Bamboo ReciproBoo Shelter Kit (RSK)

Bamboo ReciproBoo Shelter Kit (RSK) the innovation and its impact + proposals to scale up the shelter INNOVATION & IMPACT ReciproBoo Shelter Kit Winner Aid Innovation Award AidEx 2015 The ReciproBoo Shelter Kit (RSK) is a not for profit project. The project is "open source" with all data recorded and freely available to everyone on our website www.reciproboo.org. ReciproBoo Shelter, Health and Education Charity is registered with HM Revenue & Customs Ref. No.XT26285 Reciprocal frame innovation 1 The dual impact 2 Shelter challenge 3 Evidence and beneficiaries 4 Progress 5 PROPOSALS TO SCALE UP THE SHELTER Our path to scale 6 Stages 1 and 2 7 Working together 8 Stages 3 and 4 9 Paying for the shelter at scale 10 Measuring success 11 Our team and partners 12

The RSK innovation uses a 4 pole reciprocal frame for its roof the innovation A SIMPLE KIT Simple but exceptionally strong Leonardo Da Vinci used this simple reciprocal frame to support floors and bridges. 7 bamboo poles, 2 tarpaulins, rope and lashings 80 Kg Designed so that this basic shelter can be easily upgraded to a more permanent shelter as more bamboo becomes available The RSK uses the strength of this frame for its roof. Emergency (7 pole) This simple 4 pole frame can support heavy loads. Elevated (12 pole) Each pole overlaps in turn to form a self-supporting reciprocal frame. Double elevated (21 pole) It is this simple frame that we have incorporated in the design of the RSK RedR engineers demonstrate the strength of the shelter roof at a bamboo RSK workshop 2015 1

Aid agencies Beneficiaries The RSK costs 1 the cost of a relief tent. 10 It uses 33% less bamboo than any traditional frame. Traditional shelter roof RSK shelter roof the dual impact IMPACT STRONG EFFICIENT SIMPLE SKILLS ECONOMIC Lightweight kit easily carried Rapid assembly requires only basic skills Easy to repair and work on Adaptable to any space in an urban disaster or sloping mountain terrain that would not be possible for a tent. Cooler shelter in tropics due to its ability to support heavy insulation. Saving lives by reducing the risk of dehydration. This efficiency results in 33% less transport costs COOLER It provides the most effective tarpaulin support. IMPROVED SECURITY Support is in the middle of the tarpaulin where it is needed most. Modular, four units make a classroom One type of shelter kit is needed for hot or cold climate. No winterised version required. UPGRADEABLE TO TRANSITIONAL SHELTER HEALTH BENEFITS SAVING LIVES Thatching the roof with palm leaves Myanmar Warmer shelter in severe winters due to its ability to support heavy insulation. Saving lives by reducing the risk of hypothermia. Improved ventilation together with insulation that reduces internal condensation and resultant mould growth, reduces the risk of respiratory infections. Increased security. Shelter is easily changed to severe storm shelter profile in 5 minutes. Solid walls are easily built as they are not supporting the roof. Easily upgradeable to a more permanent shelter. 2

The shelter development challenge Hundreds of thousands of tarpaulins are supplied by Aid Agencies to displaced families every year. Frames are not supplied with these tarpaulins. the shelter challenge MEETING THE SHELTER CHALLENGE Today there is no alternative or competitor to the RSK method. This is because the RSK is not competing with tents but is addressing a different type of shelter challenge that is needed alongside tents. Tents will continue to fulfil their specialist shelter roles, but the RSK is designed to meet a separate shelter challenge : A fairer, safer more attainable shelter In large scale disasters only a small proportion of families are fortunate enough to receive a tent, the vast majority receive only tarpaulins and have to build their own shelter. The RSK empowers families with an innovation that, for the first time, enables them to build their own strong shelter. Bolivia floods 2008 The result is often poorly constructed unsafe shelters built with salvaged materials or cutting branches from trees. Haiti earthquake 2010 In Haiti these shelters collapsed in large numbers when the rains came. It is the unique features of the ReciproBoo Shelter Kit (RSK) that makes it more suitable than any other proposals to address this challenge. the need for a very large scale, efficient, and affordable shelter response The efficiency and affordability of the RSK is directly attributable to the physical features of its reciprocal frame roof. The very low cost of the RSK will enable it to be scaled up to very large numbers compared to any equivalent existing shelter. The RSK, due to its low skills requirement, will also make use of the vast untapped resourcefulness of displaced people In a disaster situation families will no longer have to wait for a shelter as they will have the know how to build the ReciproBoo shelter and thatch the roof themselves. Covering the RSK roof with heavy bamboo matting Not only is this shelter cooler, better ventilated and healthier to live in than a tent but it also provides more security with its severe storm profile and solid wall options. The 7 pole kit is the first shelter to be an attainable option for low income communities at risk from recurring disasters. It is specifically targeted at people living on under $2 PPP a day. RSK prepared in Irrawaddy Delta village Myanmar 3

