Domado, Asliyah M.

| 5AR7 | Housing

UN-Habitat stated that the architectural profession has little to say when it comes to poverty,
when it is about the poor who do not have adequate access to improved water and
sanitation; poor structural quality of housing; and unsafe residential status. Planners impose
their own ideas on what is appropriate and affordable without considering the real need of
the poor communities.
Architecture is a collective practice and as architects, we help people in decision making and
collaborate with them. Architects should address the growth of informal settlements which
make up the most of the built environment in developing countries. We start off by knowing
the problems that every single citizen understands. We go out, meet people, and observe
their behavior. People, most especially the poor, should be the core of the planning and
design process in order to address issues that involve all of us. We should be engaged in
improving the living conditions of this developing world.
A lot of cities are experiencing intense population growth over the past few years which
results into overcrowding of cities and squatting: these are prevalent in developing countries,
development is impeded and it creates disorder. Population growth is caused by mass
movement of people from rural places to the urban city where jobs and opportunities are
located. Poverty can be clearly seen, most especially in the Philippines, where agriculture is
disregarded. Agriculture is the main source of income for most of the people. People from
rural places, who migrate to the city, think that better living standards can be seen in the city.
Rural improvements on the other hand are not given the attention because some the private
sectors think that they could not gain anything from it. Productivity and profitability of these
lands are declining which affects the local people, this in turn would let people from rural
areas seek for a place where they could survive. Poor communities are often neglected, they
lack infrastructures, and services are provided for the better off. As architects we could help
propose ideas that could generate opportunities for the poor and in turn would help them
stay in their land.
Needs, desires, and behaviors of the poor should be taken into account when designing
livable spaces rather than forcing a particular architectural skill. Architects should be more
involved in the development process without over asserting our expertise. We need an
architecture that moves beyond the design of buildings and move towards the process of
engaging with social and political forces. All of us have the right to adequate housing, and

architects are the voice of the people when it comes to this, and the person who could the
people seek assistance.
As Alejandro Aravena said, the recent Pritzker laureate, livable spaces should be built in a
way where the people are not just sheltered against the environment, but in a way where it
could be a tool that will overcome poverty. We contribute in solving the problem as designers
where we synthesize things.
Architecture can create better places, it directly affects society. Buildings and urban plans
are seen as instruments of social change, able to improve and dictate social behavior among
users. Architects assume the role of creating and planning spaces for the people but what
some architects dont know is that they should design in accordance with the peoples
needs. Architects should design with the people and not for the people.