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CONFRONTING INFORMALITY: Preserving Communities and Creating Public Goods in Informal Settlements

THE SYMPOSIUM IS A RESULT OF THE FACULTY’S AND ITS STUDENTS’ AWARENESS OF THE IMPACTS OF INFORMAL URBANISATION IN ISSUES OF SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND SPATIAL JUSTICE IN CITIES TODAY.

THE SYMPOSIUM IS A RESULT OF THE FACULTY’S AND ITS STUDENTS’
AWARENESS OF THE IMPACTS OF INFORMAL URBANISATION IN ISSUES
OF SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND
SPATIAL JUSTICE IN CITIES TODAY.

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TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 1<br />

preserv<strong>in</strong>g communities <strong>and</strong> creat<strong>in</strong>g public goods<br />

<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements<br />

Delft University of Technology<br />

Faculty of Architecture <strong>and</strong> the Build Environment<br />

Department of Urbanism<br />

Delft, June 7th 2018<br />

report


2 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Favela Paraisopolis, Sao Paulo,<br />

Brazil<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO<br />

FAVELA PARAISOPOLIS. INFORMAL SETTLEMENT<br />

IN SAO PAULO, BRAZIL.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 3<br />

Colophon<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

A one day symposium on preserv<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>Communities</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Creat<strong>in</strong>g</strong> <strong>Public</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> <strong>in</strong><br />

<strong>Informal</strong> <strong>Settlements</strong><br />

7 June 2018<br />

Delft University of Technology,<br />

Faculty of Architecture <strong>and</strong> the Built Environment,<br />

Department of Urbanism.<br />

Susta<strong>in</strong>able Development Goals <strong>and</strong> Responsible Innovation,<br />

TU Delft, Gemeente Den Haag<br />

Symposium organised by:<br />

Anubhuti Ch<strong>and</strong>na (India)<br />

Asmeeta Das Sharma (India)<br />

Deepanshu Arneja (India)<br />

Diego Moya Ortiz (Chile)<br />

Felipe Gonzalez (Brazil)<br />

Gabriela Waldherr (Germany)<br />

Leyden Dur<strong>and</strong> (Venezuela)<br />

Nilofer Tajudd<strong>in</strong> (India)<br />

N<strong>in</strong>ad Sansare (India)<br />

Oriana De Lucia (Venezuela)<br />

Pablo Muñoz Unceta (Spa<strong>in</strong>)<br />

Ricardo Avella (Venezuela)<br />

Sulenur Kilic (Turkey)<br />

Roberto Rocco (Brazil)<br />

Symposium sponsored by:<br />

The Research <strong>in</strong>itiative Susta<strong>in</strong>able Development Goals<br />

<strong>and</strong> Responsible Innovation, TU Delft, Gemeente Den Haag<br />

The Department of Urbanism of the TU Delft<br />

The Delft Global Initiative<br />

Polis, Platform for Urbanism<br />

Visual identity: Felipe Gonzalez, Oriana de Lucia <strong>and</strong> Leyden Dur<strong>and</strong><br />

Report organised <strong>and</strong> designed by Roberto Rocco<br />

Symposium Website: https://confront<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>formality.org/<br />

ISBN: 978-94-6366-055-6<br />

U<br />

URBANISM<br />

SPS


4 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 5<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Symposium<br />

Report<br />

A one day symposium on preserv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Communities</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Creat<strong>in</strong>g</strong><br />

<strong>Public</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>Informal</strong> <strong>Settlements</strong>, 7 June 2018,<br />

Delft University of Technology, Faculty of Architecture <strong>and</strong> the Built<br />

Environment, Department of Urbanism, Section Spatial Plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

Strategy


4<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

6<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Index<br />

Colophon..................................................................................................... 3<br />

Organizers................................................................................................... 7<br />

Spatial Plann<strong>in</strong>g & Strategy...................................................................... 8<br />

Introduction to the Symposium................................................................ 11<br />

Roberto Rocco: Why Confront <strong>Informal</strong>ity?.............................................. 12<br />

The history of the symposium <strong>and</strong> acknowledgements.......................... 14<br />

SDGs <strong>and</strong> Responsible Innovation............................................................. 19<br />

The Competition.......................................................................................... 23<br />

The numbers of the competition............................................................... 28<br />

Location of proposals................................................................................. 30<br />

Universities <strong>in</strong>volved.................................................................................. 32<br />

Jury members.............................................................................................. 35<br />

Sukanya Krishnamurthy: Location, location, location............................ 45<br />

Pablo Muñoz <strong>and</strong> Asmeeta Das: Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity....................... 49<br />

Ignacio Cardona: Does the (<strong>in</strong>)formal city exist?.................................... 51<br />

Nipesh Narayanan: Position<strong>in</strong>g the architecture profession to<br />

confront <strong>in</strong>formality.................................................................................... 53<br />

Abigail Friendly: Reth<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity?................................................. 55<br />

Alonso Ayala <strong>and</strong> Ellen Geurts: Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity......................... 57<br />

N<strong>in</strong>ad Sansare: The view from a Mumbaikar............................................. 59<br />

The rationale of the selection ................................................................... 60<br />

Honourable Mention: Tirana, Albania........................................................ 62<br />

Honourable Mention: Karachi, Pakistan.................................................... 79<br />

Second Place: Salvador, Brazil................................................................... 93<br />

Second Place: Rasheed, Egypt.................................................................... 113<br />

First place: Dhaka, Bangladesh.................................................................. 133<br />

The 15 f<strong>in</strong>alists............................................................................................. 154


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 7<br />

The Organizers<br />

THE <strong>CONFRONTING</strong> <strong>INFORMALITY</strong> SYMPOSIUM IS A STUDENT LED EVENT, FACILITATED BY THE SECTION OF<br />

SPATIAL PLANNING AND STRATEGY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF URBANISM OF THE TUDELFT<br />

ANUBHUTI CHANDNA<br />

ASMEETA DAS SHARMA<br />

DEEPANSHU ARNEJA<br />

DIEGO MOYA ORTIZ<br />

INDIA<br />

INDIA<br />

INDIA<br />

CHILE<br />

FELIPE GONZALEZ<br />

GABRIELA WALDHERR<br />

LEYDEN DURAND<br />

NILOFER TALUDDIN<br />

BRAZIL<br />

GERMANY<br />

VENEZUELA<br />

INDIA<br />

NINAD SANSARE<br />

ORIANA DE LUCIA<br />

PABLO MUÑOZ UNCETA<br />

RICARDO AVELLA<br />

INDIA<br />

VENEZUELA<br />

SPAIN<br />

VENEZUELA<br />

ŞULENUR KILIÇ<br />

ROBERTO ROCCO<br />

TURKEY<br />

BRAZIL


8 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

[URBANISM]<br />

Department of Urbanism<br />

URBANISM AT TU DELFT ENCOMPASSES AND COMBINES URBAN DESIGN, SPATIAL<br />

PLANNING, LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL MODELLING<br />

The Department of Urbanism <strong>in</strong> the<br />

Faculty of Architecture <strong>and</strong> the Built<br />

Environment encompasses <strong>and</strong><br />

comb<strong>in</strong>es urban design, spatial plann<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

l<strong>and</strong>scape architecture <strong>and</strong> environmental<br />

modell<strong>in</strong>g. The Department has a global<br />

reputation for excellence <strong>in</strong> research <strong>and</strong><br />

education. It is particularly well known<br />

for the ‘Dutch approach’ to urbanism that<br />

br<strong>in</strong>gs together the creativity of design<br />

with academic research methods. This ‘<strong>in</strong>tegral’<br />

urbanism enjoys high <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

esteem <strong>in</strong> professional practice, research<br />

<strong>and</strong> education.<br />

The Department enables staff <strong>and</strong> students<br />

to advance knowledge of susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

<strong>and</strong> fair urban <strong>and</strong> regional development.<br />

We question the relationship between<br />

qualities of urban <strong>and</strong> regional environments<br />

with the social, economic <strong>and</strong> environmental<br />

performance of societies, <strong>and</strong><br />

the wellbe<strong>in</strong>g of citizens. Our graduates<br />

learn to take an <strong>in</strong>dependent <strong>and</strong> active<br />

role <strong>in</strong> shap<strong>in</strong>g urban development, but<br />

are also critical <strong>and</strong> reflective, demonstrat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

an awareness of both the potential <strong>and</strong><br />

limitations of professional <strong>in</strong>terventions.<br />

We explore critical questions of urbanism<br />

<strong>in</strong> the Netherl<strong>and</strong>s <strong>and</strong> with partners <strong>in</strong><br />

many other countries, but always with sensitivity<br />

to local conditions <strong>and</strong> cultures.<br />

In a 2016 research assessment conducted<br />

under the Dutch St<strong>and</strong>ard Evaluation<br />

Protocol, the Department’s research programme<br />

was assessed as ‘world lead<strong>in</strong>g/<br />

excellent’ <strong>in</strong> ‘research quality’ <strong>and</strong> ‘social<br />

relevance’, <strong>and</strong> ‘very good’ <strong>in</strong> viability. TU<br />

Delft is ranked third <strong>in</strong> the world for architecture<br />

<strong>and</strong> the built environment <strong>in</strong> the<br />

QS World University rank<strong>in</strong>gs (2017), <strong>and</strong><br />

second <strong>in</strong> the world for urban plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong> the University Rank<strong>in</strong>gs of Academic<br />

Performance (2016-17).<br />

The Department has a long <strong>and</strong> rich<br />

track-record on urbanisation studies <strong>in</strong><br />

the Global South, to which the symposium<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity belongs. This has<br />

been strengthened by recent partnerships<br />

with UN-Habitat <strong>and</strong> the World Urban<br />

Campaign, <strong>in</strong> order to promote <strong>and</strong> teach<br />

the New Urban Agenda <strong>and</strong> the Susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

Development Goals.<br />

Professor V<strong>in</strong>cent Nad<strong>in</strong>, head of the<br />

Department of Urbanism, Professor<br />

of Spatial Plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> Strategy


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 9<br />

The Faculty of Architecture <strong>and</strong><br />

the Built Environment, TU Delft<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO


10 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 11<br />

[INTRODUCTION]<br />

The symposium<br />

THE SYMPOSIUM IS A RESULT OF THE FACULTY’S AND ITS STUDENTS’<br />

AWARENESS OF THE IMPACTS OF INFORMAL URBANISATION IN ISSUES<br />

OF SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND<br />

SPATIAL JUSTICE IN CITIES TODAY.<br />

The Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity Symposium<br />

is a student-led event<br />

sponsored by the Chair of Spatial<br />

Plann<strong>in</strong>g & Strategy at the Department<br />

of Urbanism, TU Delft University of Technology.<br />

The symposium happens once a<br />

year <strong>and</strong> gathers experts, policy-makers,<br />

practitioners <strong>and</strong> others to discuss <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanisation, its political, economic <strong>and</strong><br />

environmental implications <strong>and</strong> the tools to<br />

tackle it.<br />

The symposium, which is <strong>in</strong> its fifth<br />

edition, is a result of the faculty’s <strong>and</strong> its<br />

students’ awareness of the impacts of<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation <strong>in</strong> issues of social,<br />

economic <strong>and</strong> environmental susta<strong>in</strong>ability<br />

<strong>and</strong> spatial justice <strong>in</strong> cities today.<br />

By <strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation we mean the<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal unregulated spontaneous processes<br />

of urbanisation that happen mostly (but<br />

not only) <strong>in</strong> countries of the Global South<br />

result<strong>in</strong>g from economic <strong>and</strong> social exclusion<br />

of groups or communities.<br />

We do not dispute the many positive aspects<br />

of <strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation: it is a gateway<br />

to the city, it is a force from grassroots<br />

<strong>and</strong> it is able to create strong communities<br />

<strong>and</strong> provide families with livelihoods. The<br />

entrepreneurship of people <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements is remarkable <strong>and</strong> many <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements around the world are the<br />

source of employment, culture <strong>and</strong> hope.<br />

However, we wish to dispel any doubt<br />

that <strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation has several<br />

drawbacks. In the way it happens <strong>in</strong> most<br />

countries, <strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation is unsusta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

<strong>in</strong> the long run. More often than<br />

not, it has not been able to provide most<br />

households with a decent liv<strong>in</strong>g environment.<br />

Many <strong>in</strong>formal settlements around<br />

the world face unimag<strong>in</strong>able environmental,<br />

social <strong>and</strong> economic challenges.<br />

Improvement only happens when there<br />

is concerted collective action between the<br />

public sector, the private sector <strong>and</strong> civil<br />

society (not least, citizens themselves) <strong>in</strong><br />

order to deliver improvements to <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

communities <strong>in</strong> the form of better hous<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

services, sanitation, <strong>in</strong>frastructure, public<br />

space <strong>and</strong> so on.<br />

Spatial plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> design are sadly<br />

fail<strong>in</strong>g to deliver susta<strong>in</strong>able solutions that<br />

address the needs <strong>and</strong> wishes of citizens<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements.<br />

We recognise the importance of underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

the processes beh<strong>in</strong>d <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanisation, as well as its relationships<br />

with other issues such as poverty, gender<br />

discrim<strong>in</strong>ation, social segregation <strong>and</strong> economic<br />

<strong>in</strong>equality.<br />

Accord<strong>in</strong>g to the United Nations 1.5<br />

billion people live <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal or precarious<br />

employment (UNDP, 2014) <strong>and</strong> fifty-five<br />

million slum units have been created worldwide<br />

s<strong>in</strong>ce the year of 2000 (UN-Habitat,<br />

2015).<br />

The goal of the Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Symposium is to shed light on <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanisation, its drivers <strong>and</strong> impacts, <strong>and</strong><br />

to discuss the plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> design <strong>in</strong>struments<br />

used around the world to tackle it<br />

<strong>and</strong> to deliver healthy, safe, <strong>in</strong>clusive neighbourhoods<br />

<strong>and</strong> communities.<br />

The ultimate objective is to establish a<br />

platform to debate <strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation<br />

<strong>and</strong> its challenges for spatial plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

urban design. We <strong>in</strong>vite scholars <strong>and</strong> practitioners<br />

to partner up with us to do research<br />

on the issues described above.<br />

In 2018, we decided to organise an ideas<br />

competition that aims to foster debate<br />

but also to look for practical ideas <strong>and</strong><br />

solutions for the creation of public goods <strong>in</strong><br />

<strong>in</strong>formal settlements, while keep<strong>in</strong>g identity<br />

<strong>and</strong> livelihoods of the community.


