The following project was created as a personal collaboration between my  Global Studies class and my Disaster Relief Design class. The cultural knowledge that I gained about Nepal while working on my Global Studies entrepreneurship project, that benefited a Nepali community, served as preliminary research of the systemic issues facing Nepali people. When asked, in my Disaster Relief Design class, to design a disaster shelter, I asked for permission to design a longer-term housing solution that synthesized the knowledge I had learned in both classes into a more well rounded design solution.

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As I learned about Nepal, the chronic issue that struck me the most was the rate of human trafficking occurring. A large factor in this is the lack of local job opportunity, forbidding many from the luxury of education, and causing them to seek unknown jobs in the city. The provision of a housing solution that was sturdy enough to withstand Nepali earthquakes and tsunamis was good, but if it didn't respond to the social issue of human trafficking, it wasn't good enough

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This design provides economic opportunity through the use of existing Nepali structural systems (portal prefab), Nepali roof systems from discarded portal shelters, and the added use of interlocking earth brick which offers opportunity for local training and job growth. These three systems not only offer job provision but respond to the need for earthquake resistant housing.

Additionally, the portal prefab system, which serves as the house's structure, will include a "blank canvas" structure to provide a rent free space to run a business out of. If the homeowners are talented at hair cutting they could run a barber shop out of this space, if cooking - a cafe, if caring for children - a day care!This space serves as economic stimuli,  job provision, and empowerment to respond to the social needs in Nepal.