Mainstreaming homeless network: Designing night shelters as urban places

Abstract

Night shelters are those places in an urban geography that provide with basic facilities and space designated for sleeping. People living in urban areas without a roof have no choice but to accept the anarchy of space(s) designated for sleeping. Vulnerability leaves no volition with them. The ability to administer one’s own life, ‘right to life’ is peripheral. Occupying the lowest part of the social hierarchy, they struggle for their basic needs. These people are termed as homeless. To identify with an urban geography, there is noteworthy demand for shelter. Lack of adequate housing and absence of socially inclusive urban places are identified as the primary reason for homeless (ness) wherein the characteristics and causes behind it are complex and varied. Due to economic hardship and poverty, homeless people experience social exclusion, stigmatization, and physical and mental health problems