12 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

EXHIBITION ON THE SUSTAINABLE<br />

DEVELOPMENT GOALS ORGANISED AT THE<br />

FACULTY OF ARCHITECTURE AND THE BUILT<br />

ENVIRONMENT OF THE TUDELFT, MAY 2018.<br />

Why confront <strong>in</strong>formality?<br />

ROBERTO ROCCO, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF SPATIAL PLANNING AND STRATEGY, TU DELFT<br />

The Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity Symposium<br />

is highly significant for<br />

us today <strong>in</strong> Urbanism. It helps us<br />

reflect on one of the biggest challenges<br />

faced by humanity today: how to urbanise<br />

<strong>in</strong> a susta<strong>in</strong>able, <strong>in</strong>clusive <strong>and</strong> fair way?<br />

While news outlets <strong>and</strong> academics<br />

repeat endlessly that humanity is now<br />

officially “urban”, hav<strong>in</strong>g crossed the 50%<br />

rate of urbanisation threshold , few people<br />

seem to remember that the other 50% still<br />

lives <strong>in</strong> rural areas, often <strong>in</strong> deprivation.<br />

That’s 3,7 billion people liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> mostly<br />

underserviced rural environments. Not all<br />

of them yearn to go to the city. Many wish<br />

to preserve their traditional lifestyles, <strong>and</strong><br />

rightly so. But many many of them will take<br />

the road to the city with their families <strong>in</strong><br />

search of prosperity <strong>and</strong> opportunity, just<br />

like millions of people have done <strong>in</strong> the last<br />

few decades. This immense human exodus<br />

towards the city, much accelerated after<br />

World War 2, is not over yet.<br />

Most of all, people are look<strong>in</strong>g for the<br />

freedom <strong>and</strong> modern lifestyles that cities<br />

supposedly afford. Traditional rural lifestyles<br />

are precious, but if you are a s<strong>in</strong>gle<br />

mother, gay, “low cast”, if you belong to the<br />

“wrong” race or religion, or if you are simply<br />

forward th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g, maybe a traditional rural<br />

lifestyle won’t agree with you. The city still<br />

offers the possibility of freedom, easier<br />

access to services, jobs <strong>and</strong> educational<br />

opportunities.<br />

Of course, prosperity <strong>and</strong> freedom <strong>in</strong> the<br />

city are often elusive <strong>and</strong> reality might be<br />

much grimmer.<br />

It may <strong>in</strong>clude violence, deprivation <strong>and</strong><br />

serious environmental hazards. Most of all,<br />

it might mean squalid liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions for<br />

the millions of migrants who get to cities<br />

every year <strong>in</strong> Ch<strong>in</strong>a, India, Nigeria, Indonesia<br />

<strong>and</strong> Bangladesh <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> most develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

countries of Africa <strong>and</strong> Southern Asia.<br />

Many people migrat<strong>in</strong>g to cities will end up<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> self-built settlements or <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements. Accord<strong>in</strong>g to UN-Habitat,<br />

around 33% of the urban population <strong>in</strong> the<br />

develop<strong>in</strong>g world lived <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements<br />

<strong>in</strong> 2012.<br />

Governments <strong>in</strong> the Global South are<br />

often unable or unwill<strong>in</strong>g to provide decent<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g to all those migrants. As a consequence,<br />

rural migrants roll up their sleeves<br />

<strong>and</strong> help themselves, creat<strong>in</strong>g barrios, favelas,<br />

slums, villas miserias, kampongs, <strong>and</strong><br />

many other forms of unplanned habitation.<br />

Architects <strong>and</strong> urbanists <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>dustrialised<br />

world are fasc<strong>in</strong>ated by the <strong>in</strong>ventiveness,<br />

the self-reliance, <strong>and</strong> the resilience<br />

of slum communities. For one th<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

slums all over the world seem to be much<br />

more successful <strong>in</strong> creat<strong>in</strong>g communities<br />

than the sterile <strong>and</strong> grey modernist blocks<br />

that have dotted the l<strong>and</strong>scapes of countries<br />

<strong>in</strong> the North: Holl<strong>and</strong>, the US, the UK,


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 13<br />

France, not to mention the former socialist<br />

countries <strong>and</strong> many countries <strong>in</strong> the Global<br />

South as well. All have experimented with<br />

modernist formulas for massive hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

solutions, with more or less success. Let’s<br />

not forget that both Western <strong>and</strong> Eastern<br />

Europe largely solved their post-war<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g crisis with such developments. But<br />

most people are quick to po<strong>in</strong>t out that<br />

modernist hous<strong>in</strong>g blocks are nowadays<br />

the backwater of most European <strong>and</strong> North<br />

American cities. So, slums don’t seem so<br />

bad after all.<br />

But the image of hope <strong>and</strong> creativity of<br />

slums hides some deeper truths that must<br />

be confronted (This is not a pun. This is<br />

why this symposium is called “Confront<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity”).<br />

Slums <strong>in</strong> the Global South lack basic services<br />

<strong>and</strong> sanitation, <strong>and</strong> hous<strong>in</strong>g units are<br />

squalid, not well ventilated or heated <strong>and</strong><br />

downright unsafe. The lack of sanitation<br />

means that large swaths of humanity lack<br />

the most basic of all comforts: a toilette.<br />

As someone once observed, hav<strong>in</strong>g water<br />

runn<strong>in</strong>g out of your kitchen tap is a luxury<br />

beyond imag<strong>in</strong>ation for a large chunk of humanity.<br />

While the absolute majority of slum<br />

dwellers are honest, hard-work<strong>in</strong>g people,<br />

slums are often targeted by crim<strong>in</strong>al gangs.<br />

The State is often absent <strong>and</strong> the rule of<br />

law is only selectively applied, mostly to<br />

reduce slum dwellers to subjection.<br />

Citizens <strong>in</strong> slums are often <strong>in</strong> breach of<br />

the law, because they are almost always<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g on illegally <strong>in</strong>vaded or acquired<br />

l<strong>and</strong>. They are easy targets for violent drug<br />

cartels, greedy slum lords or corrupt politicians<br />

who will trade toilets for votes. This is<br />

absolutely not susta<strong>in</strong>able. Someth<strong>in</strong>g must<br />

be done. Now.<br />

TU Delft, as a lead<strong>in</strong>g technical university<br />

<strong>in</strong> one of the best-planned countries<br />

<strong>in</strong> the world has the duty to get <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong><br />

this debate. It must prepare its students to<br />

confront <strong>in</strong>formality <strong>and</strong> to come up with<br />

susta<strong>in</strong>able, fair <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>novative solutions<br />

that respect the livelihoods, hopes <strong>and</strong><br />

wishes of slum dwellers.<br />

While slums have many social <strong>and</strong><br />

spatial features architects <strong>and</strong> urbanists<br />

wish to emulate, there are real challenges<br />

ahead. Discuss<strong>in</strong>g what is go<strong>in</strong>g on <strong>in</strong> practice<br />

is important for us to reflect on those<br />

challenges <strong>and</strong> f<strong>in</strong>e-tune our attitudes <strong>and</strong><br />

practices towards slums. We must strive<br />

to know more <strong>and</strong> to engage with actors<br />

on the ground. We must learn from local<br />

knowledge <strong>and</strong> we must br<strong>in</strong>g the producers<br />

of new knowledge to the university.<br />

This goes h<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> h<strong>and</strong> with TU Delft’s<br />

ambition as a global university, learn<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> work<strong>in</strong>g together with local governments<br />

<strong>and</strong> other stakeholders to f<strong>in</strong>d local<br />

solutions for those challenges. Follow<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the enactment of the New Urban Agenda<br />

<strong>in</strong> Quito <strong>in</strong> 2016, TU Delft has partnered up<br />

with UN-Habitat <strong>and</strong> the World Urban Campaign<br />

to promote a debate on education<br />

for the city we need. How to educate young<br />

planners <strong>and</strong> designers to implement the<br />

new Urban Agenda?<br />

This has triggered the launch<strong>in</strong>g of<br />

the Delft Global Initiative, a platform for<br />

Science <strong>and</strong> Technology for Global Development<br />

at TU Delft. At the chair of Spatial<br />

Plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> Strategy led by Professor<br />

V<strong>in</strong>cent Nad<strong>in</strong>, a variety of <strong>in</strong>itiatives, courses,<br />

weblogs, symposiums <strong>and</strong> conferences<br />

tackle issues of susta<strong>in</strong>able <strong>and</strong> fair spatial<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the Global South.<br />

The Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity Symposium,<br />

the Post-Conflict Symposium, the conference<br />

of Cities <strong>and</strong> Citizenship <strong>in</strong> Lat<strong>in</strong><br />

America, partnerships with Ch<strong>in</strong>a, Brazil,<br />

India <strong>and</strong> other countries, courses on<br />

Globalization, elements of the graduation<br />

programme, not to mention much jo<strong>in</strong>t<br />

research, all those <strong>in</strong>itiatives aim to confront<br />

the challenges of susta<strong>in</strong>able <strong>and</strong> fair<br />

urbanisation <strong>in</strong> the next decades <strong>in</strong> a world<br />

where resources are <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly scarcer,<br />

where the climate is chang<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> where<br />

democracy <strong>and</strong> governance <strong>in</strong> much of the<br />

world are threatened by conflict <strong>and</strong> bad<br />

governments.<br />

Bigger challenges mean a bigger impetus<br />

for students <strong>and</strong> staff to conquer those<br />

challenges, while promot<strong>in</strong>g justice <strong>and</strong><br />

susta<strong>in</strong>ability <strong>in</strong> urban development around<br />

the world.<br />

This <strong>in</strong>itiative addresses several of the<br />

UN Susta<strong>in</strong>able Development Goas, but<br />

focuses on the follow<strong>in</strong>g:


14 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The history of the symposium<br />

& acknowledgments<br />

ROBERTO ROCCO, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF SPATIAL PLANNING AND STRATEGY, TU DELFT<br />

POSTER OF THE FIRST SYMPOSIUM ORGANIZED BY<br />

STUDENTS OF THE EXPLORE LAB, TUDELFT: JOSIENA SIMONI-<br />

AN, JOOST DE BONT, MAARTEN KEMPENAAR AND STEPHANIE<br />

VAN DOORN.<br />

This event <strong>and</strong> competition<br />

were the<br />

product of collective<br />

action spurred by a common<br />

underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g about the challenges<br />

ahead.<br />

Urbanization is one the<br />

great challenges of our time.<br />

People seem to forget that,<br />

although humanity is now<br />

more the 50% urban, it is also<br />

still almost 50% rural. The human<br />

exodus towards the city<br />

is not over, <strong>and</strong> the problems<br />

generated by massive rural to<br />

urban migration are particularly<br />

acute <strong>in</strong> the Global South<br />

where democracies are young<br />

or fail<strong>in</strong>g, resources are either<br />

scarce or badly managed, <strong>and</strong><br />

spatial plann<strong>in</strong>g practically<br />

does not exist, or exists only<br />

for the very few. <strong>Creat<strong>in</strong>g</strong> fair,<br />

<strong>in</strong>clusive <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

cities <strong>and</strong> communities <strong>in</strong> the<br />

Global South is a big job for<br />

all of us.<br />

From this underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g,<br />

a group of TU Delft Explore<br />

Lab students got together <strong>in</strong><br />

2014 <strong>and</strong> decided to organize<br />

an event to discuss <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanization. These students<br />

were Josiena Simonian,<br />

Maarten Kempenaar, Stephanie<br />

van Doorn <strong>and</strong> Joost de Bont <strong>and</strong><br />

the name of the event was ‘(In)Formality<br />

Wanted’. The keynote speakers were two<br />

Italians, Camilo Boano (Bartlett, UCL) <strong>and</strong><br />

Bernard<strong>in</strong>a Borra (The Spontaneous City<br />

International) <strong>and</strong> a number of other<br />

speakers <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g Jan van Ballegooijen,<br />

Diego Sepulveda, Kria Djoyoadh<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>grat<br />

<strong>and</strong> others, moderated by Roberto Rocco.<br />

Among the assistants, students Daniel<br />

Radai (Hungary), Bel<strong>in</strong>da van Zijl (now<br />

Roggeveen van Zijl, The Netherl<strong>and</strong>s),<br />

Todor Kesarovski (Bulgaria) <strong>and</strong> Yos<br />

Purwanto (The Netherl<strong>and</strong>s), all students<br />

from Urbanism, decided to take up the<br />

<strong>in</strong>itiative <strong>and</strong> re-name it ‘Confront<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity’, from the underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

that “someth<strong>in</strong>g needed to be done”.<br />

They couldn’t wait too long, so the next<br />

symposium was organized later on the<br />

same year, on 11 December 2014. This<br />

time, the l<strong>in</strong>e-up of speakers was really<br />

long <strong>and</strong> even more impressive <strong>and</strong> was<br />

dom<strong>in</strong>ated by practitioners do<strong>in</strong>g work<br />

on the ground: Santiago Crujeda (Recetas<br />

Urbanas), Marco Ferrario (Micro Home<br />

Solutions), Kria Djoyoadh<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>grat (then<br />

Studio Rosa <strong>and</strong> Casa Legal), Giorgio<br />

Talocci (Bartlett), Vera Kreuwels (Catholic<br />

Relief Services), Laura Smits (then Cordaid<br />

Haiti), Diego Sepulveda (TU Delft),<br />

Jaap Klaarenbeek (POSAD- Studio Rosa),<br />

Rohan Varma (then Mecanoo <strong>and</strong> currently<br />

PhD c<strong>and</strong>idate at TU Delft), Berend<br />

Strijl<strong>and</strong> (NLE Architects), David Juarez<br />

JOSIENA SIMONIAN, JOOST DE BONT AND WOUTER<br />

POCORNIE TALKING WITH STUDENTS OF IHS, IN AN EVENT<br />

POST-SYMPOSIUM.<br />

CAMILLO BOANO FROM THE BARTLETT DPU SPEAKS AT THE FIRST SYMPOSIUM IN<br />

MARCH 2014.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 15<br />

ORGANISERS OF THE SECOND SYMPOSIUM, NOW RE-BRANDED ‘<strong>CONFRONTING</strong> <strong>INFORMALITY</strong>’: DANIEL, TODOR, YOS AND BELINDA.<br />

(Straddle3) <strong>and</strong> Alex<strong>and</strong>er Jachnow (IHS Erasmus Rotterdam).<br />

The keyword here was ACTION. This event was funded by the<br />

department of Urbanism, Delft Global Initiative <strong>and</strong> MOTIV (a<br />

Catholic action group). This symposium was attended by more<br />

than 100 people <strong>and</strong> a report was produced, available onl<strong>in</strong>e.<br />

It would be another full year <strong>and</strong> many months until the next<br />

symposium was organised on March 17 2016, with its strik<strong>in</strong>g<br />

yellow identity <strong>and</strong> the title ‘<strong>Informal</strong> Urbanisation: Underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> Mitigat<strong>in</strong>g a Global Phenomenon’. The keyword<br />

here was MITIGATION. The team of organisers was a reflection<br />

of the <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>ternationalisation of the university: Daniel<br />

Ferrer (Germany), Rebeca Rabello (Brazil), Putri Santoso (Indonesia),<br />

Wenchi Yang (Ch<strong>in</strong>a), Angela Maria Moncaleano (Colombia),<br />

Laura Alej<strong>and</strong>ra Garcia (Colombia), Nikita Baliga (India),<br />

Magdal<strong>in</strong>i Papadam (Greece) <strong>and</strong> Stefania McLaur<strong>in</strong> (Mexico).<br />

The l<strong>in</strong>e up of speakers was no-less impressive: Pontus Westerberg<br />

(UN-Habitat), Emiel Wegel<strong>in</strong> (International Advisory<br />

Services for Urban Action, Rotterdam), Francesco Chiodelli (Gran<br />

Sasso Science Institute), Marco Kusumawijaya (Ruka Centre for<br />

Urban Studies <strong>in</strong> Jakarta), Mariana Fix (University of Camp<strong>in</strong>as,<br />

Brazil), <strong>and</strong> Mathias Antonsson (Civil Rights Defenders, Plurrify,<br />

Ushahidi, Sida & UN). Delft Global Initiative had a bigger role <strong>in</strong><br />

this event, <strong>and</strong> helped us organise a stakeholders’ workshop on<br />

the second day.<br />

2017 was a momentous year, because the Department of<br />

Urbanism decided to organise the UN-Habitat sponsored UTC<br />

URBAN THINKERS CAMPUS, Education for the City We Need. This<br />

event cemented the alliance be<strong>in</strong>g created between TU Delft,<br />

UN-Habitat <strong>and</strong> the World Urban Campaign to discuss <strong>and</strong><br />

promote the New Urban Agenda <strong>in</strong> higher education. This Urban<br />

Th<strong>in</strong>kers Campus focused on how to teach the New Urban Agenda<br />

<strong>and</strong> gathered 30 speakers from the public sector, academia,<br />

the private sector <strong>and</strong> civil society (29 organizations <strong>in</strong> total).<br />

It produced a report published ONLINE. It spurred a series of<br />

actions <strong>and</strong> subsidiary events, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g a session at the World<br />

Urban Forum on 7-13 February 2018, <strong>in</strong> Kuala Lumpur, which<br />

produced a report, published ONLINE. Aga<strong>in</strong>, the role of TU Delft<br />

students was central to the success of this <strong>in</strong>itiative.<br />

The organiz<strong>in</strong>g team was composed by PhD c<strong>and</strong>idates <strong>and</strong><br />

Master students from BK:<br />

Chris Bartman (Netherl<strong>and</strong>s), Concha Ar<strong>and</strong>a Iglesias (Spa<strong>in</strong>),<br />

Crist<strong>in</strong>a Wong (Peru), Daan Leenders (Netherl<strong>and</strong>s), Florencia<br />

Rodriguez Balzar<strong>in</strong>i (Argent<strong>in</strong>a), IJsbr<strong>and</strong> Heer<strong>in</strong>ga (Netherl<strong>and</strong>s),<br />

Jan Cyganski (Germany), Jean-Baptiste Peters (France)<br />

Kritika Sha (India), Maricruz Gazel (Costa Rica), Mona Zum Felde<br />

(Germany), Niroopa (India), Rajat Uchil (India), Ramses Alejan-<br />

DANIEL RADAI WELCOMING THE PUBLIC AT THE <strong>CONFRONTING</strong> INFOR-<br />

MALITY SYMPOISUM IN DEC 2014 (PHOTO: LUIS MONTENEGRO)<br />

VISUAL IDENTITY OF THE SECOND <strong>CONFRONTING</strong> <strong>INFORMALITY</strong> SYM-<br />

POSIUM IN DEC 2014.


