IKEA designs flat pack 'homes' for refugees living in camps
Wow, we are amazed by the work IKEA, in partnership with UNHCR and Better Shelter, is doing to protect the dignity and safety of displaced refugees all over the world.
Known for its innovative solutions, IKEA has put its design strengths to use with the Better Shelter programme – creating temporary housing specially-designed for people living in refugee camps.
The temporary homes have now being rolled out for a number Syrian refugees who arrived in Sweden, Germany, and Switzerland, reported Yahoo News.
The homes are much safer, more durable and more like ‘houses’ than the flimsy, leaking and unsafe tents families are forced to live in in refugee camps.
We know that for millions of refugees all over the world, living in a refugee camp becomes their new reality. Many camps become villages – as families live in limbo in tents and mud houses for many years. For some children, growing up in a camp is all they have ever known.
In fact, according to IKEA industrial designer Johan Karlsson the average stay in an UNHCR refugee camp is 17 years.
It’s practically impossible to imagine isn’t it?
The IKEA shelters are modular white structures with small peaked roofs and are made of lightweight plastic and metal, reported The Globe and Mail. They were specially designed to be assembled by hand in a matter of hours without the need for any additional tools. And amazing, there is also a solar-powered energy system on the roof to power the supplied LED light or for charging a mobile.
And although clearly not a long-term solution for these families, the accommodation is a vital help in the interim.
“Obviously the situation is complex and goes far beyond shelter,” Johan told The Globe and Mail. “This is just a tiny part of humanitarian aid, but it’s an important one when it comes to allowing displaced people to live with dignity.”