evidence and beneficiaries What evidence supports this claim? Six years of research and development, including full analysis by University Engineering departments and wind tunnel testing. This is all backed up by practical bamboo RSK workshops and active grassroots projects in 4 countries. Key supporting publications ANALYSIS OF A RECIPROCAL ROOF FRAMED SHELTER FOR USE IN HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCIES The ReciproBoo shelter is suitable for use in humanitarian emergencies worldwide and is a very important development in the area of humanitarian relief G.Deeney and S. McHale Civil Engineering Department Galway University 2012 Our beneficiaries Beneficiaries are the hundreds of thousands of displaced families that struggle each year to build a tarpaulin shelter in often desperate situations. These include not only victims of natural disasters but also people displaced by conflict. The bamboo RSK health benefits and additional security features are designed to help the most vulnerable and debilitated individuals within these two groups. High speed wind tunnel tests on storm profile shelter at University West of England (UWE) The success of the 2015 and 2016 bamboo RSK shelter training workshops in Myanmar with the Red Cross have demonstrated the full potential of the shelters. Several of the 72 local and international NGO staff members that underwent this training have now started to extend the preparedness training to villages in the Delta Region and Northern Shan State. Plans to take the shelter kit training to ten villages in Sagaing Region are also well advanced. IFRC TECHNICAL GUIDELINES BASED ON THE BAMBOO RECIPROBOO SHELTER KIT 2015 Prepared jointly with our partners, IFRC Geneva Nepal shelters 3 weeks after Koshi River floods Our work has been focused on some of the poorest countries in the world. The RSK is a means of restoring dignity by enabling users to demonstrate their resourcefulness through their own shelter construction. As the fresh cut bamboo for an emergency RSK costs less than $2, we have, for the first time, the possibility of an affordable shelter option that can be used by the lowest income groups. This publication has recently been updated after our direct consultation with the IFRC Shelter expert. 4

progress What progress have we made so far? The RSK won the Aidex Innovation Challenge in 2015. Most recent progress 2012. Setting up the first bamboo RSK workshop with Medair in Renk IDP camp South Sudan. The AidEx Aid Innovation Challenge aims to find the next big invention to impact the delivery of aid. The grant with this award funded two 2016 Red Cross RSK training days and our first disaster preparedness program in a Myanmar Delta village at risk from flooding. 2015.We set up a bamboo RSK training weekend for 50 engineers with RedR UK 2013. Bamboo RSK 4 day workshop in Nepal with tarpaulins donated by Oxfam. Here NGO participants use fresh cut green bamboo The 72 trainees included staff representatives from several international aid organisations. 2015 and 2016. Joint bamboo RSK training with Myanmar Red Cross in Yangon. 2014. First bamboo RSK workshop in UK at Coventry University Engineering Department. This is still being used in a schools outreach program to encourage students to study engineering. It shows the potential for our proposal to develop the educational aspects of reciprocal frames. Our first shelter disaster preparedness program in a Delta village was a great success. Within 2 days the villagers had built all the RSK shelter upgrades including the 4 unit 40 square metre classroom. They were also keen to show us how to thatch the RSK roof with palm leaves. 2016. NGOs that attended the Yangon training extended the shelter preparedness training to 10 further villages in the Delta region and also to Naung Cho Township, Northern Shan State. Full details of this progress is on our website www.reciproboo.org. 5