16 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

THE ORGANISERS OF THE THIRD EDITION OF THE <strong>CONFRONTING</strong><br />

<strong>INFORMALITY</strong> SYMPOSIUM: DANIEL, REBECA, PUTRI, WENCHI, ANGELA,<br />

dro Gr<strong>and</strong>e Fraile (Spa<strong>in</strong>), Reza Ambardi Pradana (Indonesia),<br />

Roberto Rocco (Brazil), Sahil Kanekar (India), Sel<strong>in</strong>a Abraham<br />

(India), Supriya Krishnan (India), Teis Bekken (Netherl<strong>and</strong>s) <strong>and</strong><br />

Vladimir Tapia (Ecuador).<br />

A detailed account of the Urban Th<strong>in</strong>kers Campus can be<br />

found at: https://utctudelft.org<br />

The UTC <strong>in</strong> 2017 <strong>and</strong> the event at the World Urban Forum <strong>in</strong><br />

February 2018 led to the organization of the 2018 Confront<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity Symposium: <strong>Preserv<strong>in</strong>g</strong> <strong>Communities</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Creat<strong>in</strong>g</strong><br />

<strong>Public</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>Informal</strong> <strong>Settlements</strong>. This edition was characterized<br />

by an important step forward: the organization of an<br />

<strong>in</strong>ternational competition sponsored by the Project Susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

Development Goals <strong>and</strong> Responsible Innovation, led by the Municipality<br />

of The Hague <strong>and</strong> TBM (Faculty of Technology, Policy<br />

<strong>and</strong> Management) of the TU Delft. The competition attracted 50<br />

submissions from all over the world <strong>and</strong> awarded prizes to the<br />

three best proposals for slum upgrad<strong>in</strong>g that avoided eviction,<br />

preserved communities <strong>and</strong> created public goods. The keyword<br />

of this symposium was UPGRADE, while PRESERVING.<br />

POSTER ADVERTISING THE TALK BY PROFESSOR MARIANA FIX, FROM<br />

THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMPINAS IN BRAZIL.<br />

Acknowledgments<br />

Our special thanks to Haye Hazenberg, post-doctoral<br />

researcher at TBM, who saw the connection<br />

between the aims of our competition <strong>and</strong> the<br />

discussion <strong>in</strong> the project. The project sponsored the<br />

first prize of the competition. Delft Global Initiative<br />

<strong>in</strong> the persons of Roel Kamerl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> Jennifer<br />

Kockx, have contributed to br<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g a speaker. Professor<br />

Vicent Nad<strong>in</strong>, head of Urbanism, has always<br />

supported this <strong>in</strong>itiative generously <strong>and</strong> has created<br />

the space for us to discuss urbanization <strong>in</strong> the<br />

Global South at the Department. Polis, Platform for<br />

Urbanism, the TU Delft students of Urbanism association<br />

has also supported this <strong>in</strong>itiative throughout<br />

the years. Most specially, thank you to the 50<br />

teams that submitted proposals to our competition.<br />

THE PUBLIC AT THE SECOND <strong>CONFRONTING</strong> INFORMALLITY SYMPO-<br />

SIUM, DEC 2014 (PHOTOS BY LUIS MONTENEGRO)


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 17<br />

THE POSTER OF THE URBAN THINKERS’ CAMPUS DESIGNED BY<br />

JEAN-BAPTISTE PETERS.


18 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

SDGs at BK<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO<br />

EXHIBITION ON THE SUSTAIN-<br />

ABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS<br />

ORGANISED AT THE FACULTY OF<br />

ARCHITECTURE AND THE BUILT<br />

ENVIRONMENT OF THE TUDELFT,<br />

MAY 2018.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 19<br />

PEACE PALACE IN THE HAGUE. COVER OF THE<br />

ORIGINAL REPORT PUBLISHED BY TUDELFT AND<br />

THE CITY OF THE HAGUE.<br />

[THE RESEARCH PROJECT]<br />

Meet<strong>in</strong>g the susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

development goals through<br />

responsible <strong>in</strong>novation<br />

*TEXT ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE REPORT ‘SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND RESPONSIBLE<br />

INNOVATION: RESPONSIBLE INNOVATION FOR SUSTAINABLE PEACE, INTERNATIONAL RULE OF LAW AND<br />

GLOBAL JUSTICE’, DELFT: TBM, TU DELFT AND THE CITY OF THE HAGUE<br />

The UN Susta<strong>in</strong>able Development Goals<br />

(SDGs) will shape the <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

political discourse <strong>in</strong> the com<strong>in</strong>g decades.<br />

In the academic year 2017-2018 Delft<br />

University of Technology has explored the<br />

viability of a research pro-gram offer<strong>in</strong>g<br />

new possibilities for collaboration to the<br />

various parties resid<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> The Hague. The<br />

theme, Re-sponsible Innovation for the<br />

SDGs, is aimed at employ<strong>in</strong>g the <strong>in</strong>novative<br />

capabilities of the Netherl<strong>and</strong>s for global<br />

susta<strong>in</strong>able development.<br />

The research theme aligns well with the<br />

strategic research agendas of the departments<br />

of the Dutch government, the missions<br />

of a variety of <strong>in</strong>ternational organizations<br />

<strong>in</strong> The Hague, as well as with research<br />

activities of the six Dutch universities which<br />

are active <strong>in</strong> the city: Leiden, Delft, Rotterdam,<br />

Wagen<strong>in</strong>gen, Amsterdam, Gron<strong>in</strong>gen<br />

<strong>and</strong> Utrecht. Innovative solutions to global<br />

problems also offer corporate partners,<br />

entrepreneurs <strong>and</strong> start-ups <strong>in</strong>ter-est<strong>in</strong>g<br />

opportunities.<br />

The program is directed towards susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

development goals that have received<br />

less attention from knowledge <strong>in</strong>stitutes.<br />

Several short-term vanguard projects<br />

demonstrate the viability <strong>and</strong> relevance of<br />

utilis<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>novation research for the SDGs,<br />

<strong>and</strong> an <strong>in</strong>troductory essay sets out the<br />

vision for The Hague <strong>in</strong> the 21st century.<br />

THE HAGUE IN THE 21ST CENTURY<br />

How does The Hague rema<strong>in</strong> one of the<br />

most important cities <strong>in</strong> the world <strong>in</strong> the<br />

area of Peace, Law, Justice <strong>and</strong> Security <strong>in</strong><br />

the 21st century? The Hague owes its <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

reputation to recogniz<strong>in</strong>g problems<br />

<strong>and</strong> solv<strong>in</strong>g them pragmatically <strong>in</strong> times of<br />

high political tension, arms races <strong>and</strong> rapid<br />

technological change <strong>in</strong> the beg<strong>in</strong>-n<strong>in</strong>g of<br />

the 20th century. The metropolitan region<br />

of The Hague is also <strong>in</strong>ternationally associated<br />

with the cradle of th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g about World<br />

Peace <strong>and</strong> the International Rule of Law, <strong>in</strong><br />

the persons of Erasmus <strong>and</strong> Grotius, <strong>and</strong><br />

with the roots of the early Enlightenment as<br />

represented by Sp<strong>in</strong>oza <strong>and</strong> Bayle.<br />

In order to be able to play a similar role <strong>in</strong><br />

the world <strong>in</strong> the 21st century, The Hague is<br />

now also fac<strong>in</strong>g with the challenge of underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

the nature of the problems of<br />

humanity <strong>and</strong> of offer<strong>in</strong>g solutions. The <strong>in</strong>tellectual<br />

climate <strong>in</strong> The Hague around 1900<br />

po<strong>in</strong>ted towards a ‘World Capital’. Competition<br />

with other cities was <strong>in</strong> full sw<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong> this area. Perhaps the most important<br />

explanation for the success of The Hague is


20 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

that it succeeded <strong>in</strong> plac<strong>in</strong>g an important<br />

issue on the global agenda of mank<strong>in</strong>d at<br />

the end of the second millennium, <strong>in</strong>stead<br />

of striv<strong>in</strong>g for excellence on agendas proposed<br />

by others. The ideas of World Peace,<br />

International Rule of Law <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>stitutionalization<br />

of Arbitration were <strong>in</strong>vented here.<br />

More than a century after the second peace<br />

conference <strong>in</strong> 1907, the world looks radically<br />

different <strong>in</strong> the 21st cen-tury. Complex<br />

humanitarian, susta<strong>in</strong>ability <strong>and</strong> security<br />

issues on the world stage are immediately<br />

tangible at local levels. This world is<br />

complex, hyper-connected, dynamic <strong>and</strong><br />

unstable. Social media <strong>and</strong> mobile <strong>in</strong>ternet<br />

br<strong>in</strong>g great benefits, but also come with<br />

many new vulnerabilities.<br />

The <strong>in</strong>ternational community has drawn up<br />

a consolidated list of 17 Susta<strong>in</strong>able Development<br />

Goals (SDGs), sim-ilar to the <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

consensus regard<strong>in</strong>g the so-called<br />

Gr<strong>and</strong> Challenges <strong>and</strong> the Millennium Goals.<br />

This list of problems will strongly determ<strong>in</strong>e<br />

the global debate on a safer <strong>and</strong> more just<br />

world <strong>in</strong> the rema<strong>in</strong>der of the 21st century.<br />

New <strong>in</strong> this context is the importance accorded<br />

by the UN to the role of <strong>in</strong>novation,<br />

technology <strong>and</strong> applied scien-tific research<br />

with a strong multidiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary character.<br />

It is clear that no progress can be made<br />

on solutions to these problems if it is not<br />

recognized that technology is both part of<br />

the problem <strong>and</strong> can also be part of the<br />

solu-tion. For this reason, the UN has set up<br />

a Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM)<br />

to promote <strong>in</strong>novative solu-tions on the<br />

SDG agenda. This is an important development<br />

with<strong>in</strong> the UN, which for the first time<br />

explicitly fo-cuses on perhaps the most<br />

important driver of the history of the 21st<br />

century: technology.<br />

An important aspect of the SDG agenda<br />

is that the problems cannot be treated <strong>in</strong><br />

isolation, but must be viewed <strong>in</strong> conjunction.<br />

Meanwhile there are decision-mak<strong>in</strong>g<br />

tools that help to underst<strong>and</strong>, model <strong>and</strong><br />

visualize the <strong>in</strong>ter-relationships between<br />

the SDGs. Because it is not a list of separate<br />

problems, the situation is complex <strong>and</strong> so<br />

are <strong>in</strong>terventions <strong>and</strong> policy measures.<br />

Another aspect associated with these<br />

mutual relationships is the fact that the<br />

complexity with which we are con-fronted<br />

requires a new multidiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary science<br />

that allows us to underst<strong>and</strong> connections<br />

<strong>and</strong> to deal with these problems on a global<br />

scale.<br />

To ga<strong>in</strong> a better underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g of complex<br />

adaptive systems, multidiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary<br />

centres for complexity science have been<br />

set up <strong>in</strong> numerous places. In these centres,<br />

scientists from different discipl<strong>in</strong>es work<br />

together on models <strong>and</strong> simulations to improve<br />

our underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g complex systems<br />

<strong>in</strong> order to better predict their behaviour.<br />

On the basis of these models, policy makers<br />

arrive at more adequate <strong>and</strong> responsible<br />

<strong>in</strong>terventions that result <strong>in</strong> improved policies.<br />

The outcomes of this type of research<br />

are often counter<strong>in</strong>tuitive for policy makers<br />

<strong>and</strong> politi-cians. Our <strong>in</strong>terventions <strong>in</strong> social,<br />

economic <strong>and</strong> ecological systems often<br />

have unexpected negative consequenc-es.<br />

We can, however, not afford such mistakes<br />

<strong>in</strong> combat<strong>in</strong>g climate change, humanitarian<br />

<strong>and</strong> economic crises, cyber war <strong>and</strong> terrorism.<br />

Such missteps can be prevented by<br />

us<strong>in</strong>g new approaches to science that leads<br />

to more <strong>in</strong>sight <strong>in</strong>to complex phenomena as<br />

a basis for policy.<br />

The new sciences, <strong>in</strong>novation <strong>and</strong> technology<br />

are necessary to create conditions for<br />

achiev<strong>in</strong>g the moral objec-tives that have<br />

been specified <strong>in</strong> the SDGs. The new science,<br />

knowledge <strong>and</strong> expertise are morally<br />

bl<strong>in</strong>d without normative frameworks, but<br />

normative pr<strong>in</strong>ciples without the ability to<br />

<strong>in</strong>tervene are impotent. The SDGs abso-lutely<br />

require responsible <strong>in</strong>novations:<br />

<strong>in</strong>novations that adequately realize the<br />

moral ideals of peace, justice <strong>and</strong> justice<br />

<strong>and</strong> other shared moral values.<br />

The traditional subjects of The Hague will<br />

therefore have to take a central place<br />

<strong>in</strong> the work on the SDG agenda: without<br />

International Law, peace build<strong>in</strong>g, diplomacy,<br />

humanitarian aid <strong>and</strong> development<br />

cooperation,<br />

protection of human rights, promotion of<br />

security, fight<strong>in</strong>g corruption, fraud, organized<br />

crime <strong>and</strong> terrorism, ap-plied science<br />

<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>novation will miss their desired<br />

effects.<br />

Better <strong>in</strong>sight <strong>in</strong>to human psychology has<br />

contributed significantly to the manipulation<br />

of consumers <strong>and</strong> voters <strong>in</strong> recent<br />

decades, <strong>and</strong> only to a limited extent to<br />

solv<strong>in</strong>g our Millennium Problems. The traditional<br />

discipl<strong>in</strong>es <strong>in</strong> The Hague will therefore<br />

have to play a role <strong>in</strong> this new world<br />

<strong>and</strong> must connect with other new scientific<br />

knowledge <strong>and</strong> technology. Moreover, <strong>in</strong><br />

the com<strong>in</strong>g decades, the discipl<strong>in</strong>es of The<br />

