Architecture provides shelter. Nowhere is the need for shelter more critical than in the war-torn region of Kosovo. Hundreds of thousands are now without a place to live. Their homes in ruins, the infrastructure of the region collapsed, the returning population needs immediate and highly dispersed temporary housing. The architects and designers of the world can help and have answered.

Architecture for Humanity was an open competition to design transitional housing for the returning Kosovars and, in this troubled world, other peoples whose homes have been similarly destroyed. The competitions' goal is to raise awareness of the needs of returning refugees and develop better temporary housing solutions for victims of war or natural disaster.

Latest News:

Submission period has ended and submissions are pouring into the office. The response has been overwhelming and myself and the rest of the competition team would like to thank all of you who have become apart of this. Though it will be a number of weeks before the final count of submissions is known, the number of people interested in this effort has been staggering. Since launching this competition on July 7th this site has been visited by over 29,200 individuals from over 72 countries, with a hit count exceeding 530,000. In addition, I have received over 1800 emails during this period, all, which to my amazement, I think I managed to respond to individually.

Judging will take place in Mid-October and the announcement of the 3 placed entries and 10 honorable mentions will be made at the opening of the exhibition at the Van Alen Institute on November 11th 1999. It is at this time we will also be awarding copies of Vectorworks 8, the multi-platform award winning CAD software by Deihl Graphsoft, to the placed entries. We will be notifying the winners and additional others who have been chosen to be in the exhibition during late October.

Thank you again for your interest and participation,

Cameron Sinclair
 

Call for Sponsors:

We are still currently looking for exhibition and contributing sponsors. We have been asked to exhibit the competition entries in a number of countries and unfortunately this cannot be done unless we find sponsors to help with the financial costs of transportation and display. If you would like to help please e-mail : cs@archforhumanity.com

(...)

architecture for humanity | 104 West 27th Street | New York, New York |

the competition

.about
.the problem
.jurors
.winners
.proceeds
 

about the competition

    Architecture provides shelter. Nowhere is the need for shelter more critical than in the war-torn region of Kosovo. Hundreds of thousands are now without a place to live. Their homes in ruins, the infrastructure of the region collapsed, the returning population needs immediate and highly dispersed temporary housing.
    Architecture for Humanity was an open competition to design transitional housing for the returning people of Kosovo. The competition's goal is to foster the development of housing methods that can relieve suffering and speed the transition back to a normal way of life.
    The issues faced in this competition are not unique to Kosovo. Natural disasters and war all over the world destroy homes and force people to seek shelter while they rebuild. Concepts, techniques and materials that can help the Kosovars may very well help others somewhere else. In a world of high technology and abundant resources, the central challenge is the creation of emergency shelter when local technology has collapsed and the region's construction resources have been destroyed.

the problem

    The people of Kosovo, like most people, have a strong commitment to their homes. As the various relief agencies working in the area predicted, people are heading home at the first opportunity. Refugee style camps in Kosovo are not thought to be possible or desirable. With the end of hostilities, three quarters of a million people or more are spreading out to towns, villages and farms all over Kosovo.
    Once they have returned they are facing a multitude of conditions. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports 40 to 50% of houses are reduced to rubble. Mines and booby traps are widespread. Food is in short supply and water systems are often either destroyed or poisoned. Electricity is out in most places.
    The immediate challenge is to shelter families until they can make their old homes habitable. To do so, the following design criteria should be taken into account:

    Criterion #1: Shelter that lasts long enough to allow rebuilding of permanent homes.

    The ability to rebuild permanent houses and towns will be determined by the availability of materials and the existence of skills. The Kosovars are well skilled but the disruption of war makes the distribution of building materials and equipment problematic. Temporary housing may be needed for several years if conditions make rebuilding slow and difficult. How temporary housing differs from permanent housing is a critical concept to this competition.

    Criterion #2: Shelter that is inexpensive.

    Tens of thousands of units are needed quickly and the money available to Kosovo's reconstruction will have to cover an entire array of social needs. The competition for funds will be intense. The combination of speedy construction and limited money requires that the temporary housing solution be low cost.

    Criterion #3: Shelter that can be built quickly.

    Shelter needs to be in place quickly. The returnees are coming back to severe physical conditions in the best of weather. Water supplies may be destroyed; sanitary conditions may be a problem; the possibilities for injury and sickness are unlimited. Their most vulnerable period is that just after return. Later on there will be the demands of surviving the approaching winter. Temporary shelter needs to be delivered quickly.

    Criterion #4 : Shelter that can be built by the local builders.

    Because the shelters are dispersed and are needed quickly, they should be built by those who will live in them. The local building trades have the skills to build if the technology demands are low. Construction of the temporary shelters and then the rebuilding of homes is also an effective employment program to reconstruct Kosovo society.

    Criterion #5: Shelter that can be built in many dispersed locations.

