Field : New Finmark
With any global refuge crisis comes tremendous flux of skills. The Barents region, rich in many resources, from renewable such as hydroelectricity, wind-farming, fish-farming and forestry, to expansive oil + gas fields as well as iron, copper + nickel mines, has the unique opportunity to channel skilled refugees into economic prosperity.
The current Russo-Norwegian stance on refugees displays intolerance and nonacceptance, arresting and detaining refugees for processing for 9 to 18 months at minimum before either continuing to Oslo, United Kingdom or repatriation back to their homelands.
The proposal is to employ to these refugees skills-sets in an established network of local industry economies while undergoing their asylum processing, hopefully resulting in the settlement of refugees within this framework.
Every node operates as a checkpoint into Norway and Russia. Benefits include quicker crossing of the border as well as increases the circulation in and around the nodes. Through digital technologies in car recognition, locals can now fast track across the border if they choose to pass through the nodes. This service becomes and additional attraction to interact with the new network.
Inventions
The flexible worship space is embedded into the core of the processing centre. It acts as both an identifier of government infrastructure built in to the process to accommodate the needs of new arrivals and refugees and as a means of communicating to refugees the importance of their identity. The maintenance of which begins a shift of social cultural identity.
The sun shading system allows for the adaption to the varied daylight hours prominent in the northern Barents region. The facade also allows for the control of privacy and views empowering the occupant to be able to take greater control in the engagement of their surroundings to their own benefit.
The periscope allows indirect views to secretly create a broader scope of understanding of the occupants surroundings without revealing their position or intentions. It encourages users to obtain more information than they might have otherwise perceived possible prior empowering them to utilise the information to make better informed decisions.
The reveal / conceal facade system creates a variation of ways in which the building facade can engage and interact with its immediate context. In doing so it also creates hidden and sheltered spaces in which meetings can be had and information distributed without the identification of this action taking place.
The drone surveillance is used to facilitate the delivery of services and security surveillance while also being a point of weakness for being hacked into and allowing the overall surveillance of the surrounding environment to be monitored by dis-empowered shifting the imbalance through the transmission of powerful information.
The data facade utilises a retractable shading system operable by the occupant to allow the outward expression of individual engaging with it. It becomes a point of connection between the user and the community.
The train and train carriage operates as a means to eradicate the current exploitation of refugees traveling on their currently unregulated journey to Norway, which occur through costs and mediums of transport (bikes, taxis, etc.). It acts as an introduction to the refugees to become familiar with the inventions as they operate across the all sites.
The emergency response housing pods operate as a form of “take-away” housing units. Arrivals are given access to a pod or number of pods dependent on family size. They allow occupants to investigate opportunities available to them at a given site and maintain the freedom to move on with their belongings if they desire to search for alternatives elsewhere. From an intial location the pods disperse along with the refugees to pollinate the sites at available locations.
The beacon of light plays a role as an identifying object in the fabric of a foreign locale for refugees. In doing so it also acts as an epicentre for generating communities.
Site 01 // Nikel
Site 02 // Svanvik
The Svanvik Checkpoint is part of the second stage of the overall proposal, ideally built upon the need for growth in local industry and education. As the site has previously held educational facilities (an elementary and folk high school) the proposal is design to build upon that and incorporate its preexisting infrastructure and services into a project that would benefit both locals (from immediate and further surrounding towns) and refugees taking to this area to seek asylum. One of this site’s greatest draw cards is the opportunity for further and fuller education for all; the inventions utilised within the proposal area designed around increasing the quality of life for those choosing to live in the area whilst not becoming cut-off from the rest of the greater site and subsequently the world. The site consists of a conglomeration of old and new architecture nestled amongst national Norwegian forests. The natural environment itself promotes a number of sustainable industry opportunities, which would, in this proposal, manifest in the generation of a sustainable foresting industry in the area. As the forest defines the border physically, making it an imperferable barrier to overcome for those traveling toward the Norwegian border and Oslo, the project aims to make it more interactive with those passing through it.
Site 03 // Skoltefoss
The Skoltefoss checkpoint is in the later stages on the New Finnmark development proposal. There is little pre-existing programmed infrastructure beyond an abandoned 1940s hotel, a Russian orthodox chapel and an portal-frame warehouse with ties to the adjacent hydroelectric dam. Therefore, Skoltefoss is significantly removed from urbanity when compared to Kirkenes, Nikel and even Svanvik. It is for both this reason and the distinctive terrain Skoltefoss is situated within that have determined the role of this node within the greater New Finnmark network - it is to become a checkpoint doubling as a leisure retreat focused on improving the general wellbeing of inhabitants.
Site 04 // Kirkeness
Kirkenes is the furthest city we studied from the border. Being located on the water it is Norway’s final airport and port before Russia. Kirkenes is not just an industrial town. Along with being geographically located at a prime location to view the Aurora Borealis, the port is the final stop to Northern Europe’s largest tourist cruise, The Hurtigruten which docks daily. Its formation and history has numerous historical war and trade ties. Though its present is being moulded by Iron Ore and offshore oil drilling. Kirkenes is Norway’s largest town in both the Barents and Pomor regions. Together this small tail of Norway makes up 20% of Norway’s financial exports. The capsule pods act as a double agenda for refugees under the guise of being a luxury hotel pads rather than being seen as temporary or public housing stand-alone for refugees. The additional of leisurely hotel programs, including a swimming pool and a gym commodities the pod capsules itself. In doing so, this creates subtle interactions between tourists and the refugees that temporary housing standalone would not normally offer.
The security periscope provides the refugees with empowerment of specific moments that can be viewed in seclusion from a particular location. The periscope is used in the nature of a boat being exhibited in a museum denoting to the views of the ocean. This allows them to take full control of surveillance where locations cannot be thoroughly seen from.
