How Can Architecture Face Housing Crisis

The housing crisis is getting worse as time goes by. The ratio of people who do not have a house to live or only have access to precarious conditions is increasing each year. This sets challenges for the society, for authorities, for the construction industry and, of course, for architects and engineers. Let’s take a look at the different implications that this issue places.

There have been several attempts to solve or at least ease the housing crisis. Many of them have failed because they have not looked at the bigger picture.

«It is not enough to just provide immediate assistance through construction programs in underdeveloped areas, it’s important to make these efforts sustainable and perdurable.»

But, how do we achieve this?

One of the biggest flaws in this process is the lack of a truly ethical approach to this issue. Architecture schools play a key role in this journey: new architects must be ready to develop projects that involve the area’s culture, the human resources and the projects’ horizon towards the future. Many initiatives created for this crisis respond to the urgency by creating rapid but ephemeral solutions, which just postpones the problem to a future where it will surely be intensified. 

Other approaches include modular construction, software that makes material calculation more accurate and even biomaterials that are not only friendlier with the environment but also more affordable.

But, even more than these measures, an ethical exercise of architecture with a wider panorama is what really will make the difference.

Authorities, society and the construction industry must all join forces to mitigate this terrible crisis. It’s time to act globally in order to face a problem that is truly inconceivable for these times. Architects must listen and imagine the paths towards a future where everyone has a dignified roof and a dignified life.

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