The Third Mission of the University: The Response of GRAFOS’ Students to the Consequences of Natural Disasters in Croatia 2020

Abstract

The universities of the 21st century are dedicated to three missions - education, science and advancement of the community. The impact of two major earthquakes in Croatia in 2020 as well as the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic, led to the integration of these topics into the educational process at the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture Osijek (GRAFOS), Croatia. In this example, GRAFOS architecture students designed shelters for people left homeless following natural disasters. The paper presents the process of creating innovative and bold shelter proposals, simultaneously developing students' skills like critical thinking, team work, communication and interpersonal skills.

Keywords

• GRAFOS
• natural disasters
• shelter architecture
• students’ design
• third mission of the university