Everyday practices and lived spaces of refugees children on YouTube

The chapter outlines an analysis of YouTube videos from diverse channels concentrating on the everyday practices and lived spaces of young people in countries other than their homeland. It aims to capture the significance of the built environment -be it temporary or permanent- in the context of forcefully displaced people via YouTube videos made in their current city or camp. Focusing on migration, architecture and film, the study brings the subjective view of the film camera into the discussion analysing openly accessible videos commissioned in the 2010s by intergovernmental organisations, news channels and not-for-profit organisations. It attempts to ‘read between the lines’ using the filmic representations of architecture to have a more objective view of the transported lives of refugees who are underage. There are more than 70 million displaced people worldwide, at the time of writing, about half of whom are below the age of 18 (www.unhcr.org/globaltrends2018). The study intents to be a step in defining some of the misconceptions around these young members of the society, breaking down some of the barriers and, in the long run, towards integration, and celebration of diversity. It focuses on the children’s lived spaces including their homes, streets, play areas, schools and ‘workplaces’ in their camps and cities. The study uses film to understand the architectural and urban challenges and desires of refugee populations in different parts of the world. Audio-visual recording can be a powerful tool to disseminate young refugees’ public and private spatial needs in their new environment.