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Ecoshelter

The Ecoshelter Appeal has been created as an inclusive collaboration of individuals and organisations from the NGO, public and private sectors committed to bringing together the necessary people, money, resources and know-how to facilitate the following three objectives:

•Work with the humanitarian sector and the built environment professions to identify, fund and develop emergency and transitional disaster relief shelter solutions providing homes and facilities such as schools and hospitals as well as long-term regeneration processes to help communities affected by natural or social disasters.

•Create innovative financial frameworks and raise funds from sympathetic, strategic and engaged sources ranging from private individuals, businesses and institutions to public bodies and the public for the development and deployment of intelligent, effective and efficient disaster relief solutions.

•Help raise awareness and support within the public, government and business sectors of the causes of disaster situations, the requirements for successful regeneration of communities and the challenges associated with the development and deployment of appropriate solutions in greatly varying scenarios around the world.

With increasing threats to communities from the affects of climate change, resource scarcity, social upheaval and natural disasters, the founders of The Ecoshelter Appeal recognise a growing need for an integrated, systemic and collaborative approach to develop, fund and deploy disaster relief shelter solutions which build upon the decades of experience of the many dedicated NGO’s and structural engineers faced with immense challenges from tsunamis, wars, conflict, genocide, famines, hurricanes, floods, droughts and poverty.

The Ecoshelter Appeal is new and fully acknowledges its current strengths and limitations. We understand that meeting the need for shelter solutions that are durable, ecologically sustainable, easy to produce and deploy and affordable is an inherently complex problem to solve whilst ensuring sensitivity and adaptability to regional variations in topography, climate, land use, governance, economy and culture, using local resources and skills to ensure long term uptake and benefit.

Through the founders and initial members and associates, The Ecoshelter Appeal has access to various forms of appropriate funding sources and financial mechanisms coupled with expertise in participatory communications for raising awareness whilst engaging people and facilitating the changing of hearts, minds and behaviour.

The founders wish to collaborate with organisations representing the humanitarian sector and the built environment professions to jointly undertake The Ecoshelter Appeal, an initiative that begins with a design competition and international awareness and fund raising programme and will result in the development and deployment of shelters and regeneration solutions.

Our plans to date are formative and flexible. Our team and resources are growing. We wish to learn from and engage with those already dedicated to this cause and therefore welcome the opportunity to develop mutually beneficial relationships with interested parties to deliver our shared objectives in disaster prevention, disaster relief and community regeneration.

THE ECOSHELTER APPEAL is developing and deploying a range of emergency shelters for

Disaster Relief (eg Tsunami, Pakistan/Afghanistan Earthquake, Hurricane Katrina)Humanitarian Relief (eg Dafur, Congo, Liberia)Poverty Relief (eg the favelas of Brazil and shantytowns of South Africa)Environmental Relief (eg affordable and sustainable homes for us all)

FROM ACTION AID

“The response of the donors and the countries that had promised to give aid, donations and loans in response to the appeals of the United Nations and the government of Pakistan has been dismal.”

FROM CARE INTERNATIONAL

“The first phase of disaster response is to meet people’s basic needs – including

providing food, water, sanitation, shelter and basic health care to save lives.”

FROM THE SPHERE PROJECT

"Shelter is a critical determinant for survival in the initial stages of a disaster."

FROM COHRE (THE CENTRE ON HOUSING, HUMAN RIGHTS AND EVICTIONS)

"When one visits temporary resettlement sites in Sri Lanka, it is not difficult to get the feeling that tsunami survivors are going to be waiting for many years before all of the housing that is needed is actually in place."

FROM UN-HABITAT

"When hazards turn into disasters it is always human settlements, people and property

that are worst hit."

Tsunami devastation - Sumatra, Indonesia

For more information, see www.ecoshelter.org

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