UCLA

As the number of displaced persons continues to rise, this research investigates the common mechanism governments and international non-governmental actors use to handle these crises, namely the camp model. While the general consensus among practitioners advocates for more flexibility, adaptability and durability in shelter provision for displaced populations, there remain ongoing theoretical debates about whether to treat camps as spaces of exception, where the suspension of politics permits temporary humanitarian intervention, or as extensions of urban informality, where a development framework offers sustainable solutions. My fieldwork focuses on temporary camps for internally displaced people in the urban area of Sittwe in Rakhine State, Myanmar. This research explores the nexus between critical urban planning theory and the role of humanitarian aid through examining the provision of shelter for displaced populations in the broader the context of urbanization.