m a s h

modular affordable sustainable housing

o v e r v i e w
With many natural disasters and the current geopolitical climate affecting the
safety of individuals and families, it is more important than ever that displaced
individuals have access to their basic human rights and needs. Whether it is Syrian
refugees in UNHCR camps or families displaced by the Haitian earthquake,
modular micro-housing solutions are the ideal way to create inclusive, safe, resilient,
and sustainable housing at a low cost. Micro-housing involves one-room houses
that are easily build-able, as they include water filtration, solar-panel, and wind-
turbine add-ons. These individually manufactured add-ons are attachable to the
house, making the house customisable, and adaptable.

g o a l s

Short Term Long Term

1. Providing relief for refugees lacking 1. Providing a replaceable house
houses with electricity and sufficient framework
space

2. Encouraging self-subsistence and the 2. Generating solar energy and feeding

use of renewable resources at a low
cost
3. Existing as an opportunity for
immediate relief following natural
disasters where housing is destroyed
(earthquakes, war, etc)
it back into the grid
3. Reducing the loss of morale in
refugee camps and alleviating the
refugee crisis
d e s i g n

 

Production methods:
Using pre-fabricated steel modules to form the base frame (Flat-packed)
Using bolt and screw (no drilling required, comes with flat-packed materials) to
install waterproof, corrosion resistant industrial hemp boards for base, walls and part
of roof

Construction and Assembly:

Using a pre-made sustainable wooden construction frame mechanism to make
solar panel easily adjustable (Flat-packed, image below to demonstrate, taken
from Instructables)
Fitting hemp window frames with insulated, recycled fibreglass to allow skylight
inside and increase thermal performance
Fitting rainwater catchment system into wall modules (flat-packed)
Connecting 30L water barrel and water pump (only bulky object)

Additional adjustments and finished product:

Being modular, each individual unit is created for minimum capacity 2 persons,
maximum 4 people, with individual space of 4.5 square metres (in line with Sphere
design manual) to create total of 18 square metres floor space.
Specifications Summary:
Requirement Current disaster housing
solutions
Context & Function Used to function for 2-5 years as
semi-permanent disaster relief
housing, currently being trialed
in African countries such as
Ethiopia and Somalia
Performance (Using latest RHU (Refugee
Housing Unit) developed by
Ikea + UNHCR)
Weather resistant, waterproof,
not airtight, inadequate
sunlight and windows
Asthetics Designed for easy assembly
and disassembly, lightweight
materials deteriorate over time,
roof and walls made of
lightweight semi-hard plastic

Size constraints Modular, 17.5 square metres
M.A.S.H Solution
Function and durability lasts up
to 10 years, function as semi-
permanent to permanent
housing for refugees fleeing the
Middle East to Greece.
Weather resistant, corrosion
resistant, airtight, waterproof,
recycled fibreglass provide
more than enough sunlight, PV
units (2 panels per module)
generate at least 150-600 watts
of energy per day, depending
on weather conditions),
rainwater catchment and
pump system make refugees
self-sustaining and less
dependent on foreign + EU aid.
Designed for easy assembly
and disassembly, durable
materials like hemp encourage
longer and more
environmentally friendly use as
refugees can be waiting
anywhere between 2-12 years
for permanent settlement, if
available), flat roof allows for
puzzle piece fit (solar panels
act as shade)
Modular, 18 square metres
c o s t s
The modular mass produced design enables lower overall cost. Additionally, the
detachable framework enables cheap and fast replacement of parts. Anticipated
partnerships and funding include: UNHCR (necessary to access refugee camps),
the national governments of countries where it is being installed, and corporate
investors. We plan for this to be a non-governmental organisation which operates
on a need-basis.

For a five year cash-flow diagram of how this can be implemented, access:
http://tinyurl.com/MASHCashflow

v i d e o

This video focuses on the Sichuan Earthquake of 2008, and demonstrates the
benefits of sustainable disaster relief house that can be easily transported and
quickly built for displaced masses. This is just one example of how we can alter the
shelter based on geographical needs to meet the lack of natural resources, and
how it assists the 11th goal of the SDGs.

To watch our video and see other social media, visit our Facebook @themashunit
or youtube channel MASH Unit
i m p a c t
I.Nature
Short term measurements:
Decrease in deforestation levels: Refugees utilise their surroundings of
environmentally sensitive areas. According to the UNHCR, Tanzania in
1994-1996, a total of 570 square kilometres of forest was affected [by refugee
movement and settlement] of which 167 square kilometres was severely
deforested. The MASH would greatly decrease the dependency of forests and
wood for fire with its various means of obtaining energy.
To measure the impact: territorial, production and consumption based air
emission perspectives and calculation
Territorial: Carbon emissions that are released to the atmosphere within a
countrys borders and jurisdiction. For the refugee situation, to decrease the
area to a dense location of refugee camps, and measure carbon emission
per given square meters
Consumption perspectives refer to emissions associated with certain goods
and services, eg fire wood.