Hague will also have to make use of new,<br />

ma<strong>in</strong>ly digital, technology for the development<br />

of their own <strong>in</strong>struments, methods<br />

<strong>and</strong> tech-niques. Professionals <strong>in</strong> the fields<br />

of law, diplomacy, policy, <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

relations will have to go digital or no-where.<br />

The Hague could provide expertise that<br />

prepares for this new role of <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

law <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>novations with<strong>in</strong> it.<br />

The Netherl<strong>and</strong>s has received <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

recognition for its approach to <strong>in</strong>novation. A<br />

“Dutch Approach” has become visible. This<br />

approach can be extended <strong>in</strong> different ways<br />

through good cooperation <strong>in</strong> The Hague<br />

through a range of triple helix mechanisms.<br />

Such an approach is desperately needed<br />

<strong>in</strong> the areas of cyber security, transport<br />

<strong>and</strong> logistics, robotics, energy transition,<br />

self-driv<strong>in</strong>g cars, <strong>in</strong>dustry 4.0, Internet<br />

of Th<strong>in</strong>gs, blockcha<strong>in</strong>, waste process<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

circular economy, urban plann<strong>in</strong>g, smart<br />

city development, f<strong>in</strong>tech <strong>and</strong> f<strong>in</strong>ance, data<br />

science <strong>and</strong> humanitarian aid <strong>and</strong> development<br />

cooperation. In addition to its practical<br />

<strong>and</strong> efficient approach. The Hague has<br />

the most official offices of Dutch universities<br />

with<strong>in</strong> its city limits <strong>and</strong>, accord<strong>in</strong>g to a<br />

rank<strong>in</strong>g of the Times, it is one of the top academic<br />

cities <strong>in</strong> the world. The universities<br />

with<strong>in</strong> the proposed partnership can jo<strong>in</strong>tly<br />

perform applied <strong>and</strong> fundamental research<br />

that supports the plans for The Hague’s<br />

International Agenda, the SDG agenda <strong>and</strong><br />

the Digital International Legal Order that<br />

we will have to work on <strong>in</strong> the rema<strong>in</strong>der of<br />

this century.<br />

The city of The Hague <strong>and</strong> the Dutch government<br />

want The Hague to ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong> its<br />

position as UN city <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>terna-tional city<br />

of Peace <strong>and</strong> Justice <strong>in</strong> the 21st century.<br />

They also want the Netherl<strong>and</strong>s to cont<strong>in</strong>ue<br />

to play a mean<strong>in</strong>g-ful role on an <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly<br />

dynamic <strong>and</strong> chaotic world stage. In<br />

order to perpetuate the special position <strong>in</strong><br />

the world, it is now no longer sufficient to<br />

build on the achievements of the past along<br />

paved roads. In short, <strong>in</strong> the com<strong>in</strong>g years<br />

<strong>in</strong> <strong>and</strong> around The Hague we need to give a<br />

21st century mean<strong>in</strong>g to the theme of Peace<br />

<strong>and</strong> Justice, partly through technological<br />

<strong>in</strong>novations <strong>and</strong> digitization.<br />

* The organisation of the symposium would<br />

like to thank to Haye Hazenberg, post-doctora<br />

researcher at the Faculty of Technology,<br />

Policy <strong>and</strong> Management of the TU Delft,<br />

for <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g the symposium <strong>and</strong> the com <strong>in</strong><br />

this research project


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 21<br />

Peace Palace, The Hague, The<br />

Netherl<strong>and</strong>s<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO<br />

PEACE PALACE IN THE HAGUE. THIS PROJECT WAS<br />

PRESENTED AT A SYMPOSIUM IN THE HAGUE ON<br />

JUNE 8, 2018.


22 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 23<br />

[THE COMPETITION]<br />

Ideas Competition<br />

<strong>CONFRONTING</strong> <strong>INFORMALITY</strong>: PRESERVING COMMUNITIES AND<br />

CREATING PUBLIC GOODS IN INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS<br />

We live <strong>in</strong> an urban world. Accord<strong>in</strong>g<br />

to the United Nations,<br />

the world’s population will grow<br />

40% by 2050, <strong>and</strong> the urban population will<br />

double <strong>in</strong> just 35 years. Urban growth is one<br />

of the most complex challenges of our time,<br />

especially if we consider that 95% of the<br />

fast grow<strong>in</strong>g cities of the world are found <strong>in</strong><br />

develop<strong>in</strong>g countries of the Global South.<br />

Many governments <strong>in</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g nations<br />

do not have the capacity or the will to plan<br />

for such explosive growth.<br />

As a result, approximately 3 billion people<br />

will live <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements by 2050.<br />

This means that planners <strong>and</strong> designers<br />

must urgently address problems such as<br />

the lack of urban services <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>frastructure<br />

<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements; but they also<br />

need to address topics such as <strong>in</strong>security<br />

of tenure, poor accessibility to services <strong>and</strong><br />

jobs, scarcity of public spaces <strong>and</strong> above<br />

all, the issue of social <strong>in</strong>clusion. How to<br />

confront <strong>in</strong>formality, so that public goods<br />

can be delivered to the <strong>in</strong>habitants of these<br />

settlements? How to make the barriers that<br />

divide the ‘<strong>in</strong>formal’ city from the formal<br />

one more permeable, <strong>in</strong> order to achieve<br />

social susta<strong>in</strong>ability?<br />

There are no simple answers to these<br />

questions, <strong>and</strong> different solutions can be<br />

proposed for different communities <strong>in</strong><br />

different places. On September 25th 2015,<br />

countries adopted a set of goals to end<br />

poverty, protect the planet <strong>and</strong> ensure<br />

prosperity for all as part of a new susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

development agenda. There are 17<br />

susta<strong>in</strong>able development goals (SDGs), each<br />

with specific targets to be achieved over the<br />

next 15 years. TU Delft has <strong>in</strong>corporated the<br />

17 SDGs <strong>in</strong> its mission to deliver designers<br />

<strong>and</strong> eng<strong>in</strong>eers that will work for susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

development everywhere.<br />

To be able to do that, TU Delft focuses<br />

on high quality research. The university<br />

believes that research can also be done<br />

by design. This is why we launched an<br />

<strong>in</strong>ternational competition of ideas to<br />

address the topic of slum upgrad<strong>in</strong>g while<br />

preserv<strong>in</strong>g communities, open to students<br />

from any discipl<strong>in</strong>e. Innovative solutions,<br />

good practices <strong>and</strong> spatial strategies could<br />

therefore be developed <strong>and</strong> shared by<br />

young planners <strong>and</strong> social activists from all<br />

over the world.<br />

What are the challenges we<br />

want to address?<br />

There is much discussion about what<br />

“urban <strong>in</strong>formality” actually means. For<br />

this competition, we underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanisation as a set of unregulated, unplanned<br />

<strong>and</strong> often illegal ways of build<strong>in</strong>g<br />

cities that lead to both desirable <strong>and</strong> undesirable<br />

outcomes. <strong>Informal</strong> settlements<br />

usually face tenure issues, lack of access<br />

to water <strong>and</strong> sanitation, little provision of<br />

public space, bad hous<strong>in</strong>g conditions, weak<br />

connection to the transportation networks<br />

or long commut<strong>in</strong>g times, among others.<br />

Citizens are exposed to urban segregation,<br />

high vulnerability to natural disasters<br />

<strong>and</strong> climate change <strong>and</strong> socio-economic<br />

problems, such as violence <strong>and</strong> crime.On<br />

the other h<strong>and</strong>, <strong>in</strong>formal settlements are<br />

gateways to the city, they allow low-<strong>in</strong>come<br />

families to set foot <strong>in</strong> the city, build<br />

livelihoods <strong>and</strong> form strong networks of<br />

solidarity. They are the result of spontaneous<br />

bottom-up processes, <strong>in</strong> which<br />

dwellers negotiate, work <strong>and</strong> even fight to<br />

get a spot <strong>in</strong> the city. Access to services <strong>and</strong><br />

public goods, such as hous<strong>in</strong>g, commerce<br />

or <strong>in</strong>frastructure, is sometimes achieved<br />

<strong>and</strong> managed through citizens own work<br />

<strong>and</strong> effort. This is spatially translated <strong>in</strong>to<br />

vibrant areas with <strong>in</strong>tense public life, <strong>in</strong><br />

which many activities <strong>and</strong> uses coexist,<br />

creat<strong>in</strong>g an <strong>in</strong>terrelated social fabric <strong>and</strong> a<br />

strong sense of belong<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

Slum-upgrad<strong>in</strong>g or urban renewal<br />

programs are developed <strong>in</strong> order to provide<br />

accessibility to better urban st<strong>and</strong>ards <strong>and</strong><br />

public goods. Nevertheless, plann<strong>in</strong>g often<br />

doesn’t manage to keep the diverse <strong>and</strong><br />

<strong>in</strong>tense public life of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements.<br />

Relocation of people liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> risk-prone<br />

or vulnerable sites may even generate displacement<br />

of citizens to other areas <strong>in</strong> the<br />

city, break<strong>in</strong>g their social <strong>and</strong> work<strong>in</strong>g ties.<br />

Is it possible for these top-down plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

programs to <strong>in</strong>corporate bottom up<br />

processes, while empower<strong>in</strong>g communities?<br />

Is it possible to keep the flexibility <strong>and</strong> variety<br />

of <strong>in</strong>formal communities <strong>and</strong> provide<br />

access to public goods at the same time?<br />

How can relocation of citizens <strong>in</strong> vulnerable<br />

areas be tackled without displacement?<br />

These are the topics we wanted to address<br />

<strong>in</strong> the ideas competition, <strong>in</strong> order to<br />

raise awareness <strong>and</strong> promote debate.


24 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Who could participate?<br />

The competition was open to students<br />

from all over the world, up to 33 years of<br />

age. Even though the competition was<br />

organised by the Faculty of Architecture<br />

<strong>and</strong> the Built Environment of the TU Delft,<br />

we believe that the problem of <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

should be addressed <strong>in</strong> a multidiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary<br />

way. We encouraged teams to be composed<br />

by members from different backgrounds,<br />

<strong>and</strong> not only by architects or planners.<br />

Teams had be composed by a m<strong>in</strong>imum<br />

of two participants <strong>and</strong> maximum of five<br />

participants. Participants may be from different<br />

countries <strong>and</strong> from different schools.<br />

In total, 50 teams from all over the world<br />

sunmitted proposals. 20 f<strong>in</strong>alists were preselected<br />

by organisers <strong>and</strong> analysed by a<br />

team of experts.<br />

Rules of the game<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity 2018 is an IDEAS<br />

COMPETITION. All teams had to deliver a<br />

proposal to improve the liv<strong>in</strong>g environment<br />

of an actual <strong>in</strong>formal settlement <strong>in</strong> a city of<br />

the Global South. The proposals also po<strong>in</strong>ted<br />

out the specific positive characteristics<br />

of the area, expla<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g how those were<br />

preserved or enhanced.<br />

Proposals could be developed as a specific<br />

spatial project, or as an <strong>in</strong>novative l<strong>and</strong><br />

tenure or governance policy. In all cases,<br />

teams had to address <strong>and</strong> detail the impact<br />

of the proposal <strong>in</strong> the spatial conditions of<br />

the neighborhood. This was done through<br />

draw<strong>in</strong>gs, maps, pictures, collages or diagrams.<br />

The site for <strong>in</strong>tervention could be chosen<br />

by each team, but it had to fulfill the<br />

characteristics expla<strong>in</strong>ed before: “(…) we<br />

underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation as a set<br />

of unregulated, unplanned <strong>and</strong> often illegal<br />

ways of build<strong>in</strong>g cities that lead to both desirable<br />

<strong>and</strong> undesirable outcomes. <strong>Informal</strong><br />

settlements usually have very low urban<br />

st<strong>and</strong>ards: lack of access to water <strong>and</strong> sanitation,<br />

little provision of public space, bad<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g conditions, weak connection to the<br />

transportation networks or long commut<strong>in</strong>g<br />

times, among others. They are exposed to<br />

urban segregation, high vulnerability to<br />

natural disasters <strong>and</strong> climate change <strong>and</strong><br />

socio-economic problems, such as violence<br />

<strong>and</strong> crime.” Alternatively, participants could<br />

read this document by UN-Habitat: http://<br />

mirror.unhabitat.org/documents/media_<br />

centre/sowcr2006/SOWCR%205.pdf<br />

The scale of the settlement could vary<br />

accord<strong>in</strong>g to each team’s <strong>in</strong>terest. The<br />

methodology of the proposal had to be<br />

clearly expla<strong>in</strong>ed. Competitors were asked<br />

to consider their cities have policies <strong>and</strong><br />

projects already <strong>in</strong> place: it was highly desirable<br />

that teams “conversed” with those<br />

policies or projects, either criticiz<strong>in</strong>g or<br />

complement<strong>in</strong>g them. Teams were also encouraged<br />

to converse with real stakeholders:<br />

grassroots leaders, community leaders,<br />

politicians, developers, member of the<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g office of their cities <strong>and</strong> citizens.<br />

They were asked to somehow <strong>in</strong>corporate<br />

those stakeholders’ ideas <strong>in</strong> their proposals.<br />

We expla<strong>in</strong>ed that we were not look<strong>in</strong>g<br />

for good ideas only, we were look<strong>in</strong>g for<br />

ideas that were embedded <strong>in</strong> real governance<br />

structures <strong>and</strong> that took the wishes<br />

of real stakeholders <strong>in</strong>to account.<br />

Specific guidel<strong>in</strong>es or process diagrams<br />

could illustrate the methodology <strong>in</strong> each<br />

case. Each proposal had to <strong>in</strong>clude a<br />

description of the site before <strong>and</strong> after the<br />

implementation of the project or policy,<br />

show<strong>in</strong>g what was the expected impact on<br />

the liv<strong>in</strong>g environment.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 25<br />

Johannesburg, South Africa<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO


26 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 27<br />

Petare, Caracas, Venezuela<br />

PHOTO BY ORIANA DE LUCIA


28 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

[NUMBERS]<br />

Symposium <strong>in</strong> numbers<br />

ONE OF THE OBJETIVES OF THE SYMPOSIUM WAS TO FORSTER DIALOGUE AND DEBATE<br />

AMONG STUDENTS AND TEACHERS IN OTHER UNIVERSITIES AROUND THE WORLD. BY PAYING<br />

ATTENTION TO OUR CALL, BY READING OUR TEXTS AND DISCUSSING OUR POSITIONS,<br />

STUDENTS ALL OVER THE WORLD HAVE DISCUSSED HOW TO IMPROVE INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS<br />

50<br />

WHILE PRESERVING COMMUNITIES AND CREATING PUBLIC GOODS.<br />

submissions<br />

from all over<br />

the world.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 29<br />

29 CITIES<br />

PROPOSALS WERE LOCATED IN 29 CITIES AROUND THE WORLD<br />

MOSTLY IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH<br />

890 MILLION PEOPLE LIVE<br />

IN INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS<br />

AROUND THE WORLD, AC-<br />

CORDING TO UN-HABITAT<br />

(2010). THAT’S AROUND 1/3<br />

OF ALL URBAN DWELLERS,<br />

PREDOMINANTLY IN THE<br />

GLOBAL SOUTH<br />

$4000INPRIZES<br />

THE PRIZES WERE SPONSORED BY THE PROJECT SUSTAIN-<br />

ABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND RESPONSIBLE INNOVA-<br />