Our path to scale Our recent field trials and discussions with IFRC Geneva and Red Cross Myanmar have indicated a pathway to scale up bamboo RSKs. This 4 stage plan will achieve a greater humanitarian objective than a large scale field trial. The reasons for this are : 1. The existing situation of families receiving tarpaulins without any instructions on how to build a frame, invariably results in poorly constructed shelters. The simple but strong RSK frame provides the only workable alternative to reduce this danger. our path to scale The 4 stage plan Stage 1. Expand the existing disaster preparedness program throughout Myanmar Stage 2. Training and deployment of the RSK for disaster response RSK target beneficiaries 1. Families living at risk from recurring natural disasters There is no exact figure for this group but in Asia alone there are many millions of people that live under a recurring annual threat of floods, tidal surges and landslides. In Myanmar 1.6 million people were displaced by floods in 2015 and 320,000 in June 2016. The bamboo RSK disaster preparedness program we will put in place could potentially reach all these people and provide them with an option to build bamboo RSKs when a disaster occurs. 2. The 59 million displaced persons worldwide The RSK has the potential to have an impact on the lives of a high proportion of these people. 2. The immediate health benefits from a better ventilated more secure shelter, that also has the potential to save lives due to its ability to be insulated. 3. The raw materials we will deliver are already familiar to and used by Aid Agencies and beneficiaries. Both these groups will simply have another option to use for shelter building and ultimately both will benefit from the materials supplied. Stage 3. Monitor and evaluate programs and also develop the education opportunities Stage 4. Expanding the DPP and DR template to other key countries. Specifically the IDPs or refugees in transit that need a compact shelter kit that they can carry and also use to make a stretcher to carry a debilitated family member or essential possessions. Also families in this group that are in camps and want to upgrade their shelter to a more dignified transitional shelter while they await permanent rehousing. Finally, families that want to return home and need a temporary shelter to live in during the rebuild phase. Both of these groups through circumstances often live on less than $5 PPP a day with a high proportion in the poorer countries we have targeted living on less than $2 PPP a day. 6

stages 1 and 2 Stage 1 : Extending the DPP training. throughout Myanmar For both stages 1 and 2 we have already set up detailed guidelines on how the DPP and DR can work. Stage 2: Training and deployment of the RSK for disaster response We plan to make use of the existing national and international networks, including the Red Cross. This is something we have considerable previous experience of when delivering tents throughout disaster zones. We are very confident it will work well with the Myanmar Red Cross due to 2 years of joint training with them and their enthusiasm to take the RSK method to the wider community. Our first shelter disaster preparedness program in a Delta village was very successful. Within 2 days the villagers had built all the RSK shelter upgrades including the 4 unit 40 square metre classroom. They also demonstrated how easy it was to thatch the RSK roof with palm leaves in the event of a delay in receiving tarpaulins. In the last 2 months two of the local NGOs that attended the Yangon training have extended this preparedness program to further villages in the Delta region and also to Naung Cho Township in Northern Shan State. In November 2016 we hope to extend the program to a further 10 villages in Kalay Township in Sagaing Region. PDF copy of our DPP guidelines The IFRC Geneva have shown their support with a joint publication on the bamboo RSK: IFRC BAMBOO FRAME FOR EMERGENCY SHELTERS (a copy of these guidelines can be downloaded from our homepage at www.reciproboo.org) We are also in direct communication with the Myanmar Shelter Cluster members. This is important as these include the aid organisations, large and small, that will deliver the bamboo RSKs in the event of a disaster response. The success of our Yangon training workshops for local and international NGOs in 2015 and 2016 has demonstrated how well this partnership can work. So far we have trained 72 volunteers to not only build the 2 types of emergency shelter, but also the 2 transitional shelters and the children s temporary classroom. They also received training in how to use the severe storm profile shelter which makes them well prepared for a disaster response. Whereas Stage 1 preparedness will be an all the year round continuous operation, Stage 2 will only be triggered at times of flooding, tidal surges, landslides and earthquakes. Stage 2 will also be used for communities that continue to be displaced by conflict. PDF copy of our DR guidelines 7

STAGE 1 : DISASTER PREPAREDNESS PROGRAM the 2 stages working together STAGE 2 : DISASTER RESPONSE INSTRUCTOR LEVEL TRAINING COURSE ON RSK (FOR 80 PERSONS) Tarpaulins are returned to storage depot after training TARPAULIN STORAGE DEPOTS SUPPLY TARPAULINS SHELTER ORGANISATION 2 instructors per region COMMUNITY 1 COMMUNITY 2 INSTRUCTORS RETURN TO REGIONS Community training COMMUNITY 3 COMMUNITY 4 Secondary seeding training COMMUNITY 5 COMMUNITY 6 400 COMMUNITIES TRAINED TO USE THE RSK TRAINED COMMUNITIES RESPONSE BUILD BAMBOO RSK SHELTERS COMMUNITY 7 INSTRUCTORS TRAIN FURTHER INSTRUCTORS Community training COMMUNITY 8 COMMUNITY 9 COMMUNITY 10 Providing support BUILD BAMBOO RSK FRAMES DIRECT UPGRADE TO TRANSITIONAL SHELTER Providing support EDUCATION PROGRAM WIDER COMMUNITY AWARENESS OF RSK METHOD OF SHELTER CONSTRUCTION EMERGENCY THATCH OF ROOF IF NO TARPAULINS AVAILABLE BUILD TEMPORARY RSK CLASSROOMS 8

