Abstract

This paper presents research on creating design frameworks which allow local communities at risk of eviction to improve and maintain their own living environments. Work with urban poor communities in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, will be presented as case studies to visualize methodology in practice. The topic of how to resolve slum upgrading in urban communities is a global problem crucial to the development of Cambodia. Particularly in Phnom Penh hundreds of communities have been displaced. Most of these communities have been relocated to peripheral rice fields with no services, work or basic facilities. The need for capacity building in upgrading existing urban spaces is desired in order to divert the ramifications of relocation to empty peripheral land. The purpose of this paper is to describe ways of working with architecture, urban planning and community development. This includes a toolkit of ways to approach a community at risk of eviction, recognizing community initiatives and working with them to use tools such as maps, alternative design plans and self-improvement methods for slum upgrading. The toolkit methods for capacity building will be used as examples from the field, providing an invaluable resource for researchers and practitioners alike.