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Description
Great disasters can often serve as birthing grounds for national transformation. As communities work to recover and rebuild, opportunities to reassess of prevailing development theories and programs may arise. As traditional development programs, supported by top-down development theories and billions in foreign aid, have not changed Haiti's impoverished status, such an opportunity has been presented to the Caribbean nation. Just a few months removed from the devastating 7.0 earthquake of Jan 12, 2010, this study identified the emergent thinking about development as expressed by key informants (N=21) from six entity types involved in Haiti's rebuilding efforts - government agencies, social ventures, grassroots, diaspora, foreign, and hybrid nonprofits. Findings were supplemented by participant observation of a civil society meeting in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The Sustainable Livelihoods (SL) Framework was used as a lens with which to understand the causes of Haiti's social, institutional, environmental, and economic vulnerabilities. Modified grounded theory was used as the qualitative data analytical method from which five themes emerged: Haitian government, rebuilding, aid work and its effects, Haitian society, and international interference. Participants called for a refoundation, the building a nation from the ground up, of Haiti. Based on these findings, four transformative processes were identified as fundamental to Haiti's refoundation: 1) communication and collaboration with the Haitian government, 2) engagement of the Haitian people and the Haitian diaspora in the redevelopment work, 3) a broad vision of development for the nation, and 4) coordination and collaboration among NGOs.
ContributorsInnocent, Darlye Élise (Author) / Knopf, Richard (Thesis advisor) / Phillips, Rhonda (Committee member) / Aggarwal, Rimjhim (Committee member) / Wang, Lili (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010
Description
Abstract
Wildfires are rapidly becoming one of the biggest issues that California has to face. Every year, fire season gets longer as lack of rain, high winds and faulty power lines combine in a recipe for disaster. Nearly the entire state, north to south, has been affected by at least one major firestorm since the fall of 2017. They have become the new normal, razing towns in hours and leaving nothing but wreckage in their wake. Because of this growing problem, solutions for fire-proofing existing towns and strategies for rebuilding those affected are more important than ever. Using design as a lens with which to address this problem, this thesis explores materials that have been tested and proven to be more fire-resistant, as well as outlines through case studies how communities and designers can implement these strategies to create safer communities in wildfire-prone areas. The case studies paint a variety of pictures of what fire-resistant architecture and design can be, offering a comprehensive set of guidelines for both community members and designers to move forward with building or rebuilding structures in a wildland urban interface zone. Researching homes built in both California and Australia widens the perspective of how large the problem of wildfire truly is in terms of building destruction. Solutions such as prefab modular home construction are also becoming a popular option as they are fast and inherently more fire-resistant than traditionally rebuilt homes. At the urban and regional level, research has revealed the importance of planning homes and communities in a way which integrates with the natural topography of the site and minimizes surrounding fuel loads. In addition, building materials such as concrete, straw bale and heavy timber are the most fire-resistant, especially when clad with an outer layer of tile, brick or other noncombustible material and with protected vent openings. Interior materials should minimize the usage of wood detailing, unless using certain products that have the appearance of wood but are actually created by non-combustible materials. Homes should have more compartmentalization to slow down a fire from spreading should one occur in the structure. Fire detection/suppression systems should be up to date and using the latest technology.
Wildfires are rapidly becoming one of the biggest issues that California has to face. Every year, fire season gets longer as lack of rain, high winds and faulty power lines combine in a recipe for disaster. Nearly the entire state, north to south, has been affected by at least one major firestorm since the fall of 2017. They have become the new normal, razing towns in hours and leaving nothing but wreckage in their wake. Because of this growing problem, solutions for fire-proofing existing towns and strategies for rebuilding those affected are more important than ever. Using design as a lens with which to address this problem, this thesis explores materials that have been tested and proven to be more fire-resistant, as well as outlines through case studies how communities and designers can implement these strategies to create safer communities in wildfire-prone areas. The case studies paint a variety of pictures of what fire-resistant architecture and design can be, offering a comprehensive set of guidelines for both community members and designers to move forward with building or rebuilding structures in a wildland urban interface zone. Researching homes built in both California and Australia widens the perspective of how large the problem of wildfire truly is in terms of building destruction. Solutions such as prefab modular home construction are also becoming a popular option as they are fast and inherently more fire-resistant than traditionally rebuilt homes. At the urban and regional level, research has revealed the importance of planning homes and communities in a way which integrates with the natural topography of the site and minimizes surrounding fuel loads. In addition, building materials such as concrete, straw bale and heavy timber are the most fire-resistant, especially when clad with an outer layer of tile, brick or other noncombustible material and with protected vent openings. Interior materials should minimize the usage of wood detailing, unless using certain products that have the appearance of wood but are actually created by non-combustible materials. Homes should have more compartmentalization to slow down a fire from spreading should one occur in the structure. Fire detection/suppression systems should be up to date and using the latest technology.
ContributorsAllen, Kyra Grace (Author) / Vallerand, Olivier (Thesis director) / Zingoni, Milagros (Committee member) / The Design School (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05