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- Permanent Link:
- http://dpanther.fiu.edu/dpService/dpPurlService/purl/FI13042107/00001
Notes
- Summary:
- This document highlights the development of the transitional-shelter approach, its piloting and scaling up, and its diffusion across the world. The Shelter Centre introduced the transitional-shelter approach in 2005 in response to the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami of 2004. A transitional shelter should provide a livable covered space, a secure and healthy environment, along with privacy and dignity during the period between a conflict or natural disaster and the establishment of a durable shelter solution. What makes this approach of note is its focus on process rather than product. Transitional-shelters are thus flexible shelters that can be adapted to different needs during the period of reconstruction. The document identifies four ways populations in distress can utilize transitional shelters. They can be upgraded and improved over time through the maintenance, extension, or replacement of original materials with more durable alternatives, becoming more permanent. They can be reused for other purposes once the emergency period is over; for barns or storage sheds once they are no longer needed for shelter. Sometimes parts of the shelter are sold once reconstruction has concluded. And finally, during reconstruction the transitional shelter can be gradually dismantled, with its parts recycled into the rebuilding of a more permanent structure. Essentially, in this approach, the process of providing emergency shelter and reconstruction of more permanent shelters occur in parallel and are complementary. More importantly, the transitional-shelter approach deals with six significant challenges that disaster populations often face. These are the immediate need for shelter; lack of land or tenancy rights; increasing frequency of multi-family dwellings; lack of aid capacity in shelter and reconstruction; the perception of reconstruction as a long-term issue; and piecemeal support for reconstruction. It is argued in the document that the lack of detailed guidelines, training protocols, comparative case studies, and evaluation mechanisms present serious challenges to the appropriate development of the transitional-shelter approach. Preliminarily, it has been discovered that humanitarian agencies have been implementing the transitional-shelter approach as a product-based solution rather than a process with a more holistic approach to needs, tying in varying policy arenas such as disaster risk reduction, sanitation, livelihood recovery, with shelter and settlement concerns. ( English )
- Subject:
- Transitional Shelters ( English )
- Citation/Reference:
- Collins, S., Corsellis, T., Vitale, A. (2005). Transitional shelter: understanding shelter from the emergency through reconstruction and beyond. Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action (ALNAP) Innovations.
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