TION , TBM, TU DELFT AND THE CITY OF THE HAGUE<br />

55<br />

NUMBER OF TEAMS WHO<br />

ENROLLED FOR THE<br />

COMPETITION<br />

71<br />

883<br />

PEOPLE WATCHED THE<br />

SYMPOSIUM ON LINE VIA<br />

OUR FACEBOOK PAGE<br />

PEOPLE ATTENDED THE<br />

SYMPOSIUM AT THE<br />

FACULTY OF ARCHITECTURE<br />

OF THE TU DELFT<br />

THE SYMPOSIUM WAS ORGANISED BY A TEAM<br />

OF 14 PEOPLE


30 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

[CITIES IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH]<br />

Location of proposals<br />

PROPOSALS WERE LOCATED IN 29 DIFFERENT CITIES, NOT ALL OF THEM IN THE TRADITIONAL<br />

GLOBAL SOUTH, BUT ALL OF THEM EXPERIENCING SOME DEGREE OF INFORMAL DEVELOPMENT.<br />

Marseille<br />

Miami<br />

Ra<br />

Xalapa<br />

Tegucigalpa<br />

Caracas<br />

Manta<br />

Fortaleza<br />

Lima<br />

Salvador<br />

Rio de Janeiro<br />

Sao Paulo<br />

Valparaiso<br />

Buenos Aires


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 31<br />

Tirana<br />

sheed<br />

Cairo<br />

Beirut<br />

Lahore<br />

Ahmedabad<br />

Karachi<br />

Dhaka<br />

Mumbai Delhi<br />

Bangkok<br />

Addis Ababa<br />

Nairobi<br />

B<strong>and</strong>ung<br />

W<strong>in</strong>dhoek


32 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

[CITIES IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH]<br />

Universities <strong>in</strong>volved<br />

PARTICIPANTS CAME FROM A LARGE NUMBER OF UNIVERSITIES BOTH FROM THE GLOBAL<br />

SOUTH AND NORTH<br />

UC Berkeley<br />

TU Delft<br />

KU Leuven<br />

University of Tüb<strong>in</strong>gen<br />

University of Guelph<br />

Wentworth Institute of Technology<br />

UIC-Barcelona<br />

Amster<br />

IHS R<br />

Ro<br />

U<br />

Polit<br />

Florida International University<br />

Universidad Veracruzana<br />

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras<br />

Universidad Central de Venezuela<br />

Universidad Central del Ecuador<br />

PUC del Ecuador<br />

PUC del Peru<br />

Federal University of Ceara<br />

Federal University of Bahia<br />

PUC Rio<br />

University of Sao Paulo


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 33<br />

dam Academy of Architecture<br />

otterdam<br />

tterdam School of Management<br />

Dessau Institute of Architecture<br />

niversity of Stuttgart<br />

University of Munich<br />

Politecnico Milano<br />

ecnico Tor<strong>in</strong>o<br />

Cairo University<br />

CEPT University, Ahmedabad<br />

Wollo University<br />

EiABC<br />

University of Eng<strong>in</strong>eer<strong>in</strong>g & Technology of Lahore<br />

School of Plann<strong>in</strong>g & Architecture, New Delhi<br />

BRAC University<br />

Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute for Architecture<br />

College of Eng<strong>in</strong>eer<strong>in</strong>g Triv<strong>and</strong>rum<br />

K<strong>in</strong>g Mongkut's University of Technology<br />

MOI University<br />

University of Nairobi<br />

Jomo Kenyatta University<br />

Namibia University of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology<br />

University of Adelaide


34 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 35<br />

Valparaiso, Chile<br />

PHOTO BY GABRIELA WALDHERR


36 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 37<br />

Jury<br />

members<br />

THE SUBMISSIONS TO THE <strong>CONFRONTING</strong> <strong>INFORMALITY</strong><br />

IDEAS COMPETITION WERE ASSESSED IN TWO STEPS.<br />

FIRST, THE ORGANISATION SELECTED 20 FINALISTS. THE<br />

20 FINALISTS WERE ANALYSED BY A TEAM OF REPUTED<br />

ACADEMICS WHO WORK WITH THE GLOBAL SOUTH.


38 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

[ JURY MEMBERS]<br />

Sukanya Krishnamurthy<br />

(INDIA), TU EINDHOVEN, THE NETHERLANDS<br />

Sukanya is currently assistant professor at the Chair of<br />

Urbanism <strong>and</strong> Urban Architecture (Faculty of the Built<br />

Environment) at TU E<strong>in</strong>dhoven (Netherl<strong>and</strong>s). Tra<strong>in</strong>ed as an<br />

architect <strong>and</strong> urbanist <strong>in</strong> India <strong>and</strong> Germany, I received my Ph.D. <strong>in</strong><br />

Urban Studies <strong>and</strong> Architecture from Bauhaus University (Germany)<br />

<strong>in</strong> 2012. Prior to jo<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g the Chair of Urbanism <strong>and</strong> Urban Architecture<br />

at the Technical University of E<strong>in</strong>dhoven <strong>in</strong> October 2014 as an<br />

assistant professor <strong>in</strong> Urbanism <strong>and</strong> Urban Architecture, she spent<br />

the course of my graduate studies <strong>and</strong> professional life, work<strong>in</strong>g as<br />

an architect, designer, <strong>and</strong> lecturer, researcher <strong>in</strong> Bangalore (India,<br />

2006-07), Aachen, Dessau, Weimar (Germany, 2007-12) <strong>and</strong> Toronto<br />

(Canada, 2012-14).


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 39<br />

MSc Technology <strong>and</strong> Society, Technical University <strong>in</strong> E<strong>in</strong>dhoven 2003, <strong>and</strong> MSc <strong>in</strong><br />

Hous<strong>in</strong>g, WITS University Johannesburg, South Africa 2005. Ellen is a hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

specialist who has worked as consultant, lecturer, tra<strong>in</strong>er <strong>and</strong> researcher s<strong>in</strong>ce<br />

2005. At IHS she lectures <strong>in</strong> the Urban Hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> Livelihood specialization on f<strong>in</strong>ance,<br />

policy <strong>and</strong> public hous<strong>in</strong>g issues. She lectures <strong>in</strong> several short courses of IHS <strong>and</strong> coord<strong>in</strong>ates<br />

the short course “Develop<strong>in</strong>g Social Hous<strong>in</strong>g Projects” <strong>and</strong> the ‘ICHUD’. Ellen has been<br />

<strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> acquisition <strong>and</strong> management of project activities at IHS; she has developed<br />

many project proposals, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g composition of consortium teams, selection of experts,<br />

methodological development <strong>and</strong> budget<strong>in</strong>g. She is the project manager for a number of<br />

<strong>in</strong>ternational urban management projects of <strong>in</strong>ternational clients.<br />

[ JURY MEMBERS]<br />

Ellen Geurts<br />

(THE NETHERLANDS), IHS INSTITUTE FOR HOUSING AND URBAN<br />

DEVELOPMENT STUDIES, ERASMUS UNIVERSITY, ROTTERDAM


40 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

[ JURY MEMBERS]<br />

PhD c<strong>and</strong>idate at the University of Lausanne, Ex- Assistant Professor at the Sushant<br />

School of Art <strong>and</strong> Architecture (India) <strong>and</strong> Urban Designer at Micro Home Solutions.<br />

He has conducted studios <strong>and</strong> worked projects on In – Situ Slum Rehabilitation <strong>and</strong><br />

low-<strong>in</strong>come hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>formal sector. His core research lies <strong>in</strong> upgrad<strong>in</strong>g strategies for<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal settlements.<br />

Nipesh Narayanan<br />

(INDIA), UNIVERSITY OF LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 41<br />

Alonso Ayala Aleman<br />

(VENEZUELA), INSTITUTE FOR HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES (IHS) AT<br />

ERASMUS UNIVERSITY, ROTTERDAM<br />

Alonso Ayala is an architect <strong>and</strong><br />

spatial planner specialized on<br />

the fields of hous<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlement upgrad<strong>in</strong>g, human settlement<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> regional development<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> emerg<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> transitional<br />

economies. He holds an MSc <strong>in</strong> Regional<br />

Development Plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> a PhD from the<br />

Faculty of Spatial Plann<strong>in</strong>g of TU Dortmund<br />

University. With over twenty five years of<br />

work<strong>in</strong>g experience he has conducted field<br />

research on adequate hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Venezuela,<br />

Bangladesh, Ghana <strong>and</strong> the Philipp<strong>in</strong>es.<br />

His specific fields of expertise are management<br />

<strong>and</strong> design of hous<strong>in</strong>g projects; research,<br />

lectur<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g on adequate<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g; susta<strong>in</strong>able human settlements,<br />

<strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g resilient hous<strong>in</strong>g; <strong>and</strong> consultancy<br />

work <strong>and</strong> capacity build<strong>in</strong>g of local<br />

governments <strong>in</strong> hous<strong>in</strong>g-related issues.<br />

He has delivered specific tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

short courses related to hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

climate change on the follow<strong>in</strong>g topics:<br />

affordable resilience hous<strong>in</strong>g for vulnerable<br />

groups, susta<strong>in</strong>able hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> times<br />

of climate change <strong>and</strong>, ma<strong>in</strong>stream<strong>in</strong>g<br />

affordable resilient hous<strong>in</strong>g strategies for<br />

vulnerable communities <strong>in</strong> city l<strong>and</strong> use<br />

<strong>and</strong> shelter plans.<br />

Other assignments done by Alonso Ayala<br />

<strong>in</strong> the past years are: Professional course<br />

on Develop<strong>in</strong>g Social Hous<strong>in</strong>g Projects<br />

(every year s<strong>in</strong>ce 2011); Tailor-made Tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

Myanmar: Township Action Plann<strong>in</strong>g for<br />

Local Economic Development <strong>and</strong> Entrepreneurship,<br />

Livelihood Enhancement <strong>and</strong><br />

Flood Risk Management (Yangon 2016 <strong>and</strong><br />

M<strong>and</strong>alay 2017); Def<strong>in</strong>ition of the Social<br />

Hous<strong>in</strong>g Strategy for the Republic of Albania<br />

(2014-2015); Best Practices for Roma Integration<br />

<strong>in</strong> the Western Balkans: Legalization,<br />

Settlement Upgrad<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> Social Hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

(2013-2014); Establishment of the Metropolitan<br />

Agency for Hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> Urban Development<br />

<strong>in</strong> the Municipality of Guatemala<br />

(2012-2013); Hous<strong>in</strong>g Needs Assessment<br />

for the Municipality of Diyarbakir, Turkey<br />

(2010-2011).<br />

He has conducted tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> advisory<br />

work <strong>in</strong> Germany, The Netherl<strong>and</strong>s, Albania,<br />

Bosnia <strong>and</strong> Herzegov<strong>in</strong>a, Croatia, Kosovo,<br />

Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey,<br />

Brazil, Ecuador, Chile, Guatemala, Venezuela,<br />

Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar,<br />

Thail<strong>and</strong>, Philipp<strong>in</strong>es, Ghana, Nigeria <strong>and</strong><br />

South Africa.


42 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Orig<strong>in</strong>ally from Canada, she focuses on urban policy <strong>and</strong> plann<strong>in</strong>g. participation<br />

<strong>and</strong> urban politics <strong>in</strong> Brazilian cities. Recent projects have explored metropolitan<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g, social justice, urban social movements, <strong>and</strong> the right to the city <strong>in</strong><br />

Brazilian cities, <strong>and</strong> comparative research on l<strong>and</strong> value capture <strong>and</strong> city diplomacy <strong>in</strong> São<br />

Paulo <strong>and</strong> Toronto<br />

[ JURY MEMBERS]<br />

Abigail Friendly<br />

(CANADA) DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY AND SPATIAL<br />

PLANNING AT UTRECHT UNIVERSITY, AND A FELLOW AT THE GLOBAL<br />

CITIES INSTITUTE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 43<br />

Ignacio Cardona<br />

(VENEZUELA), GSD HARVARD UNIVERSITY, CAMBRIDGE<br />

Doctor of Design (DDes) c<strong>and</strong>idate<br />

at GSD, Harvard University. Architect<br />

(Universidad Simón Bolívar,<br />

Caracas, 1998) <strong>and</strong> urban designer (Cum<br />

Laude, UNIMET, Caracas, 2003), <strong>and</strong> a Doctor<br />

of Design c<strong>and</strong>idate at Harvard’s Graduate<br />

School of Design (Cambridge, 2018). S<strong>in</strong>ce<br />

2008 he has directed Arepa Architecture<br />

Ecology <strong>and</strong> L<strong>and</strong>scape (www.arepa.<strong>in</strong>fo),<br />

a workshop that has won several national<br />

(Venezuela) <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>ternational competitions.<br />

Ignacio Cardona focuses his studies on<br />

creative methodologies of design research<br />

to weave together fragmented urban fabric<br />

<strong>in</strong> the cities of the Global South <strong>in</strong> order<br />

to promote social equity, particularly <strong>in</strong><br />

areas often characterized by be<strong>in</strong>g highly<br />

conflictive <strong>and</strong> violent. The work <strong>in</strong>tends to<br />

address issues of fragmentation, connectivity<br />

<strong>and</strong> social equity <strong>in</strong> urban environments<br />

that although very dense are nevertheless<br />

highly malleable <strong>and</strong> hold potential for<br />

effective <strong>in</strong>tervention.<br />

Ignacio is an Architect (Universidad<br />

Simón Bolívar/1998) <strong>and</strong> cum-laude Magister<br />

of Urban Design (Universidad Metropolitana/2003)<br />

<strong>and</strong> Founder of “AREPA:<br />

ARQUITECTURA ECOLOGÍA Y PAISAJE” an<br />

important Venezuelan th<strong>in</strong>k tank that has<br />

become a reference on urban phenomena<br />

<strong>in</strong> Lat<strong>in</strong>-America, that has developed several<br />

projects with the philosophy to articulate<br />

the technical knowledge of design with felt<br />

needs of communities.<br />

Before start<strong>in</strong>g the Doctor of Design at<br />

the Harvard GSD, he developed a career as<br />

professor <strong>in</strong> the Universidad Simón Bolívar<br />

(Caracas, Venezuela) for ten years In Studios<br />

about architecture <strong>and</strong> urban design,<br />

<strong>and</strong> as advisor of more than 50 thesis of<br />

undergraduate <strong>and</strong> graduate students.<br />

Ignacio also has been Visit<strong>in</strong>g Professor <strong>in</strong><br />

the Magister of Urban Design at Universidad<br />

Metropolitana (Caracas, Venezuela), <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong><br />

the Bachelor of Science <strong>in</strong> Architecture at<br />

Wentworth Institute of Technology (Boston,<br />

USA).


