Responding to mass displacement - A competency framework for built environment professionals

Mass displacement is a major global challenge and the number of people who have been forced to flee their homes has doubled in the last decade to more than 100 million. Sudden population changes (both influx and exodus) impact the efficient functioning of the built environment and this affects social relations between host and displaced communities. In ameliorating negative impacts and fostering social cohesion, built environment professionals have an important role to play and they need to better understand mass displacement. This research investigated the role of built environment professionals in responding to mass displacement, identified requisite competencies and derived a competency framework.