Nomad Shelter
Can A Temporary Shelter Help Refugees Mitigate Loneliness?
The Nomad Shelter provides low cost modular housing made of inexpensive materials. The shelters can connect and form communities, keeping refugees’ sense of family and community intact during an otherwise difficult time.
Art Center College of Design
2017
Industrial Design
Housing Study
Architecture
Solar Paneling
Gas & water travel through tubes fed into single family units
Communal cooking space in center dissipates excess heat into shelters
Water tank stores 6116.43 liters of water per multi family cluster
(203 piters per person, UN requires at least 20 liters per person per day)
Interior Features
Approximately 7 to 8 feet vertical clearance
Entrances between family units may be opened or closed
Utilities
Gas & water travel through tubes fed into single family units
Communal cooking space in center dissipates excess heat into shelters
Water tank stores 6116.43 liters of water per multi family cluster
(203 liters per person, UN requires at least 20 liters per person per day)
Target User
Meet Jana
Jana is a 22 year old Syrian Refugee. She lives in a refugee camp just outside of Jordan.
She and her family were displaced during political unrest. Jana does not consider this to be a permanent move; only a temporary displacement. She intends to go back to school and finish her education once it is over.
Unique Pain Points
Need for increased social interaction
Water, bathrooms, and food are often too far away
Must provide dignity; refugees are not a burden
Houses and shelters must be durable, but temporary
Children often play during day without supervision
FYI…
11 Million
Syrians have fled their homes since the outbreak of civil war in March 2011
40 Million
People left displaced or homeless from natural disasters in 2009
$125 million
Amount American Red Cross spent in 2010 on internal expenses
Ideation Process
Informed by Nature
Instead of the familiar tents and teepees currently in the market today, the Nomad Shelter takes mimics the shapes of nature’s structures
Proven Techniques
Many of my design decisions were influenced by the geodesic domes of Buckminster Fuller and Shigeru Ban’s pioneering of paper-made architecture
In early stage concept ideation, I explored traditional structures for nomadic uses: yurts, tents, igloos, etc. Later stages I began to look at ways in which I could mimic these familiar forms with flat panel origami structures
