The Emergency Architects Foundation is a French

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

, '' reconnue d'utilité publique''. It is organised as a not-for-profit foundation with the French Order of Architects as supporters and is accredited by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. The Emergency Architects Foundation is also present in Australia (Emergency Architects Australia) and in Canada (Emergency Architects Canada). The aim of Emergency Architects is to bring help and technical aid to the victims of natural, technological and human

disasters A disaster is a serious problem occurring over a short or long period of time that causes widespread human, material, economic or environmental loss which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources ...

, not only in safety and security evaluations of the populations but also in post-disaster reconstruction programs focused on long-term development and risk mitigation.

History

The Emergency Architects Foundation was created in April 2001 by Patrick Coulombel (architect) in

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

in Picardy, France as a result of the flooding of the

River Somme The Somme ( , , ) is a river in Picardy, northern France. The river is in length, from its source in the high ground of the former at Fonsomme near Saint-Quentin, to the Bay of the Somme, in the English Channel. It lies in the geological ...

in 2001. A group of architects formed the organisation so as to mobilize technical assistance to the disaster victims and protect the rich cultural heritage of the region. Emergency Architects Australia (EAA) was started in 2005 in response to the Indonesian tsunami and since that has worked in Indonesia, Pakistan, the Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea, Cook Islands, India and Australia. The president of EAA is Andrea Nield. EAA has over 300 members and is supported by the Union of International Architects, Australian Institute of Architects National, the Victorian and NSW RAIA Chapters, and The Council of the City of Sydney. Among the important collaborators are The European Union, UNHCR, UNICEF, NZAID, Australian Red Cross, World Vision, and Caritas. Emergency Architects Canada was founded in 2007 The president is Bernard Mac Namara. Emergency Architects has already led 28 actions in 24 countries, made more than 39,600 assessments and about 8,500 buildings. At the moment, the foundation is undertaking 12 programs in the following countries:

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Chad Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic ...

East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-weste ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Aims

The main objectives of the Emergency Architects Foundation are: # to support and develop architects' humanitarian engagement in France and worldwide and thus to contribute to the development of architecture, # to train architects with skills to help populations affected by natural, technological or human disasters, # to encourage architects training in France and in the World # to preserve and promote architectural, historical and cultural world heritage.

Functioning

The architects, engineers and planners have used their professional expertise (knowledge of risk prevention and of building) to provide appropriate and sustainable assistance to the populations affected by natural (tsunami, earthquake), technological (chemical factory explosion) or human (civil) disasters. They always work with local populations and use local materials in their buildings. The foundation employs 533 persons from 23 countries. Overall, more than 1,200 architects and engineers have been involved in Emergency Architects achievements in 21 countries.

Fields of operation

The foundation takes part in the following operations: Emergency * ''Cartographic Evaluation Missions'' and '' Field work evaluation'', in order to allow to the architects to quickly understand the disaster and its effects on the population, to estimate the extent of damage, to identify and define the human and logistical means for ensuring the immediate safety of populations and their quick rehousing. * ''Facilitate ethical partnerships'' between Emergency Architects, local communities, local governments and aid organisations. * ''Safety of the populations'' by the installation of safety perimeters around damaged construction which could present potential danger, survey public services and housing, organize strategies for stabilisation or evacuation of inhabitants in case of danger, and by identifying strategic methods to provide security of a population. * ''Missions in

Refugee camps A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced peo ...

'' to improve living conditions of refugee populations in these Refugee camps. Rebuilding * Help to rebuild sustainable and decent housing and restore basic economic and education infrastructure. Re-house displaced populations. * Risk prevention: Analyse relevant environmental, urban, technological and architectural factors with regards to rebuilding safely. * Capacity building: Preserve traditional know-how while adding features to make them resistant to future disasters. Promote the training of locals, from masons to architects.

Actions and interventions

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

* Floods of the Somme Region (2001) * AZF chemical factory explosion (2001) * Floods of the

Gard Gard () is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;Bourmerdès earthquake (2003) * Morocco,

Al Hoceima Al Hoceima ( ber, translit=Lḥusima, label= Riffian-Berber, ⵍⵃⵓⵙⵉⵎⴰ; ar, الحسيمة; '' es, Alhucemas'') is a Riffian city in the north of Morocco, on the northern edge of the Rif Mountains and on the Mediterranean coast. It i ...

earthquake (2004) * Chad, Refugee camps in the east of the Chad (2007) * Sudan, displacement refugee report (2007) * RDC, displacement study * Mauritius, slum remediation (2008) * Madagascar,

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

(2004) * Senegal, schools building program Asia * Timor Leste, School Sanitation project, building CVTL Headquarters and Maliana Gymnasium (2010-2011) * Bangladesh,

floods A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrolog ...