44 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 45<br />

Lima, Peru<br />

PHOTO BY PABLO MUNOZ


46 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

FISHERMEN’S VILLAGE IN IN MUMBAI, INDIA.<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO (2015)<br />

[INTRODUCTION]<br />

Location, location, location<br />

SUKANYA KRISHNAMURTHY (INDIA), ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, TU EINDHOVEN<br />

The estimate of the world’s urban<br />

population of 2.5 billion people by<br />

2050 is our watershed moment. With<br />

90 per cent of this <strong>in</strong>crease slated to be<br />

concentrated with<strong>in</strong> regions of Asia <strong>and</strong><br />

Africa (UN 2014), the imperative to discuss<br />

concepts of urbanisation that divulges from<br />

past experiences is urgent. This poses a tremendous<br />

challenge for urban development<br />

where discussions need to move beyond<br />

mere improvement of exist<strong>in</strong>g urban areas,<br />

<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>stead look to bridge the correlations<br />

between development, spatial impacts,<br />

stakeholders <strong>and</strong> governance. This symposium<br />

aims to be one of the forum where<br />

this discussion happens, confront<strong>in</strong>g what<br />

there is, <strong>and</strong> f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>novative mechanisms<br />

to cope with it.<br />

The vast body of literature from the last decades<br />

shows us that the reality <strong>in</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

cities is that access to property for new<br />

urban migrants is highly ambiguous <strong>and</strong><br />

contested, which is further compounded by<br />

the mismatch between supply <strong>and</strong> dem<strong>and</strong><br />

with<strong>in</strong> the hous<strong>in</strong>g market. ‘Location, location,<br />

location’ is a mantra followed by both<br />

the urban poor <strong>and</strong> commercial <strong>in</strong>vestors,<br />

lead<strong>in</strong>g to the ubiquitous picture of a dual<br />

city, the skyscrapers aga<strong>in</strong>st the slums<br />

<strong>and</strong> the ghettos (Brener 2001, Sengupta<br />

2008). This picture of duality between the<br />

formal <strong>and</strong> the <strong>in</strong>formal as b<strong>in</strong>ary opposites<br />

have been challenged by various authors,<br />

<strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g Benjam<strong>in</strong> (2008), Roy (2009, 2011),<br />

McFarlane (2012) <strong>in</strong> an effort to reverse urban<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality’s normative reference <strong>and</strong><br />

recognise the agency of the marg<strong>in</strong>alised<br />

urban poor. Along with these efforts, there<br />

have also been warn<strong>in</strong>gs over the danger of<br />

promot<strong>in</strong>g the idealization <strong>and</strong> aestheticisation<br />

of poverty (Roy 2004). By look<strong>in</strong>g to<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal settlements for concepts such as<br />

of non-permanence <strong>and</strong> self-help solutions,<br />

we move away from the right to the city<br />

discussion that applies to the rest of the<br />

population that live <strong>in</strong> the formal city.<br />

Assert<strong>in</strong>g the right to the city is the access<br />

to shelter, the use of urban l<strong>and</strong>, a house, a<br />

hut or even a temporary space (Evers 1984).<br />

Access to l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> by default hous<strong>in</strong>g is<br />

one of the most visible struggles <strong>in</strong> urban<br />

areas. Most urban dwellers <strong>in</strong> the develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

world end up hav<strong>in</strong>g to rely on their own<br />

<strong>in</strong>itiatives <strong>and</strong> support systems to satisfy<br />

this basic need <strong>and</strong> revers<strong>in</strong>g the formal sequence<br />

of plann<strong>in</strong>g-servic<strong>in</strong>g-build<strong>in</strong>g-occupation.<br />

While many slums will be places<br />

of misery, despair <strong>and</strong> violence; others will<br />

be places of hope where residents <strong>in</strong>crementally<br />

aim to improve their situations<br />

(Brener 2016). This <strong>in</strong>cremental process<br />

however is dependent on exist<strong>in</strong>g capacities<br />

that need cont<strong>in</strong>uous support rather<br />

than time bound <strong>in</strong>terventions. As Cruz<br />

(2012) highlights:<br />

‘The <strong>in</strong>formal is not just an image of precariousness;<br />

it is a compendium of practices,<br />

a set of functional urban operations that<br />

counter <strong>and</strong> transgress imposed political<br />

boundaries <strong>and</strong> hierarchic economic<br />

models. The hidden urban operations of<br />

the most compell<strong>in</strong>g cases of <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanization … need to be translated <strong>in</strong>to<br />

a new political language with particular<br />

spatial consequences. This will lead to new<br />

<strong>in</strong>terpretations of hous<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong>frastructure,<br />

property <strong>and</strong> citizenship, <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>spire new<br />

modes of <strong>in</strong>tervention <strong>in</strong> the contemporary<br />

city’<br />

Urban challenges cannot be overcome by<br />

provid<strong>in</strong>g more of the same but by enabl<strong>in</strong>g<br />

diverse <strong>and</strong> different approaches, <strong>and</strong><br />

through the efforts of the participants <strong>in</strong><br />

this symposium we engage <strong>in</strong> this debate to<br />

push that envelope further.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 47<br />

Mumbai, India<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO


48 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 49<br />

ELECTRIC WIRING IN A SLUM IN MUMBAI. PHOTO<br />

BY ROBERTO ROCCO.<br />

[OPINION]<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity:<br />

<strong>Preserv<strong>in</strong>g</strong> communities <strong>and</strong><br />

creat<strong>in</strong>g public goods<br />

ASMEETA DAS AND PABLO MUÑOZ UNCETA, DELFT UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY<br />

*TEXT ORIGINALLY PREPARED FOR THE WEBSITE “ENGINEERS FOR CHANGE”<br />

Upon cross<strong>in</strong>g the 50% threshold, the<br />

human population can now officially<br />

be called Urban. With United Nation’s<br />

predicted <strong>in</strong>crease of about 1.1 billion new<br />

urbanites by 2030, most cities will face an<br />

unprecedented developmental pressure <strong>in</strong><br />

addition to their current struggle to provide<br />

basic liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> work<strong>in</strong>g st<strong>and</strong>ards to their<br />

citizens. “<strong>Informal</strong> urbanization is a form of<br />

city construction def<strong>in</strong>ed as the production<br />

of urbanization <strong>in</strong>dependent from formal<br />

frameworks <strong>and</strong> assistance.” (UN Habitat,<br />

2014) These forms of the cities are home to<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal economies <strong>and</strong> settlements which<br />

have a collective population of about 1.5<br />

billion people.<br />

The fast-grow<strong>in</strong>g economies of the Global<br />

South are at the forefront for this challenge<br />

<strong>and</strong> are yet to <strong>in</strong>clude these settlements<br />

<strong>in</strong> their plann<strong>in</strong>g framework. This generates<br />

a debate <strong>in</strong> the field of plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

design about the future of these self-built<br />

settlements, present<strong>in</strong>g an immense opportunity<br />

for discussion <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>novation <strong>in</strong> this<br />

area. Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity is an annual<br />

student-led event at TU Delft which aims to<br />

discuss tools to come up with susta<strong>in</strong>able,<br />

fair <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>novative solutions to improve<br />

quality of life <strong>and</strong>, at the same time, respect<br />

the livelihoods <strong>and</strong> values of the dwellers.<br />

In 2018, an Ideas competition was floated<br />

over two months which received 50 entries<br />

from 24 countries with participants from<br />

across discipl<strong>in</strong>es. The competition was<br />

followed by an exhibition <strong>and</strong> symposium<br />

with speakers with unique perspectives on<br />

the topic.<br />

Formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>Informal</strong><br />

Accord<strong>in</strong>g to Nipesh Narayanan, one of the<br />

key note speakers, we should go beyond<br />

the dichotomy formal-<strong>in</strong>formal city, which<br />

puts <strong>in</strong>formality as an anomaly to the


50 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

urban. <strong>Informal</strong>ity goes beyond the slums,<br />

it is a practice often <strong>in</strong>dulged by public <strong>and</strong><br />

private sectors, by the rich <strong>and</strong> the poor.<br />

Rather, our professions as urbanists or<br />

designers should try to redef<strong>in</strong>e their role<br />

<strong>in</strong> order to adapt to the different situations<br />

that the dialectic formal-<strong>in</strong>formal offers.<br />

As Sukanya Krishnamurthy, moderator of<br />

the symposium, posed, <strong>in</strong> order to underst<strong>and</strong><br />

<strong>and</strong> tackle <strong>in</strong>formality, we need new<br />

<strong>in</strong>terpretations of hous<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong>frastructure,<br />

property <strong>and</strong> citizenship that would <strong>in</strong>spire<br />

new models of study<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> work<strong>in</strong>g with<strong>in</strong><br />

the contemporary city.<br />

Even though slums often present low-quality<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g st<strong>and</strong>ards, low accessibility to public<br />

goods or high exposure to vulnerability<br />

or violence, there are also exist<strong>in</strong>g capacities<br />

<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements to be preserved<br />

<strong>and</strong> learnt from. Social cohesion, sense of<br />

community or the entrepreneurial ability<br />

to negotiate <strong>and</strong> achieve their own goals<br />

collectively, are values that are missed <strong>and</strong><br />

strived for <strong>in</strong> cities nowadays <strong>and</strong> are often<br />

still present <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal areas. The question<br />

rema<strong>in</strong>s: how to preserve those qualities<br />

<strong>and</strong> at the same uplift the quality of life <strong>in</strong><br />

vulnerable <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal areas?<br />

Location, location, location<br />

In order to reflect upon this issue, participants<br />

of the competition were asked to<br />

analyze an <strong>in</strong>formal settlement of their<br />

choice <strong>and</strong> come up with solutions that<br />

would uplift the quality of life <strong>and</strong>, at the<br />

same time, preserve the core values of<br />

the settlement. The variety of the proposals<br />

showed that, even if the conditions of<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal settlements over the world could<br />

be seen as similar, the context determ<strong>in</strong>es<br />

many of the solutions, depend<strong>in</strong>g on the<br />

culture, geographical location, lifestyle <strong>and</strong><br />

political <strong>and</strong> economic framework. Location,<br />

location, location is one of the mantras that<br />

many experts repeated dur<strong>in</strong>g the symposium.<br />

The <strong>in</strong>troduction of local stakeholders<br />

as part of the solution dur<strong>in</strong>g the upgrade<br />

process is key to success, as well as cont<strong>in</strong>uous<br />

support, rather than time-bound<br />

<strong>in</strong>terventions.<br />

Nevertheless, there is still a big gap<br />

between underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g the problem <strong>and</strong><br />

f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>g solutions to tackle it. Confront<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity aimed at contribut<strong>in</strong>g to this<br />

search, but there is still a long way ahead.<br />

Spark<strong>in</strong>g this global debate poses great opportunity<br />

for <strong>in</strong>novation <strong>and</strong> research <strong>in</strong>to<br />

this extremely relevant topic <strong>in</strong> universities,<br />

governments <strong>and</strong> practices alike.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 51<br />

INFORMAL SETTLEMENT IN CARACAS, VENEZUELA.<br />

PHOTO BY ORIANA DE LUCIA.<br />

[OPINION]<br />

Does the (<strong>in</strong>)formal city<br />

exist?<br />

IGNACIO CARDONA, DESIGNER, DOCTOR OF DESIGN (DDES) CANDIDATE AT HARVARD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF DESIGN<br />

There are many negative effects produced<br />

by the so-called <strong>in</strong>formal city,<br />

for example: unproductivity, vulnerability,<br />

<strong>and</strong> urban violence.<br />

At the same time, it implies many positive<br />

effects. On the one h<strong>and</strong>, the enormous<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g capacity of self-built settlers<br />

(Gouverneur, 2015) is frequently considered<br />

a solution for hous<strong>in</strong>g problems, even for<br />

unemployment (Garcia-Bolivar 2006). On<br />

the other h<strong>and</strong>, self-built processes presuppose<br />

an effective system of communication<br />

that enabled systems to act spontaneously<br />

<strong>and</strong> to self-organize <strong>in</strong> response to need<br />

(Capra, 2002; Hamdi, 2004), allow<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

construction of new dynamics of citizenship<br />

that come out through the profound<br />

engagement of residents with city-build<strong>in</strong>g<br />

(Holston, & Caldeira, 2008).<br />

Accord<strong>in</strong>g UN Habitat (2016a, 2016b) reports<br />

expla<strong>in</strong> that this positive <strong>and</strong> negative dynamics<br />

are <strong>in</strong> a cont<strong>in</strong>uous growth, both <strong>in</strong><br />

dimensions <strong>and</strong> levels of complexity. So, it<br />

is convenient to delam<strong>in</strong>ate processes that<br />

underp<strong>in</strong> both <strong>in</strong>formality <strong>and</strong> contemporary<br />

cities <strong>in</strong> order to reth<strong>in</strong>k policies <strong>and</strong><br />

design strategies to marshal the positive<br />

ga<strong>in</strong>s of <strong>in</strong>formality while m<strong>in</strong>imiz<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

negative ones.<br />

<strong>Informal</strong> networks arise through personal<br />

connections that constitute the essence of<br />

human exchange (Nee, 1998). The <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

relations that produce commitment to<br />

others is, strictly, the first urban phenomenon,<br />

because people live <strong>in</strong> cities <strong>in</strong> order<br />

to grow <strong>in</strong> mutual societies (Mumford,<br />

1937). For that reason, <strong>in</strong>formality could<br />

be def<strong>in</strong>ed simply as a process between<br />

the apparition <strong>and</strong> the exchange process,<br />

<strong>and</strong> its <strong>in</strong>corporation <strong>in</strong>to the regulatory<br />

frameworks agreed by the society (Portes,<br />

et.al., 1989).<br />

At the same time, <strong>in</strong>formal processes move<br />

fluidly between one territory <strong>and</strong> another<br />

(Hansen & Vaab 2004; Roy, & AlSayyad,<br />

2004). For <strong>in</strong>stance, <strong>in</strong> Lat<strong>in</strong> America, it is<br />

common to see <strong>in</strong> so-called designed cities<br />

occupancy processes that occur beyond the<br />

exist<strong>in</strong>g regulatory framework, i.e. <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

constructions. <strong>Informal</strong>ity is not exclusively<br />

the realm of one territory, not even the selfbuilt<br />

cities by underprivileged citizens.<br />

Furthermore, nowadays it is difficult to underst<strong>and</strong><br />

urban processes only through the<br />

analyses of a spatial-bounded territory. In<br />

the contemporary hyper-connected urban<br />

world, a geographically isolated <strong>in</strong>digenous<br />

community that is hired <strong>in</strong>formally for the<br />

deforestation of a l<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> the middle of the<br />

Venezuelan Amazon is <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> a deeply


52 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

urban consumption patterns process. Then,<br />

some city-centric perspectives -such as<br />

UN-Habitat (2016a; 2016b) reports- that<br />

quantify the number of <strong>in</strong>habitants liv<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong> cities or even <strong>in</strong> so-called <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

cities- ignore a that much greater number<br />

of people, often not liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> places usually<br />

def<strong>in</strong>ed as cities, are directly or <strong>in</strong>directly<br />

<strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> the perpetuation of global<br />

urbanization processes (Brenner, & Schmid,<br />

2014; Kaika, & Swyngedouw, 2014)., <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>equality that underp<strong>in</strong>s the growth of<br />

self-built environments<br />

So, if both <strong>in</strong>formal relations <strong>and</strong> urban<br />

dynamics are processes that do not belong<br />

to a spatial-bounded territory, we can conclude<br />

that the <strong>in</strong>formal city does not exist;<br />

They are a series of fluid dynamics that<br />

transcend territories, where self-built -or<br />

perhaps self-configured- environments are<br />

just one of its spaces. So, the underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

of these dynamics <strong>in</strong> terms of processes will<br />

facilitate the development of policies <strong>and</strong><br />

design strategies for their urban <strong>in</strong>tervention.<br />

Cambridge, June 4, 2018.<br />

References<br />

Brenner, N., & Schmid, C. (2014). The ‘Urban<br />

Age’ <strong>in</strong> Question. International<br />

Journal of Urban <strong>and</strong> Regional<br />

Research, 38(3), 731–755. https://doi.<br />

org/10.1111/1468-2427.12115<br />

Capra, F. (2002). The hidden connections:<br />

<strong>in</strong>tegrat<strong>in</strong>g the biological, cognitive,<br />

<strong>and</strong> social dimensions of life <strong>in</strong>to<br />

a science of susta<strong>in</strong>ability (1st ed.).<br />

New York: Doubleday.<br />

Garcia-Bolivar, O. (2006). <strong>Informal</strong> Economy:<br />

Is It a Problem, a Solution or Both?<br />

The Perspective of the <strong>Informal</strong><br />

Bus<strong>in</strong>ess. Bepress Legal Series.<br />

Retrieved from http://law.bepress.<br />

com/expresso/eps/1065<br />

Gouverneur, D. (2015). Plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> design<br />

for future <strong>in</strong>formal settlements:<br />

shap<strong>in</strong>g the self-constructed city.<br />

Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.<br />

Hamdi, N. (2004). Small change : about the<br />

art of practice <strong>and</strong> the limits of<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> cities. London ; Sterl<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

VA.<br />

Hansen, K. T., & Vaa, M. (2004). Reconsider<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality: perspectives from<br />

urban Africa. Uppsala.<br />

Holston, J., & Caldeira, T. (2008). Urban<br />

peripheries <strong>and</strong> the <strong>in</strong>vention of citizenship.<br />

Harvard Design Magaz<strong>in</strong>e,<br />

(28), 18–23.<br />

Kaika, M., & Swyngedouw, E. (2014, May 14).<br />

Radical urban political-ecological<br />

imag<strong>in</strong>aries. Retrieved June 4, 2018,<br />

from https://www.euroz<strong>in</strong>e.com/<br />

radical-urban-political-ecological-imag<strong>in</strong>aries/<br />

Mumford, L. (1937). What is a city? Architectural<br />

Record, 82, 59–62.<br />

Nee, V. (1998). Norms <strong>and</strong> networks <strong>in</strong> economic<br />

<strong>and</strong> organizational performance.<br />

American Economic Review,<br />

88(2), 85–89.<br />

Portes, A., Castells, M., & Benton, L. A. (1989).<br />

The <strong>Informal</strong> economy : studies <strong>in</strong><br />

advanced <strong>and</strong> less developed countries.<br />

Baltimore, Md.<br />

Roy, A., & AlSayyad, N. (2004). Urban <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

: transnational perspectives<br />

from the Middle East, Lat<strong>in</strong> America,<br />

<strong>and</strong> South Asia. Lanham, Md. :<br />

Berkeley, Calif.: Lex<strong>in</strong>gton Books ;<br />

Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University<br />

of California at Berkeley.<br />

United Nations Human <strong>Settlements</strong><br />

Programme (UN–Habitat). (2016a).<br />

UN-Habitat Annual Progress Report.<br />

United Nations Human. Retrieved<br />

from https://unhabitat.org/un-habitat-launches-the-world-cities-report-2016/<br />

United Nations Human <strong>Settlements</strong><br />

Programme (UN–Habitat). (2016b).<br />

World Cities Report: Urbanization<br />

<strong>and</strong> Development: Emerg<strong>in</strong>g Futures.<br />

United Nations Human. Retrieved<br />

from https://unhabitat.org/un-habitat-launches-the-world-cities-report-2016/


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 53<br />

INFORMAL NEIGHBOURHOOD IN SAO PAULO.<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO.<br />

[OPINION]<br />

Position<strong>in</strong>g the architecture<br />

profession to confront<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality<br />

NIPESH PALAT NARAYANAN, PHD CANDIDATE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LAUSANNE<br />

The world is fast urbaniz<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> most<br />

of this fast-paced urbanization is<br />

happen<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> what we pithily refer<br />

to as ‘<strong>in</strong>formal settlements’. The symposium<br />

‘Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity’ does a much<br />

needed two-fold <strong>in</strong>tervention. First, to<br />

br<strong>in</strong>g together various actors to th<strong>in</strong>k about<br />

urban <strong>in</strong>formality; <strong>and</strong> second, by this <strong>in</strong>tervention,<br />

<strong>in</strong>stigate the students of architecture<br />

<strong>and</strong> urbanism to develop themselves<br />

to confront <strong>in</strong>formality. I strongly believe<br />

that on one h<strong>and</strong> this will develop a field of<br />

creative th<strong>in</strong>kers to develop solutions for<br />

contemporary grim urban realities, <strong>and</strong> on<br />

the other h<strong>and</strong>, question the role of architects<br />

<strong>and</strong> urbanists to <strong>in</strong>tervene <strong>in</strong> hitherto<br />

unexplored situations.<br />

Although, <strong>in</strong>formality has been a research<br />

subject s<strong>in</strong>ce the early 1970s, architects<br />

have had much lesser impact on the major<br />

global debates when compared to other<br />

social scientists. It was probably Rem<br />

Koolhaas’s studio on Lagos dur<strong>in</strong>g mid-<br />

1990s, that caught the imag<strong>in</strong>ation of the<br />

<strong>in</strong>terventionist architects <strong>and</strong> made the<br />

discussions on urban <strong>in</strong>formality a serious<br />

affair amongst architects. These discus-<br />

sions have evolved ever s<strong>in</strong>ce, but has<br />

led to a more nuanced question<strong>in</strong>g of the<br />

architecture profession. This has resulted<br />

<strong>in</strong> multiple conundrums, two of which I will<br />

touch upon. First, space be<strong>in</strong>g the ma<strong>in</strong> apparatus<br />

of an architect, got problematized<br />

by Lefebvre (especially after his 1974 book<br />

was translated to English titled ‘Production<br />

of Space’ dur<strong>in</strong>g the early 1990s.). Space or<br />

the production of space was conceptualized<br />

<strong>and</strong> thereafter strongly politicized as a tool<br />

of (global) capital to manifest itself. This<br />

popularized the war cry of ‘right to the city’<br />

(although more formalized <strong>in</strong> Lat<strong>in</strong> America)<br />

<strong>and</strong> pictured architects as an agent of the<br />

capital for this purpose. Second, <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

discussions, start<strong>in</strong>g from the late 1990s<br />

has moved beyond cluster<strong>in</strong>g of people or<br />

places. This moved the focus of scholarly<br />

debates from tangible <strong>in</strong>formal economy,<br />

slums, or hous<strong>in</strong>g, to <strong>in</strong>formality as an<br />

<strong>in</strong>tangible governmentality. This could be<br />

summarized as the exploration of politics<br />

of <strong>in</strong>formality. Architects, the key agent of<br />

physical manifestations of global collective<br />

dreams (e.g. the Habitat III) are now<br />

grappl<strong>in</strong>g to redef<strong>in</strong>e their role, i.e., if <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

is no more a tangible subject, then<br />

how to we confront it? These debates have<br />

resurfaced more recently after Alej<strong>and</strong>ro Aravena<br />

won the Pritzker Prize <strong>and</strong> thereafter<br />

his critical curatorial practice at the Venice<br />

Biennale of Architecture <strong>in</strong> 2016.<br />

The fast-paced urbanization process of our<br />

times has <strong>in</strong>deed resulted <strong>in</strong> reduced provision<br />

of urban services <strong>and</strong> marg<strong>in</strong>alized<br />

a considerably large set of people across<br />

the globe. There are local issues of access<br />

to hous<strong>in</strong>g, water, <strong>and</strong> electricity to larger<br />

questions of citizenship rights. These issues<br />

may be pronounced more <strong>in</strong> the so-called<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal settlements, but are not a result of<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality alone. For example, only about<br />

half the urban poor <strong>in</strong> the city of Delhi, live<br />

<strong>in</strong> slums. Therefore, how can the problems<br />

of slums, be guid<strong>in</strong>g our strategies to confront<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality?<br />

Events such as this puts these critical<br />

questions <strong>in</strong>to enquiry from various<br />

discipl<strong>in</strong>ary positions with<strong>in</strong> architecture.<br />

Creativity b<strong>in</strong>ds our various positions; thus,<br />

we can surely devise creative methods to<br />

problematize our profession to confront<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality.


54 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 55<br />

[OPINION]<br />

Reth<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formality?<br />

The role of plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal city<br />

ABIGAIL FRIENDLY,DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY AND SPATIAL PLANNING AT UTRECHT UNIVERSITY,<br />

AND A FELLOW AT THE GLOBAL CITIES INSTITUTE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO.<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity is a highly cont<strong>in</strong>gent term<br />

that requires th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g both about the<br />

context but also beh<strong>in</strong>d the mean<strong>in</strong>g<br />

of the term <strong>and</strong> what it br<strong>in</strong>gs for plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong> cities of the Global South.<br />

While there are various ways of<br />

def<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formality, generally it connotes<br />

activities of urban development, trade <strong>and</strong><br />

exchange that fall outside formal rules <strong>and</strong><br />

regulations.<br />

Given the challeng<strong>in</strong>g nature of the<br />

term, there has been a great deal of critique,<br />

discussion <strong>and</strong> work – both academically<br />

<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> practice – around what the idea<br />

actually means. Reth<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g “<strong>in</strong>formality”<br />

helps us to reconsider the connotations<br />

with the use of <strong>in</strong>formality itself <strong>and</strong> requires<br />

us to refashion what are essentially<br />

deeply seated notions of the types of th<strong>in</strong>gs<br />

that are usually associated with <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

life. Most of these mean<strong>in</strong>gs are negative,<br />

for example underground work, few regulations,<br />

<strong>and</strong> precarious hous<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

At the same time, we should not be<br />

driven to th<strong>in</strong>k of <strong>in</strong>formality only <strong>in</strong> such<br />

black <strong>and</strong> while terms. In many places, for<br />

<strong>in</strong>stance, <strong>in</strong>formality could be associated<br />

with both low- <strong>and</strong> high-<strong>in</strong>come groups.<br />

However, whatever the connotation, it is<br />

clear that <strong>in</strong>formality is very much a large<br />

part of plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> urban development <strong>in</strong><br />

most parts of the Global South.<br />

What we also have to consider is that<br />

the <strong>in</strong>formal itself is highly connected to<br />

the formal, <strong>and</strong> such processes can’t be<br />

thought of as occurr<strong>in</strong>g separately from formal<br />

<strong>in</strong>stitutions. Such formal processes <strong>in</strong> a<br />

sense also create <strong>in</strong>formal processes, <strong>and</strong><br />

this means we need to th<strong>in</strong>k about both<br />

parts of this cont<strong>in</strong>uum when we reth<strong>in</strong>k<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality. If <strong>in</strong>formal urbanization is an<br />

“organiz<strong>in</strong>g logic” govern<strong>in</strong>g urban development<br />

<strong>and</strong> transformation follow<strong>in</strong>g Ananya<br />

Roy (2005), then th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g about cities <strong>and</strong><br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> much of the world cannot be<br />

separated from <strong>in</strong>formal urbanization. In<br />

that sense, <strong>in</strong>formality can be thought of<br />

– not only as a challenge that needs to be<br />

dealt with – but also as a challenge with<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g itself.<br />

My own work on Brazilian urban policy<br />

– <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g work on the Statute of the<br />

City – has grappled more with the policies<br />

surround<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formal urbanization, but also<br />

with the recognition that urban policy may<br />

create change by advanc<strong>in</strong>g a more just<br />

approach to city governance (Friendly &<br />

Stiphany, 2018).<br />

Such th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g also requires a recognition<br />

of the structural conditions produc<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal urbanization, but also the relations<br />

of urban development that shape <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

ways of life. Draw<strong>in</strong>g on others (see<br />

for example, Kentor, 1981), Teresa Caldeira<br />

uses the term “peripheral urbanization,”<br />

a worldview that operates <strong>in</strong>side formal<br />

modes of plann<strong>in</strong>g, but <strong>in</strong> transversal ways<br />

through which people “make themselves<br />

<strong>in</strong>to citizens <strong>and</strong> political agents, become<br />

fluent <strong>in</strong> rights talk, <strong>and</strong> claim the cities as<br />

their own” (Caldeira, 2017: 3).<br />

While peripheral urbanization has<br />

resulted <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>novation, it also leads to<br />

highly unequal cities. Overall, it is the role<br />

of governments, <strong>in</strong>ternational <strong>in</strong>stitutions<br />

<strong>and</strong> planners themselves – together with<br />

communities – to both reth<strong>in</strong>k <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

<strong>and</strong> to place people at the centre of cities.<br />

References<br />

Caldeira, T. (2017). “Peripheral urbanization:<br />

Auto- construction, transversal logics,<br />

<strong>and</strong> politics <strong>in</strong> cities of the Global<br />

South.” Environment <strong>and</strong> Plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

D: Society <strong>and</strong> Space 35(1): 3-20.<br />

Friendly, A. & Stiphany, K. (2018). “Paradigm<br />

or paradox? The ‘cumbersome<br />

impasse’ of the participatory<br />

turn <strong>in</strong> Brazilian urban<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g.” Urban Studies DOI:<br />

10.1177/0042098018768748.<br />

Kentor, J. (1981). “Structural determ<strong>in</strong>ants of<br />

peripheral urbanization: The effects<br />

of <strong>in</strong>ternational dependence.”<br />

American Sociological Review 46(2):<br />

201-211.<br />

Roy, A. (2005). “Urban <strong>Informal</strong>ity: Toward an<br />

Epistemology of Plann<strong>in</strong>g.” Journal<br />

of the American Plann<strong>in</strong>g Association<br />

71(2): 147-158.