Long term measurements:

Decrease in dependency of fossil fuels: There will be greater reliance on greener
sources of energy (e.g. solar panels) which will have overall benefits to help the
growing concern of global warming, as measured through the overall general rise
of the Earths average surface temperature.

II. Economy
Short Term measurements:
Production of the MASH: Aside from the financing of the creation of the MASH,
the government of host countries or NGOs such as Red Cross/UNHCR/Monopoly
creators of the components of the smash will have to face the burden of the
costs of creating and providing the MASH. However, Philippe Legrain, a former
adviser to the president of the European commission, deduced that arriving
refugees (in Europe) would generate double the fundings spent on them. Despite
the fact that settling costs of refugees increasing debt by almost 69bn (58bn)
by 2020, during the same period refugees will help GDP grow by 126.6bn,
according to the Guardian.
Long term measurements:
Refugees themselves come with various benefits. Sourced from The National,
Germanys Federal Office for Migration and Refugees Data collected
between January 2013 and September 2014 shows that 78 per cent of Syrians
who arrived in the country came from middle or upper class sections of society
and had a good education.
The MASH will provide much of the basic necessities required for everyday
life, and will allow refugees to integrate into society.
Working in the host country may decrease wages as the labour force
increases, true, however, in the long term, the refugees integrated in
society will ultimately use their income on local goods and services
Economical impact can be measured through the countrys long term
economic growth, or a comparison between the economic growth rates
currently and then a year after the implementation of the MASH.

III. Society and Welfare

Short and Long term measurements:
Family shadowing: With full consent, documenting the average costs for a family
using the modular housing against the pre-existing shelter tents used in refugee
camps for approximately 3 months would show the decrease in reliance on
external sources for electricity. Furthermore, a long term (1-3 years) general,
regulatory documentation on a consenting family on how the MASH has
changed their experience as a refugee from before and after its introduction
would show the significant impact of a secure, substantial home compared to
the insecurity and displacement associated with the usage of tents.
Using the UNHCRs Profile Global Registration System: This database established
to take into account of the different UNHCR operations can compare the
resettlement situations of the refugees before and after the implementation of
the MASH, and then to compare resettlement situations of refugees in targeted
countries in the beginning of the introduction of the MASH, and after a given
period of time - used short and long term impact measurements.
s o c i a l m e d i a
Platforms
When setting up our social media platforms, one of the important things we
wanted to continually take into account was how we represented our brand. We
wanted to be a source of reliable information for others and most importantly we
wanted to link all of our work back to the heart of our project which is United
Nations Sustainable Development Goal 11 Make cities and human settlements
inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. Our main social media platforms are
Facebook and Twitter, they both cater to a large demographic of nearly all ages
and socioeconomic background. We did however, want to make sure that we
target as many people as possible. We created an Instagram account to connect
with the younger generation as we felt it was important to include young children in
the discussions of our issues and solutions. For the older generation we set up a
profile on LinkedIn as it is an easy platform to use to make connections to many
people who are usually very willing to collaborate on projects. We set up an email
account as a main point of contact, however, we are very open to receiving any
input on all our social media platforms. To widen our reach and ensure that our
audience is all getting the necessary information we make sure to post similar
content and share our media with all our platforms furthermore we make sure to
link all of our social media platforms as well as our website together so they are
findable on all platforms. Our website is a general information guide to our
concept, it explores the issue of goal 11 and gives in an depth look at our solution.

Data Analytics
Data analytics has been very helpful in providing further evidence of the
perception of our concept. The day we launched our Facebook page we
received a post outreach of 823, furthermore we had 4 people share our page and
a post engagement of 537. This has shown us that there is a genuine interest in our
product, we have also managed to reach an international audience with views
from all over the USA, Europe and Asia. The day of our Instagram launch we
received 83 followers and a whole lot of comments and likes, the younger
generation has really shown an engagement with the solution and we hope this
continues.
Looking Further
We have already set up surveys and shared them on our platforms, hopefully the
responses will give us a better idea of the direction we should be taking for our
online marketing strategies. For more engagement we are looking to set up google
chats with all 6 group members and hopefully in the future with other international
activities who are working towards the same goal. We are currently contacting
individual journalists such as Carol Davenport and Roger Harrabin as well as news
organisations to consider writing articles and informing a larger audience and more
specific demographic of educated, middle aged individuals of MASH and SDG 11.
For a younger audience of connected and even power individuals, we are also
considering making posts on Reddit and opening up a discussion on how to
improve our concept. We also understand that this project is an expensive
undertaking, hence, when we have gained further popularity on social media, we
would like to start a fundraising campaign in the hopes to be able to make our
initial design concepts become a reality. Lastly, we are currently trying to contact
influential people such as Michael Sheldrick and organisations such as TED to
promote and collaborate with us.

m e n t o r s u p p o r t
Over the last couple of months in the process of growing our campaign and
developing our solution, we had had the opportunity to work with some amazing
mentors. Through a few meetings and many emails, our mentors have helped us re-
prioritised our efforts and have posed difficult and reflective questions to challenge
us and our thinking. As we develop this idea further, we would love to interact with
more mentors especially a technical expert to help enhance the design of our
current model.