Beyond the Policy: XINHUA’S SUPPORTIVE HOUSING FOR CHILDREN
Disciplines
Architecture
Abstract (300 words maximum)
To some people children are seen as a blessing, but for China, they were considered detrimental to the economy status of the country. For 35 years China implemented a policy that limited families to one child so they could curb their rapid population growth and keep their image of being an economic leader of the world. This thesis will look at the lasting impact the one-child policy had on the population of China and what results has emerged since the law has ended, along with the 2024 stop on foreign adoption programs and who was most impacted by it. The research focuses on a site in Xinhua County, the fourth-most populous and rural county-level division in Hunan Province of China. The focus of the design will be to create an orphanage that gears to the care of children that were “left behind” due to their uncontrollable birth defects or mental disabilities. Biophilic, trauma-informed, and accessible design principles will be looked at on how they promote healing, safety, and resilience in children. Grounded in using these principles as a way to reimagine the orphanage as a sanctuary of belonging, the project explores how spatial qualities can help restore emotional stability in children recovering from abandonment or disability-related stigma. While limited information is widely available online, this research relies on the personal testimonies from books and the outreach approach to connections with creditable knowledge on this topic. By merging evidence-based design and cultural sensitivity, the project aims to demonstrate how architecture can become a healing spaces for China’s most vulnerable children.
Keywords: Orphanage, Disabilities, Biophilic, Trauma-Informed Design, One-Child Policy
*Disclaimer: AI was used for a starting outline, enhancement of structure and finding references.
Use of AI Disclaimer
no
Academic department under which the project should be listed
CACM – Architecture
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Robin Puttock
Beyond the Policy: XINHUA’S SUPPORTIVE HOUSING FOR CHILDREN
To some people children are seen as a blessing, but for China, they were considered detrimental to the economy status of the country. For 35 years China implemented a policy that limited families to one child so they could curb their rapid population growth and keep their image of being an economic leader of the world. This thesis will look at the lasting impact the one-child policy had on the population of China and what results has emerged since the law has ended, along with the 2024 stop on foreign adoption programs and who was most impacted by it. The research focuses on a site in Xinhua County, the fourth-most populous and rural county-level division in Hunan Province of China. The focus of the design will be to create an orphanage that gears to the care of children that were “left behind” due to their uncontrollable birth defects or mental disabilities. Biophilic, trauma-informed, and accessible design principles will be looked at on how they promote healing, safety, and resilience in children. Grounded in using these principles as a way to reimagine the orphanage as a sanctuary of belonging, the project explores how spatial qualities can help restore emotional stability in children recovering from abandonment or disability-related stigma. While limited information is widely available online, this research relies on the personal testimonies from books and the outreach approach to connections with creditable knowledge on this topic. By merging evidence-based design and cultural sensitivity, the project aims to demonstrate how architecture can become a healing spaces for China’s most vulnerable children.
Keywords: Orphanage, Disabilities, Biophilic, Trauma-Informed Design, One-Child Policy
*Disclaimer: AI was used for a starting outline, enhancement of structure and finding references.