World Habitat Day, on 1 October 2013, highlights the status of urban poor across the world and the increasing number of slum dwellers in desperate need of adequate housing, water and sanitation facilities.

One billion people around the world live in inadequate housing, with in excess of 100 million people living in conditions classified as “homelessness”.

Habitat for Humanity (HfH) aimed to demonstrate the conditions that millions of people live in by creating a “slum” in Martin Place that people could interact with and leave notes on what safe housing means to them.

Arup engineers from the Sydney office, Deirdre O’Neill and Guy Hollingum assisted HfH architects to deliver the design. The structure was consequently approved by City of Sydney and was installed in Martin Place safely on a rather windy Sydney day.