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40 308 In Transit: Elective course
Full course name in Norwegian Bokmål:
In Transit; Elective course
Credits:
6
Course code:
40 308
Level of study:
Master
Teaching semester:
2017 Autumn
Assessment semester:
2017 Autumn
Language of instruction:
English
Year:
2017
Maximum number of students:
15
Person in charge
Håvard Breivik
Tone Selmer-Olsen
Required prerequisite knowledge
The IN TRANSIT elective course is mandatory for students that enroll in the studio course SCARCITY AND CREATIVITY (SCS).
Course content
THE ROLE OF THE ARCHITECT IN HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE
The students will be introduced to the international humanitarian community’s response mechanisms in crisis and development contexts, focusing on the role of the architect and urban planner in this system. The course will examine how our professions can influence a shift in emergency response in becoming integration initiatives. Despite the temporary nature of emergency accommodation, such facilities tend to become permanent settlements – of which the Bourj Al Shamali camp in Lebanon is only one of many examples.
The course aims to stimulate critical thinking around ‘temporality’ and existing response mechanisms, and how to identify potential intersections of architecture and humanitarian response.
URBAN DISPLACEMENT
More than half of the world’s population is urban, of which one third lives in informal settlements. Furthermore 80% of internally displaced persons (IDPs) currently live outside camp settings. The term ‘urban displacement’ refers to the specific challenges related to urban contexts where IDPs, refugees, and migrants often mix with the urban poor in the existing host community.
The issue of displaced populations in urban contexts is the most pressing challenge in the context of global displacement. This includes displaced populations hosted by local families, living in subsidized or rented housing, dispersed in the urban fabric (often mixed with economic migrants and the local poor) or gathered in informal spontaneous settlements, often referred to as camps. The course will explore the need for including the host community from the onset of the planning process, and not only addressing the immediate needs of the new arrivals.
Learning outcome
The students will gain knowledge about United Nations policy and operational responses, and the broader international humanitarian community, and endeavor to understand why architecture, urban design, and urban planning should be an integrated part of emergency response, and integration / development projects.
Working and learning activities
The course requires active participation in seminars and the student is expected to gather data for his/her work with the assignment before, during, and after the stay in Lebanon.
Lectures will be conducted by experts from the Norwegian Refugee Council/NORCAP and its extended international network. Existing guidelines, toolkits and material published by the UN, the NRC, and the UN clusters will be included in the curriculum.
| Mandatory coursework | Courseworks required | Presence required | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annet - spesifiser i kommentarfeltet | Required | The IN TRANSIT elective course runs in parallel with the SCS Studio. Participation in both courses is mandatory. The course starts with an introduction in August at AHO. Classes normally spread throughout the academic semester are here concentrated in periods corresponding with the overall schedule of the SCS Studio course. Integrated in the semester is a study week (“fordypningskursuke”), devoted to individual work with specific assignments. |
| Form of assessment | Grouping | Grading scale | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio assessment (Vurderingsmappe) | - | Pass / fail | The assignment for the elective course will be a hand-in in the form of drawings, models, and/or texts that document a theme related to the studio course. The assignment will be taken up and further developed in the studio course. The final assessment will be in December 2017. |