Eco-Conscious Refugee Shelters

AllSpace, a Nigerian startup, has gained international acclaim from the Swarovski Foundation’s Creatives for Our Future program and The World Around’s Young Climate Prize for its modular shelter prototypes. Designed to tackle the global refugee crisis, the shelters are low-cost, solar-powered, and easy to assemble, using recycled and locally sourced materials such as aluminum, tarpaulin, and 3D-printed plastic parts.

Built on mud-based platforms, the hexagonal structures offer flexibility for communal living and family arrangements. Double-layered tarpaulin and dried grass provide insulation, reflecting a blend of modern ingenuity and vernacular design.

"It looks like the typical Nigerian traditional African architecture, like hearts with the windows, cross ventilation and everything," said AllSpace founder Blossom Eromsele. "So I think for them, it just felt more like home. It was easier for them to accept that kind of form."

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