discusses attributes of our shelter design
UNHCR Consultation
Shortly after our discussions with UNHCR, the quick-assembly furniture company IKEA began working with UNHCR to produce a concept that was similar to ours. Through the IKEA Foundation, they ultimately produced a shelter that mirrored most of our criteria, and have since deployed their shelters globally.
The IKEA Refugee Shelter Design and Deployment
In July 2012, we traveled to the UN regional headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland to meet with UN officials at the UNHCR Consultaions with NGOs. This was an incredibly valuable meeting, and we managed to make a great number of contacts both within the UN system itself and also with other international NGOs that share our aspirations for improving the lives of refugees. We were informed that our approach was the kind of innovative solution that certain UN programs are designed to support.
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| Opening Plenary Session of UNHCR NGO Consultations |
The IKEA Refugee Shelter Design and Deployment
