Abstract:
As architects enter the profession, their primary objective should not be to create designs that will glorify their own name; architecture should be designed with the needs and desires of the intended occupants in mind. Architects have an opportunity to help those in need through their specific set of skills and training. In areas of poverty and disaster, an architect's designs can create a place of security and hope for the future for those people that are desperately in need of shelter. It is imperative that young architects become aware of these opportunities as they enter the profession so that they may be encouraged to give at least part of their time to humanitarian design efforts. Using my experiences in education and internship opportunities as a foundation, together with research on humanitarian design, for this honor s thesis, I designed an architecture studio class that will expose students to the opportunities they have as future architects to make a different in the communities close to them and around the world.
