2024-05-04T09:16:18-04:00 https://archinect.com/features/article/150018423/emergency-shelter-housing-for-the-age-of-mass-displacement Hannah Wood 2017-07-20T11:30:00-04:00 >2018-01-30T06:16:04-05:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/6u/6u72rlfix0bv2hjs.gif" border="0" /><p>Today, forced displacement affects more people than any crisis or conflict. According to the UN, 65.3 million people, or one person in every 113, is now internally or externally <a href="http://archinect.com/features/article/105264254/architectures-of-the-disaster" target="_blank">displaced</a>. The average time families remain in emergency accommodation is now <a href="http://www.unhcr.org/40c982172.pdf" target="_blank">17 years</a>, longer than the <a href="https://www.nahb.org/en/research/housing-economics/special-studies/archives/how-long-buyers-remain-in-their-homes-2009.aspx" target="_blank">average US house buyer</a> will stay in their home. No longer temporary but not yet a city, these &lsquo;camps&rsquo; are where millions of children will grow up. In this month&rsquo;s feature we speak to architects working with the concept of emergency shelter to find out how they are approaching the issue. An overview will be provided by former UNHCR official Kilian Kleinschmidt, now director of <a href="http://switxboard.org/" target="_blank">Switxboard</a>, who will discuss where and how input from the design disciplines would be most welcomed.</p>