Shelter and survival
The latest issue of Design Philosophy Papers is on homelessness and raises these interesting points in the introduction:
“When first signalled as a DPP theme, we knew it was a concern that would become increasingly significant, but not quite as rapidly as has transpired, with the Tsunami in South East Asia, and now, nine months later, Hurricane Katrina devastating New Orleans - in both cases with massive death tolls and even larger numbers rendered homeless.
Of course, large losses of life, destruction of homes and infrastructure are regular features of floods and hurricanes in many parts of the less developed world - underlining the fact that these are not natural disasters, but the outcome of risky forms of settlement by large numbers of people whose choices are limited by history and economic circumstances.
When such destruction happens in a wealthy nation which should have the capacity to design and build to withstand extreme weather events, we know something is up … So, from now on, expect to see a lot more people, in different parts of the world, made homeless by cyclones, hurricanes, hailstorms, floods, forest fires and droughts … [And] in the extreme situations to come, the survivial skills of the despised [homeless] may become highly valued.”