Stage 3 : Monitoring and evaluation This is a high priority for us as we recognise its importance especially when introducing a new construction concept. Its importance is reflected in the detail that we have included to achieve this in our guidelines for both the preparedness and response programs. evaluation and expansion KEY STEPS TO SUCCESS Filling a well defined shelter niche A proven historic construction method adapted for a specific shelter purpose Stage 4 : Expanding the DPP and DR templates to other countries. The 3 countries that we have targeted for this next stage of scaling up are not only selected for their bamboo resources and low income groups, but also for individual differences that best demonstrate the global potential of the bamboo RSK. Nepal is a country that stands to particularly benefit from the mobility provided by the lightweight bamboo RSK in reaching remote communities hit by earthquakes and landslides. We have meticulously recorded all the data about the RSK over the last 6 years on our website and this will continue as a source of reference to other organisations using this shelter construction method. We will also take the opportunity to develop the educational aspects of the project. These include not only the primary and secondary school teaching of the science behind reciprocal frames to assist relief response, but also the development of sustainable agriculture of bamboo resulting from the programs. A safer shelter providing additional security for the most vulnerable groups Using the existing shelter sector support team to deliver the shelter Detailed monitoring and evaluation Developing the wider education benefits Bangladesh is a low lying country that faces an annual increase risk from tidal flooding and from its rivers. It has many similarities to Myanmar but has different traditions for shelter building that will highlight the adaptability of the RSK. The Philippines faces the annual threat of typhoons. The RSK will fit in with this country s use of palm tree timber. As well as saving lives, WOSPA has indicated that there is a clear role for the RSK to save livestock and thereby people s livelihoods in the immediate aftermath of a cyclone. We also plan in future to import bamboo to the Middle East from Africa. By making use of adobe mud bricks for walls and its ability to support roof insulation the RSK can save lives by reducing the risk of hypothermia during the severe winters often seen in this region. 9

paying for the shelter at scale Paying for the shelter at scale GRANTS We are actively applying for shelter grants and other sources of funding that will enable us to scale up the use of the bamboo RSK where it is needed most. Our applications are based on detailed costs, quotes and projections that we have worked through with our partner organisations. AID ORGANISATIONS The main aid organisations are increasingly willing to add their support as they recognise the large material and transport savings that they can make by adopting the bamboo RSK method of shelter construction. PRIVATE SECTOR As 80% ($40) of the $49.60 cost of the RSK is for the two imported relief tarpaulins, and as the project is promoting tarpaulins, we anticipate tarpaulin manufacturers will be potential sponsors and donors. Further private sector support has recently been generated, particularly in the architecture and engineering professions, where the sustainability and environmental benefits of the shelter are being recognised. Key challenges as we scale the innovation We expected that introducing an innovation that was completely new to people would be the main challenge but this has not happened due to the simplicity of the 4 pole reciprocal frame design. South Sudan Renk 2012 IDP camp build RSK frame The key challenges will be overcoming any negative cultural perceptions in some countries of using bamboo so that the full sustainable potential of growing, preparing and storing bamboo can be utilised. Maintaining the high standards of training in the use of the RSK that we have set, together with the long term monitoring and evaluation of the shelter are also key challenges. Paying for the shelter at scale PUBLIC DONORS In the future we hope that the public will target their donations at projects that can demonstrate the degree of efficiency and cost savings that this project will achieve. GOVERNMENT Government involvement has started at a local level with our collaboration with the RRD (Relief and Resettlement Department) to take the RSK to more remote villages in Myanmar. BENEFICIARIES Due to the very low cost of the RSK raw materials (fresh cut bamboo can be used) we also anticipate some of the funding will come from the beneficiaries themselves as the innovation is scaled up. People will look to grow their own bamboo to make this shelter kit. EDUCATION Although not providing direct funding, education bodies are becoming increasingly involved and providing support where resources allow. THE MANPOWER FACTOR Although generating revenue is important, it is the mobilisation of untapped manpower in the existing shelter network and the wider general public that will ensure the long term replication of the RSK. 10

