To address the phenomenal property loss incurred by Haitians in the recent earthquake, the Haitian government, supported by Bill Clinton, the UN special envoy, has launched an international housing design competition and major construction Expo in the capital Port-au-Prince to more than one million people living in temporary shelters. For John McAslan, the British architect closely involved with the development of social housing in Haiti, the idea of post disaster reconstruction which is quite new to the humanitarian relief efforts is expected to trigger a real sense of community involvement and job creation for millions affected by the calamity.
The Expo aims at exploring various housing design solutions to provide better homes and schools, cleaner energy, and improved access to health care to Haitians. The post disaster reconstruction effort will aim at developing housing project which are low tech and feature extensive use of locally available building material and labor thereby making them sustainable. The dwellings will be built on a two hectare site near Port-au-Prince airport for nearly 150 affected families.
Via: Independent