RAPID: Temporary Housing Planning and Early Implementation in the January 12, 2010 Haiti Earthquake

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This is a Grant for Rapid Response Research (RAPID) and is co-funded by OISE/Americas Program.This project looks at the provision of temporary housing to displaced victims of the January 2010 Haiti earthquake. Temporary housing is the phase during which victims move from short-term or improvised sheltering arrangements to more home-like living arrangements, so they can begin restoring household, employment, schooling, and other routines. With extensive damage to the capital and other population centers, providing temporary housing for homeless earthquake victims is a major priority for disaster recovery. This study involves multiple trips to Haiti to track the progress of temporary housing activities, with an emphasis on decision making and planning by international agencies, the Haitian government, and non-governmental organizations. These decisions are important because the projects that are undertaken will critically affect the ability of individuals, households, neighborhoods, and communities to recover. Mistakes are often made in attempts to provide housing for disaster victims, which complicates the recovery process and negatively affects recovery outcomes. The sheer severity and scope of the Haiti earthquake make both planning and carrying out temporary housing projects extremely challenging. New housing arrangements also must ensure victims? safety in light of the potential for aftershocks, hurricanes, flooding, and other hazards. There is a need for both urgent decision making and strategies that facilitate, rather than interfere with, the recovery process. This project seeks to determine how aid providers try to balance these two potentially conflicting demands. Data for the study are obtained through direct observation of meetings at which decisions are made, interviews with decision makers and providers of housing, and documents related to housing and household recovery.Despite its importance, relatively little attention has been paid to the temporary housing phase of disaster recovery. Studying temporary housing strategies, implementation processes, and outcomes in Haiti has the potential for improving disaster assistance and humanitarian aid programs. It is important to analyze both decisions and their outcomes, particularly after catastrophic disasters and in situations in which multiple severe hazards must be taken into account during the disaster recovery process. Lessons learned can help guide aid efforts worldwide and will also contribute to current U.S. efforts to plan for recovery after catastrophic disasters.