SIGUS: Special Interest Group in Urban Settlement

Massachussetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Avenue
SIGUS Office 9-369
Cambridge, MA 02139

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(617) 253-2402

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(617) 253-8993

Email:
sigus@mit.edu

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News

Reunion of Alumni from ’70-’71

A reunion was held in the fall of 2009 at the home of Bob Parker in Taos, New Mexico, with some of the early graduates from the Urban Settlement Design Program at MIT, now known as SIGUS – Special Interest Group in Urban Settlement (the name was changed in…
Annual International Development Fair | 2008

SIGUS participated in MIT's 6th Annual International Development Fair, October 5, 2008. The Development Fair (IDF) is an event designed to showcase the many groups, projects and activities at MIT that provide students with an opportunity to work on issues related to international development. The Fair brings students and…
EXPERTS GROUP MEETING AT UN HABITAT, NAIROBI | 2008

Reinhard Goethert was invited to join a group of international experts in developing housing and land strategies for UN Human Settlements Programme in Nairobi, October 7-9. The goal of the sessions was to advise on guiding strategies for the next 6 years within the framework of "sustainable urbanization".…
Experimental Course | Spring 2008

4.291/11.4190U 4.237G The Future Professional "Double Population, Triple Area: All in 30 Years": Third World Urban Challenges Exploding the Future The doubling of the Third World urban population – with a tripling of the urban footprint by 2030 – has forecast a vision of a frightening urban…
PRESENTATION ON URBAN MIGRATION AT THE VAP | October 2007

Reinhard Goethert presented the experiences from the previous SIGUS workshops related to urban migration to the Visual Arts Program. The migrants in the Third World and their impact on urban development was explored using examples from Manila, Philippines; Lima, Peru; and other rapidly growing cities. Focus was on the…
Chumbe Island Coral Park Wins Prize | March 2007

George Fiebig presented his prize-winning Chumbe Island Coral Park resort in Zanzibar. Mr. Fiebig is a young German architect practicing in Australia, with projects in Indonesia, Tanzania, Mozambique and Australia. His prize-winning project links eco-interests with tourism, and with a very compelling architecture using natural materials. www.chumbeisland.com
Pakistan Earthquake: Is It Forgotten? | 2006

Presentation by Charles A. Setchell; Shelter, Settlements, and Mitigation Advisor, USAID Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA). An up-to-date review of the efforts being made in rebuilding after the earthquake by the various national and international agencies.
“Sweat! Design! Build!” | 2007

An International Two-Week Workshop in Louisiana The workshop was a collaboration of students from throughout the MIT community and from universities abroad. Twenty students from MIT and abroad participated in 1-week of hands-on repair and rebuilding of hurricane damaged housing on the bayous of Louisiana, followed by 1-week…
Volunteer Weeks: Two Weeks of Rebuilding Houses on the Bayous of Louisiana | July 8-22, 2006

20 MIT volunteers rebuilt houses damaged by the 'evil hurricane sisters' Katrina and Rita. They worked with the local NGO TRAC (a disaster mitigation group) in Houma about 50 miles southwest of New Orleans, the last large town before the bayous of the coast. Housing was in 'iPods'…
Louisiana Lift House Initiative Started | January 2006

The New Practitioner course of SIGUS explored innovative 'lift house' designs for rebuilding coastal regions of Louisiana. The international NGO Oxfam America and the local Louisiana group TRAC have welcomed us to jointly develop concepts for housing that meet the hurrican challenges. The student team developed affordable and appropriate housing…
Documentary FilM on Banda Aceh | November 30, 2005

SIGUS sponsored the documentary film-maker Therese Condit in the showing of her film: "Banda Aceh, Indonesia: In The Wake of Tsunami, A Witness." The film looks at the rebuilding situation, almost a year after the tsunami and its devastation, as most citizens of Banka Aceh have yet to…
“Prep” Sessions for MIT $1K Competition | 2005

SIGUS led sessions to help individuals and groups brainstorm housing innovations for the MIT $1K Enterprise Competition. Focus was on the Katrina/Rita areas, and in other devastated countries. It has been noted that many technically elegant, environmentally sound, affordable innovations in housing have been proposed over the last 30 years,…
Katrina/Rita Initiatives | On-going

SIGUS has undertaken several events addressing the challenge of the hurricane disasters: The course 'Structuring Low-Income Housing Projects' is focusing its analysis on international development projects that have dealt with disasters, targeting lessons that may apply to the New Orleans region. Mentoring sessions will assist students and groups in preparing…
Can Architects do the BOP? | September 29, 2005