measuring success Disaster Preparedness Program (DPP) Although there is no precedent to this first phase of a shelter DPP that we propose to implement, we can envisage what success looks like. For the first time thousands of communities at high risk from recurring natural disasters in 4 countries will be empowered to build their own shelters. The ability to thatch the roof of their shelter means they do not have to wait for relief tarpaulins to be delivered but can build their own temporary shelter in the meantime. Success of combining DPP and DR This can be shown by our first hand experience in the following example. 11,500 Nepalese families were made homeless by the 2008 Koshi River floods. Teams of 12 Oxfam engineers spent 6 weeks building 5,000 bamboo and tarpaulin shelters similar in size to the elevated RSK. They had to use bamboo that was brought to the disaster zone by truck. Oxfam shelters 2008 Nepal Koshi River Disaster Response (DR) The disaster response phase is easier to quantify. Based on the history of natural disasters and conflict over the past 3 years in our 4 target countries, we plan to deliver emergency and transitional shelters based on the RSK to 8,000 families. This will have an impact on the lives of up to 40,000 displaced persons of which more than half will be children. An example is Myanmar, where cyclones have previously left between 2 and 3 million people homeless. It is not possible to respond with tents on this scale. We believe that the delivery of hundreds of thousands of relief tarpaulins by staff of Aid Organisations that have been trained in the use of RSKs, to a population that has been trained to use the RSK, will be very successful. Emergency RSK training village Irrawaddy Delta These people are mainly from the lowest income group living on under $2 PPP a day. The disaster preparedness program will have an impact on the lives of over 100,000 in the first year and over 4 million lives within 3 years. Same size RSK built by Red Cross volunteers in Myanmar for the first time in under 3 hours. If instead, bamboo RSKs had been built by displaced families that had previously received training in its use we estimate it would have saved Oxfam in excess of $45,000 on every $100,000 spent on bamboo, transportation and labour costs. 4 unit RSK classroom / reception Irrawaddy Delta Funding will enable us to achieve both national and international scaling up of the bamboo RSK. The ultimate success will be the introduction of the RSK in other countries across Asia, Africa and South America that have their own bamboo resources. 11

12 ReciproBoo Shelter Kit (RSK) our team and partner organisations Our team is well placed to deliver this innovation as we not only have specialist technical expertise in reciprocal frames, but also the practical experience needed to ensure the effective training in its use. The importance we place on working together with our partners to provide professional monitoring and evaluation while maintaining our independence to work at a grassroots level, will also enable us to make this shelter innovation a success. Over the last 6 years, since first demonstrating a prototype shelter to IFRC Geneva in 2010, our team has built the required goodwill with all the main relief shelter sector organisations to take this innovation in shelter forward. By remaining independent we are also able to maintain the grassroots practical work that needs to be put in by the smaller NGOs to ultimately deliver the innovation to communities when needed. Team member Shaun Halbert Project director. Training instructor. Wanda Carlin Coordination of marketing, communications and partnerships. Partner organisation IFRC Shelter department Geneva Myanmar Red Cross Community Development Association (CDA) Medair, Oxfam Nepal, Coventry University, Seeds Asia and RedR. UNHCR, World Vision, Plan international, Habitat for Humanity, Care International, Norwegian Refugee Council, ICRC. Key skills & experiences they will contribute to making the innovation a success Designer and developer of the bamboo RSK shelter. Experienced team leader in international relief shelter deployments and their subsequent monitoring and assessment. Major disaster logistics hub lead (Haiti 2010). Project management and advanced shelter training experience. Wide international experience in the corporate and humanitarian sector. Built brand for leading PayGo solar company in Africa. Capacity of assistance Working together since 2010 has resulted in IFRC publication of Technical Sheets based on the bamboo RSK. In 2016 working with IFRC shelter expert to update this publication Partners for 3 workshops in Yangon and Irrawaddy Delta village preparedness program. Group of Myanmar shelter NGOs partnering us to provide direct shelter training in villages in Irrawaddy Delta, Northern Shan State ( KT Care Foundation ) and Sagaing regions of Myanmar. Bamboo workshops. Medair Renk IDP camp South Sudan in 2012. Oxfam Kathmandu Nepal in 2013. Coventry University Engineering Department in 2014. Seeds Asia Yangon in 2015. RedR hands on bamboo shelter workshops for engineers in 2015 and 2016. As part of the Myanmar Shelter Cluster that attended RSK training in Yangon and have indicated their continuing support for this project by inviting us to set up further training workshops in Northern Myanmar.