The Urban Shelter course is about the design of high quality urban housing and living environment (neighbourhoods) for the low- and middle-income urban dwellers with the focus on creating resilient communities in the context of rapid global urbanization. 

The study area and design site is in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, one of the fastest growing cities in the world. The field trip to Dar-es-Salaam in October was carried out with the collaboration of Ardhi University and TAWAH (Tanzanian Women Architects for Humanity) and our student group was completed with six architecture students from Ardhi providing local knowledge and taking part in the programme. In addition to lectures and talks with the Ardhi professors and researchers, we visited different housing developers and their housing sites, including National Housing Corporation, Watumishi and TBA, to learn of their realities in housing development in Tanzania. A trip to TAWAH training centre gave us the possibility learn about the construction process, from the production of soil- and sand cement blocks to staking out the foundations and building a local waste water treatment facility, and to meet local women builders and see the results of their work.