A session at the Architectural Studies Colloquium explored the possible contributions to the unserved 'bottom of the pyramid' – the 'BOP'. With cities expecting to double in size in the next 20-25 years the issues are abvious and frightening. Special guest was Alyce Russo (MCP '89) of the firm…
SIGUS Highlights Program at MIT’s IDF | September 23, 2005

A poster display and computer images were presented at the MIT's annual International Development Forum. TA Tracy Wharton discussed the program with visitors to the well-attended event.
Support to Studio in Australia | February-April, 2005

SIGUS is providing long-distance support to the studio "Design Response in the Aftermath of Disaster" offered at the University of South Wales in Sydney, Australia. The studio focuses on tsunami relief and rebuilding efforts in Sumatra, and is supported by a broader network of schools internationally. www.be.unsw.edu.au/news/
Keynote Speaker at Cairo Conference | February 22-24, 2005

Dr. Reinhard Goethert was a keynote speaker at the ARCHCAIRO 2005 Conference "Globalization and Beyond: Architecture, Communities and Settings." The conference was hosted by the Department of Architecture at Cairo University. His paper "Globalization, Practice and Education: Old Challenges, New Demands" called for a new model of education built around…
Tsunami Challenge | Spring Break: March 21-26, 2005

How will you spend your Spring Break? Consider a 1 week 'Challenge' to brainstorm how to rehouse the families displaced by the Tsunami. How would you tackle the immediate large-scale demands, the limited materials, the disrupted community and the overstressed government's capabilities? Can there be more than a…
Lima 2005 Workshop | 2005

"Three Decades of Squatter Dreams" In 1969, four squatter communities were surveyed by MIT in Lima, Peru: Cuevas, El Ermitano, El Agustino, and Mendocita, and documented in the book, "Urban Dwelling Environments" (Caminos, Turner, Steffian; MIT Press, 1969). It is now 35+ years after: What happened? How did…
“The Humanitarian Bridgebuilder”

Toni "El Suizo" Ruttimann was hosted by several groups from MIT, including SIGUS. After an earthquake struck Ecuador in 1987, Toni left Switzerland immediately after graduating from high school, determined to help in any way he could. With no technical background, he invented a method of building suspension bridges…
Biresh Shah | OCTOBER 18, 2004

SIGUS joined with the Aga Khan Program in hosting Biresh Shah, a colleague from Kathmandu, Nepal. Mr. Shah presented slides of the tensions of modernity and tradition in architecture in the design of buildings. Mr. Shah was a SIGUS colleague in 1988 when he received a SMArchs degree. He…
San Cayetano Workshop Discussion | 2004

Students from the Albert Einstein University in El Salvador – Pamela, Carmen, Lily and Claudia – met with MIT students for two days to discuss the San Cayetano Workshop carried out jointly with SIGUS in the summer. The students have taken the workshop methodology and are developing it for…
Third Annual International Development Forum, MIT | SEPTEMBER 24, 2004

SIGUS participated in the Third Annual International Development Forum at MIT. The Forum is a way of sharing information and celebrating the rich variety of activities at MIT throughout the year that contribute to international development. About 40+ MIT academic programs and student groups partipated in the Forum. The…
Global Open Learning Forum on Risk Education (GOLFRE) | MARCH 2004

SIGUS joined an international group of universities, research centers and NGOs as a founding partner in the "Global Open Learning Forum on Risk Education (or GOLFRE)." Representatives from India, Japan, Nepal, South Africa and the United Kingdom joined the network to tap the tacit knowledge, practical wisdom and human…
San Cayetano Earthquake Redesign, El Salvador | JUNE 2004

SIGUS partnered with 45 earthquake-displaced families in designing their resettlement community in a 1-week workshop. Both adults and children actively particpated in the workshop. Essentially, two workshops ran parallel with joint meetings at various points to exchange ideas. Three students from the Department of Architecture and Department of Urban Studies…
Children, Traditions and Awareness

The preliminary work continues on exploring the use of 'shape grammars' as a teaching tool for schools. Children are seen as key 'change-agents' in discovering new designs using traditional elements. The key questions remains: how to confront the McDonaldization of the world.
New Publications

Several of the January Workshop reports are now available in CD format. Please inquire for specific workshop. Upgrading Web Site and CD A second version of the CD on "Upgrading Urban Communities: A Resource for Practitioners" has been completed. It is being distributed by the World Bank Thematic Group…
Reinhard Goethert helping rebuild stricken Louisiana

Housing expert discusses work in bayou Reinhard Goethert helping rebuild stricken Louisiana Sasha Brown, MIT News Office September 5, 2006 For Reinhard Goethert, principal research associate in architecture, heading to Louisiana after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck last summer seemed only natural given his…