    The returnees are dispersing all over Kosovo. Aid will not be focused to a few delivery points. Even winterization kits, the blue plastic sheeting and sticks that represent the first rung of emergency shelter relief, will be a challenge to distribute over the entire war ravaged province. Some people are returning to towns and villages. For them there is the possibility of some level of collective temporary shelter. Those going back to farms are also often in small groups and they too could use a collective shelter. A temporary shelter solution will have to be usable in a broad set of locations.

    Criterion #6: Shelter that keeps people healthy and strong.

    Ultimately, the temporary shelter must keep people dry, warm and sanitary.

jurors

    Alexandru Beldiman - Alexandru Beldiman UAR
    Steven Holl F.A.I.A. - Steven Holl Architects
    Bianca Jagger - Human rights advocate
    Elise Storck - United States Agency for Intern'l
Development
    Herb Sturz - Open Society Institute
    Billie Tsien A.I.A. - Tod Williams Billie Tsien and
Assoc.
    Tod Williams F.A.I.A. - Tod Williams Billie Tsien and Assoc

winners

   The winning entries will be announced at an exhibit to be held at the Van Alen Institute in New York City on November 11th. Awards will be for first, second, and third places with ten honorable mentions. The exhibition is set to travel to the R.I.B.A. Gallery in London, Paris, Bucharest, and Washington D.C. See News for details of the exhibition schedule. In addition, pending sponsor funding, a prototype of this winning concept will be built and displayed at the exhibition.

Proceeds

    Proceeds from this competition beyond administrative costs will go to War Child USA and their relief work in Kosovo, Albania, Macedonia and Bosnia. Further contributions to War Child are tax deductible and deeply appreciated.

environmental data

   Geographical Features: Kosovo is situated in the southern territory of former Yugoslavia and borders with Serbia, Albania, Montenegro and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The capital is Pristina. Area: 10,887 square kilometers.

    Population: The population is around 2 million of whom about 90% are Albanians. The remaining 10% include Serbs and Muslims, Montenegrins, Turks, Croats and Gypsies. The Albanians in Kosovo are descendants of the ancient Illyrian tribe of the Dardanians, who lived in Kosova from ancient times. Serbian attachment to Kosovo originates in the Middle Ages, when Kosovo was the „cradle“ of the Serb and of its Serbian-Orthodox Church.

    Languages: The official language in Kosova is Serbian.

    [Remark by W.P.: This has been under serbian rule.)

    Economy: The economy is primarily agricultural - wheat, maize, potatoes, grapes. Livestock - cattle, sheep, pigs. The country is rich in natural resources, especially in lead, zinc, pyrite, gold, nickel and brown coal.

   Building Materials : Construction in Kosovo is masonry based. Traditionally, stone masonry walls were common due the availability of stone in the rocky terrain. A large number of homes are of brick and stucco construction. As technology evolved during the twentieth century, cast in place, reinforced concrete slab and column construction became the rule. The walls are typically hollow tiles or brick plastered over on the inside and covered with a cement-like exterior coat. The roofs are of ceramic tile over wood rafters. This roof construction has been vulnerable to fire.

   Homes in Kosovo: Before the start of the conflict over 60% of all Kosovars lived in villages. These village homes are of simple construction and have been added onto over several generations. These homes, generally three-story in height, usually are surronded by secondary buildings like barns,storage rooms or small guest homes. The primary residence were occupied by extended families.

Housing layout is generally in clusters, not isolated houses.Farms, in particular, are often groups of houses and connected extended family lines. Villages and small towns are of typical southern European organization. Collective living is important in region.

The average replacements cost, per home, is estimated to be about $8,000 US.

   Utilities: Some villages had electricity and few had indoor plumbing. Cooking was usually done outside, on a wood-burning stove. Homes sometimes had wells for water supply but reports of Serbian forces poisoning of the wells have begun to emerge.

   Estimated Destruction : At the moment it is too early to give an accurate number to the damage inflicted on homes in Kosovo. Early indications are serious devestation.

The New York Times Reports that: Werner Schellenberg, shelter coordinator in Kosovo for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, whose organization must cope with housing more than a million people displaced by the war, made an early survey when NATO troops first entered the Province. In a survey of 89,998 houses in 625 villages, Schellenberg said 36 percent were damaged to some extent, and about 31 percent were considered uninhabitable. That amounts to 27,672 uninhabitable houses, all in rural areas. Since this new preliminary survey almost two weeks ago, he said he believed that another 8,000 to 10,000 houses were now uninhabitable in urban areas. He also estimates that another 2,000 to 3,000 houses have been destroyed in rural areas.

   Maps: There are an enormous number of maps to be found on the internet from geographical to 1:500 000 road maps. The BBC News Online carries an interactive map which can be used as an initial starting point.
[ javascript:Start('http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/inside_kosovo/default.stm') ]

	Wolfgang Plarre		Homepage Inhaltsverzeichnis - Contents Seite erstellt am 11.10.1999 Mail senden
	Dillinger Straße 41... 86637 Wertingen. ..
	Telefon       08272 - 98974  Fax            08272 - 98975....
	E-mail wplarre@bndlg.de