The Weft House: A Transitional Housing Program to Empower Afghan Refugees in Canada.

Abstract

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the number of forcibly displaced people is growing yearly. These people flee their country due to war, violence, persecution, famine, and other life-threatening reasons. Most of the refugees arrive in the host country with a traumatizing background and with a high need for support to cure their mental and physical crises, learn the culture and language of the host country, build a community and integrate into the new society, and most importantly to find proper and affordable housing. As a country with a high refugee acceptance rate, Canada has many homeless people, especially in its big cities like Toronto. Although programs and facilities like transitional housing are available for homeless people, such facilities for vulnerable groups like refugees with their specific needs seem missing. This thesis research aims to suggest a new transitional housing typology with services focused on the needs and demands of the refugee communities-in this case, Afghan refugees- to support them through the journey of integration into a new environment, ease the process of finding affordable permanent housing, and help them build a community. This research includes aerial maps to analyze the intended site in Etobicoke, Canada, design drawings to illustrate the design, and images as precedents to support the ideas behind the design.