(2004) * Iran, Earthquake in Bam (2003) * Afghanistan, Training Workshop in Kabul (2004) * Indonesia,

2004 tsunami An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Suma ...

(2004) * Sri Lanka,

(2004) * Thailand,

Khao Lak Khao Lak ( th, เขาหลัก, ) is a series of villages, now tourist-oriented, mainly in the Takua Pa District and partly in the Thai Mueang District of Phang Nga Province, Thailand. The name "Khao Lak" literally translated means 'Mai ...

Island (June 2004) * South Asia,

(2005) * Pakistan,

2005 Kashmir earthquake The 2005 Kashmir earthquake occurred at on 8 October in Pakistani-administered Azad Kashmir. It was centred near the city of Muzaffarabad, and also affected nearby Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and some areas of Indian-administered Jammu and ...

(2005) * Indonesia,

2006 Yogyakarta earthquake The 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake (also known as the Bantul earthquake) occurred at with a moment magnitude of 6.4 and a maximum MSK intensity of VIII (''Damaging''). Several factors led to a disproportionate amount of damage and number of casualt ...

(2006) * Palestinian territories, reconstruction in Palestinian camps (2009) Europe *

2002 European floods In August 2002, a week of intense rainfall produced flooding across a large portion of Europe. It reached the Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Ukraine and Russia. The event killed 232 ...

(2002) America * Grenada Island and Haiti,

Hurricane Ivan Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The cyclone was the ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlan ...

and

Hurricane Jeanne Hurricane Jeanne was a Saffir–Simpson scale, Category 3 hurricane that struck the Caribbean and the Eastern United States in September 2004. It was the deadliest hurricane in the Atlantic basin since Hurricane Mitch, Mitch in 1998 Atlantic hur ...

(2004) * Peru

2007 Peru earthquake The 2007 Peru earthquake, which measured 8.0 on the moment magnitude scale, hit the central coast of Peru on August 15 at 23:40:57 UTC (18:40:57 local time) and lasted two minutes. The epicenter was located south-southeast of Lima at a depth of ...

(2007) * Canada, Contribution to the housing of underprivileged people (2007) Oceania * Cook Islands Aitutaki,

Cyclone Pat Severe Tropical Cyclone Pat was a small but strong tropical cyclone that passed directly over Aitutaki, Cook Islands, in southern Pacific Ocean on February 10, 2010. Part of a series of storms to impact the group of islands early that year, ...

(2010) * Solomon Islands, building school programs (2008) (2009) (2010) and latrine programs (2011) * Solomon Islands, rebuilding post tsunami/earthquake (2007) * Australia, construction of a temporary village after bushfires (2009)

International accreditations and awards

The Emergency Architects Foundation has received several awards: * The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs: contract for actions of international solidarity as an accredited French Foundation. It is now a foundation '' reconnue d'utilité publique''. *

The European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...

: A signed accord with

ECHO In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound that arrives at the listener with a delay after the direct sound. The delay is directly proportional to the distance of the reflecting surface from the source and the list ...

The United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

: Consultative status with EROSOC and collaborations with agencies UNHabitat,

UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

UNHCR The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrati ...

UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Devel ...

, WWF,

UNOSAT UNOSAT is the United Nations Satellite Centre. It is hosted at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), with the mission to promote evidence-based decision making for peace, security and resilience using geo-spatial informa ...

* Union International Architects: 2008 signed partnership agreement * EAA is a signed signatory to the

ACFID The Australian Council For International Development (ACFID) is an independent national association of Australian non-government organisations (NGOs) working in the field of international aid and development. ACFID was founded in 1965, with Syd Ein ...

Code of Conduct and became a full member in 2008. EAA has OADG status. Two international prizes for the Sigli, Indonesia Project: * 2005 IFI AWARD, for Quality of Project and services to Humanity * 2006 Sustainable Development Prize from Imerys International and: * 2008

Marion Mahony Griffin Marion Mahony Griffin (; February 14, 1871 – August 10, 1961) was an American architect and artist. She was one of the first licensed female architects in the world, and is considered an original member of the Prairie School. Her work in ...

Prize to Andrea Nield * 2009 AMO prize: Habitat, Architecture, Environnement, mention initiative * One of Citations of the World Architecture Community Awards 4th cycle.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official Website

Australian Chapter Website
Non-profit organizations based in France Architecture organizations Disaster management