56 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 57<br />

[OPINION]<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

ALONSO AYALA AND ELLEN GEURTS, INSTITUTE FOR HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES (IHS)<br />

AT THE ERASMUS UNIVERSITY ROTTERDAM<br />

EL AGUSTINO INFORMAL NEIGHBOURHOOD IN<br />

LIMA. PHOTO BY PABLO MUNOZ UNCETA.<br />

The urbanization of poverty is a<br />

common phenomenon <strong>in</strong> urban<br />

areas of the global south. This<br />

urbanization is translated <strong>in</strong>to the formation<br />

<strong>and</strong> consolidation of urban <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements, most commonly referred to <strong>in</strong><br />

<strong>in</strong>ternational development as slums.<br />

Accord<strong>in</strong>g to UN Habitat (2006), one<br />

out of every three city dwellers – nearly one<br />

billion people- live <strong>in</strong> a slum. Slums have<br />

become the settlement pattern that widespreads<br />

across many cities <strong>in</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

countries for a number of reasons. Initially,<br />

high rates of rural urban migration was the<br />

ma<strong>in</strong> cause, when new arrivals to the city<br />

search<strong>in</strong>g for employment opportunities,<br />

could not found affordable accommodation<br />

<strong>in</strong> formal hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> l<strong>and</strong> markets.<br />

Nowadays, rural urban migration is not<br />

the only cause. There exist other migration<br />

patterns, such as urban urban migration,<br />

<strong>in</strong>ternational migration from countries<br />

experienc<strong>in</strong>g political <strong>and</strong> economic downturn<br />

<strong>and</strong> conflict, <strong>and</strong> forced displacement<br />

for reasons such as ethnic cleans<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

climate change related events.<br />

The latest Word Bank statistics shows<br />

that urbanization cont<strong>in</strong>ues to <strong>in</strong>crease <strong>and</strong><br />

at current over 55% of the world’s population<br />

lives <strong>in</strong> urban areas (WB, 2018). The impact<br />

of slum upgrad<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> l<strong>and</strong> regularization<br />

programmes across the globe has led<br />

to a decrease <strong>in</strong> the proportion of people<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> slums, but their absolute numbers<br />

are still <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g due to urbanisation<br />

patterns (UN Habitat, 2011). In addition the<br />

complexity of the urban hous<strong>in</strong>g challenge<br />

is also characterized by the global affordability<br />

crisis (MGI 2014), which affects the<br />

whole population, but most importantly<br />

those whose <strong>in</strong>come levels <strong>and</strong> sources of<br />

livelihoods render them <strong>in</strong> poverty. Trapped<br />

<strong>in</strong> an illegal world, epitomized by slums,<br />

the urban poor struggle to achieve a better<br />

quality of life through access to resources<br />

<strong>and</strong> sources of livelihoods, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g<br />

shelter, which they can only f<strong>in</strong>d <strong>in</strong> slums.<br />

A whole <strong>in</strong>formal market dynamic, which<br />

overlapped with the formal one, exist <strong>in</strong><br />

cities. Most people f<strong>in</strong>d accommodation not<br />

<strong>in</strong> the formal market, but rather through<br />

self-construct<strong>in</strong>g their houses, usually <strong>in</strong><br />

an <strong>in</strong>cremental manner, or rent<strong>in</strong>g from<br />

(often exploitative) <strong>in</strong>formal l<strong>and</strong>lords <strong>and</strong><br />

l<strong>and</strong>ladies.<br />

<strong>Informal</strong> settlements can be seen as<br />

the self-help hous<strong>in</strong>g realization of the<br />

urban poor, <strong>and</strong> slums, although been paradoxically<br />

at the center of many urban development<br />

<strong>in</strong>terventions, keep on grow<strong>in</strong>g. Two<br />

extremes <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>tervention approaches still<br />

occur. From forced evictions <strong>and</strong> eradication<br />

to holistic approaches that <strong>in</strong>cludes<br />

<strong>in</strong>frastructure upgrad<strong>in</strong>g, l<strong>and</strong> regularization<br />

<strong>and</strong> livelihood projects tackl<strong>in</strong>g social<br />

<strong>and</strong> economic issues. In many cases this


58 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

means an unclear urban development strategy<br />

of which the slum issue keeps on be<strong>in</strong>g<br />

treated <strong>in</strong> a purely adaptive way by react<strong>in</strong>g<br />

to the consequences, never address<strong>in</strong>g, at<br />

least <strong>in</strong> a mean<strong>in</strong>gful way, the root causes<br />

of the problem. Thous<strong>and</strong>s of well-<strong>in</strong>tended<br />

slum <strong>in</strong>terventions have been implemented<br />

across the global south, unfortunately<br />

these have not substantially reverse the<br />

situation <strong>and</strong> many of the <strong>in</strong>terventions<br />

rema<strong>in</strong> piece-meal projects with no long<br />

term impact.<br />

A reflection on these two extreme<br />

approaches <strong>and</strong> the role that plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

also plays on this, is also occurr<strong>in</strong>g. South<br />

Africa is an example of a country where<br />

the shift from the ‘eradication of slums’ to<br />

one of ‘establish<strong>in</strong>g national upgrad<strong>in</strong>g of<br />

slum programmes’ was made explicitly. The<br />

change <strong>in</strong> the public hous<strong>in</strong>g policy came<br />

<strong>in</strong>to effect with the <strong>in</strong>troduction <strong>in</strong> 2004 of<br />

the Break<strong>in</strong>g New Ground: A Comprehensive<br />

Plan for Hous<strong>in</strong>g Delivery policy. As these<br />

processes are lengthy <strong>and</strong> cumbersome, the<br />

impact of the <strong>in</strong>formal settlement upgrad<strong>in</strong>g<br />

programmes is only slowly tak<strong>in</strong>g up.<br />

But just like many places <strong>in</strong> the world, the<br />

implementation <strong>and</strong> the impact of these<br />

programmes rema<strong>in</strong>s also problematic as<br />

the approach taken to slum upgrad<strong>in</strong>g does<br />

not lead to the outcomes desired.<br />

A critique has emerged on the necessity<br />

to develop new or different perspectives<br />

on plann<strong>in</strong>g that can <strong>in</strong>form urban plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> theory much better. De Satge <strong>and</strong> Watson<br />

(2018) as well as the African Centre of<br />

the Cities have been call<strong>in</strong>g for a better underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

of Southern Plann<strong>in</strong>g Theories.<br />

A new dawn for plann<strong>in</strong>g approaches may<br />

be needed to better underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> fundamentally<br />

improve not only physical but also<br />

social conditions <strong>in</strong> the Global South.<br />

Aga<strong>in</strong>st this background, confront<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality seems to be a discussion<br />

from which we are far from f<strong>in</strong>ished. This<br />

discussion can become as philosophical<br />

or as practical as we want it to be. We can<br />

approach the discussion from a political,<br />

human rights-based or development-based<br />

perspective. The Urban Hous<strong>in</strong>g, Equity <strong>and</strong><br />

Social Justice team of the IHS is explor<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the concept of ‘hous<strong>in</strong>g justice’ <strong>in</strong> this<br />

regard. In our research workshop on Urban<br />

Hous<strong>in</strong>g Justice, we aim to ga<strong>in</strong> a better<br />

underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g on the challenge regard<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the conditions under which hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

policies, translated <strong>in</strong>to <strong>in</strong>terventions <strong>and</strong><br />

approaches, might lead to hous<strong>in</strong>g justice.<br />

This underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g should also contribute<br />

to a more grounded debate around the<br />

challenge on how to confront <strong>in</strong>formality.<br />

As members of the jury we want to<br />

express our gratitude to all the entries<br />

made <strong>and</strong> compliment the students with<br />

their work. It shows to us that there is<br />

clearly an <strong>in</strong>terest <strong>and</strong> an underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

of the complexities, challenges but also<br />

the urgency to contest<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formality for<br />

design students. We believe it is key that<br />

our future practitioners <strong>in</strong> hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

urbanism start to have a real underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

of the realities that many people <strong>in</strong> the<br />

world experience: liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the ‘<strong>in</strong>formal<br />

city’, <strong>in</strong> the slums. What we particularly<br />

want to applaud is that many entries clearly<br />

went beyond purely design <strong>in</strong>terventions by<br />

show<strong>in</strong>g a real grasp of the wide variety of<br />

stakeholders <strong>and</strong> beneficiaries that affect<br />

the <strong>in</strong>terventions proposed. In addition we<br />

were pleased to note that the susta<strong>in</strong>ability<br />

of the <strong>in</strong>terventions proposed was multi-dimensional<br />

mov<strong>in</strong>g between environmental,<br />

f<strong>in</strong>ancial <strong>and</strong> social susta<strong>in</strong>ability as<br />

exemplified by the strong underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g of<br />

beneficiaries’ livelihoods.<br />

References<br />

De Satge, R. <strong>and</strong> Watson, V. 2018. Urban<br />

Plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the Global South.<br />

Conflict<strong>in</strong>g rationalities <strong>in</strong> contested<br />

space. Available at: https://doi.<br />

org/10.1007/978-3-319-69496-2<br />

McK<strong>in</strong>sey Global Institute (MGI), 2014. A<br />

Bluepr<strong>in</strong>t for Address<strong>in</strong>g the Global<br />

affordable Hous<strong>in</strong>g Challenge. Available<br />

at: www.mck<strong>in</strong>sey.com/mgi/<br />

publications/multimedia/<br />

UN Habitat, 2012. The State of the World<br />

Cities 2010/2011: Bridg<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

Urban Divide. Nairobi: UN-Habitat.<br />

Available at: https://unhabitat.org/<br />

books/state-of-the-worlds-cities-<br />

20102011-cities-for-all-bridg<strong>in</strong>g-theurban-divide/<br />

UN Habitat, 2006. The State of the World<br />

Cities 2006/7. Nairobi: UN-Habitat.<br />

Available at: https://unhabitat.org/<br />

books/state-of-the-worlds-cities-20062007/<br />

World Bank web site: http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/urb<strong>and</strong>evelopment


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 59<br />

INFORMAL SETTLEMENT IN MUMBAI, INDIA.<br />

PHOTO BY ROBERTO ROCCO.<br />

[OPINION]<br />

The view from a Mumbaikar<br />

NINAD SANSARE, STUDENT ORGANISER, MASTERS URBANISM, TUDEFT<br />

Be<strong>in</strong>g a Mumbaikar (person from<br />

Mumbai) <strong>in</strong>formal settlements are not<br />

a distant topic for me. I realized after<br />

com<strong>in</strong>g to Delft that most of the western<br />

world has a different perception about<br />

slums <strong>in</strong> Mumbai, specially Dharavi. Most<br />

of the credit for creat<strong>in</strong>g that image goes<br />

to the motion picture Slumdog Millionaire,<br />

directed by Danny Boyle, which exaggerates<br />

the reality on the ground. Sadly, <strong>in</strong> most<br />

cases, <strong>in</strong>formality is just a topic of discussion<br />

<strong>in</strong> the western world at conferences <strong>in</strong><br />

five star hotels. Competitions like ‘Confront<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity’ create a necessary dialogue<br />

with the realiry on the ground, which is<br />

reflected <strong>in</strong> all the entries from all over<br />

the world. I believe that the research of all<br />

contestants, specially the ones focused on<br />

Mumbai, will correct wrong perceptions<br />

about slums. As part of the organis<strong>in</strong>g<br />

committee <strong>and</strong> one of the member <strong>in</strong><br />

the selection process, I noticed that <strong>in</strong> all<br />

the proposed ideas people are accept<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality <strong>and</strong> try<strong>in</strong>g to imoprove <strong>in</strong> all<br />

possible ways. It is important to make the<br />

step between discussion <strong>and</strong> action. This<br />

competition opens up the possibility of<br />

transform<strong>in</strong>g these neighbourhoods <strong>in</strong> our<br />

very own cities <strong>and</strong> not to bulldoze them<br />

As a proponent of democracy <strong>and</strong> human<br />

rights, this competition allowed students to<br />

do more than just underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formality.<br />

They were able to confront it.


60 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The rationale of the selection<br />

ROBERTO ROCCO AND TEAM<br />

Why were these projects<br />

selected?<br />

We had 50 submissions from<br />

all over the world! All the<br />

projects were very <strong>in</strong>spir<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> they gave us <strong>in</strong>sight <strong>in</strong>to<br />

the different realities they<br />

address. And what amaz<strong>in</strong>gly<br />

different realities they are.<br />

But as different as those realities<br />

are, we all live <strong>in</strong> one s<strong>in</strong>gle<br />

world with f<strong>in</strong>ite resources,<br />

a world that is now fac<strong>in</strong>g very<br />

serious challenges: climate<br />

change, <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>equality,<br />

<strong>and</strong> now the serious threats<br />

to democracies all around<br />

the world. Rapid urbanisation<br />

<strong>in</strong> the Global South is one of<br />

those challenges, but it is also<br />

an opportunity for citizens to<br />

enter the realm of politics,<br />

to struggle for their legitimate<br />

rights <strong>and</strong> to strengthen<br />

democracy <strong>and</strong> participation.<br />

That’s why we want to talk<br />

about <strong>in</strong>formal urbanisation<br />

<strong>and</strong> the 50 submissions were<br />

part of that conversation. And<br />

their voices were heard loud<br />

<strong>and</strong> clear.<br />

I would like to <strong>in</strong>vite you to<br />

cont<strong>in</strong>ue this conversation<br />

<strong>and</strong> to really dem<strong>and</strong> that<br />

teachers, politicians <strong>and</strong> decision-makers<br />

discuss <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements <strong>and</strong> most importantly,<br />

dem<strong>and</strong> that they<br />

discuss how citizens can participate<br />

<strong>in</strong> order to make their<br />

own neighbourhoods safe,<br />

<strong>in</strong>clusive, healthy <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong>able.<br />

The Right to the City is a<br />

goal we all should strive for.<br />

The w<strong>in</strong>ner is a project from<br />

Dhaka, Bangladesh. The team<br />

was composed by Rahfatun<br />

Nisa Nova, Nazila Sabr<strong>in</strong><br />

Zaman, Ayesha Labiba Khalil,<br />

Monjura Khatun Nisha <strong>and</strong> Md.<br />

Nazim Udd<strong>in</strong>, from BRAC University<br />

<strong>and</strong> other <strong>in</strong>stitutions.<br />

The second place was split<br />

between two teams, a team<br />

work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Rasheed (Rosetta),<br />

composed by Philipp W<strong>in</strong>ter,<br />

Florangela Chahuayo, Ahmad<br />

Mamdouh, Lara Vergas from<br />

Cairo University <strong>in</strong> Egypt <strong>and</strong><br />

a team work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Salvador,<br />

Bahia: Ana Clara Oliveira de<br />

Araújo, Mariana Ribeiro Pardo,<br />

Camila P<strong>in</strong>ho de Mello, from<br />

the Federal University of Bahia<br />

<strong>in</strong> Brazil.<br />

There were two honourable<br />

mentions: a team work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong><br />

Karachi, Pakistan, composed<br />

by Ferya Ilyas, Shizhe Ma <strong>and</strong><br />

Yil<strong>in</strong> Lai from the University<br />

of Stuttgart <strong>in</strong> Germany, <strong>and</strong><br />

a team work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Kamez,<br />

an area of Tirana <strong>in</strong> Albania:<br />

Am<strong>in</strong>a Chouari, Antonio Sposetti,<br />

Chiara Magli, Mariaelena<br />

Scaglia, from the venerable<br />

Politecnico di Milano <strong>in</strong> Italy.<br />

What did all these projects<br />

have <strong>in</strong> common?<br />

1. They addressed issues<br />

of social, economic <strong>and</strong> environmental<br />

susta<strong>in</strong>ability,<br />

2. They addressed community<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g, governance<br />

<strong>and</strong> participation,<br />

3. Many of them mentioned<br />

democracy <strong>and</strong> democracy<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

4. They understood the<br />

role of stakeholders <strong>and</strong> they<br />

had a discussion on the role<br />

of governments, sometimes of<br />

bus<strong>in</strong>ess <strong>and</strong> civil society,<br />

5. Participants questioned<br />

their own roles as designers,<br />

planners, <strong>and</strong> architects,<br />

6. They formulated <strong>in</strong>tegrated<br />

strategies that took<br />

space, society, economy,<br />

technology <strong>in</strong>to account. This<br />

was particularly strong <strong>in</strong> the<br />

group from Dhaka <strong>and</strong> warranted<br />

them the first place<br />

The role of design <strong>in</strong> this competition<br />

was central. But while<br />

design is powerful, it is not<br />

enough. Design must be <strong>in</strong>formed<br />

by good questions emanat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

from society <strong>and</strong> from<br />

theory. The w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g groups<br />

went beyond the simple design<br />

of the built environment:<br />

they addressed societal processes<br />

<strong>and</strong> proposed societal<br />

change, <strong>in</strong> conversation with<br />

the <strong>in</strong>habitants of the <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements they worked on.<br />

Another characteristic of the<br />

w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g projects was that they<br />

all addressed the geography<br />

of the places they worked on,


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 61<br />

TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 61<br />

<strong>and</strong> took water as a central element.<br />

While societal processes<br />

are central to slum upgrad<strong>in</strong>g<br />

strategies, they need to be<br />

understood <strong>in</strong> relation to the<br />

natural sett<strong>in</strong>g that susta<strong>in</strong>s<br />

them. Issues of health, nutrition,<br />

sanitation <strong>and</strong> others<br />

must be understood from the<br />

ability of the environment to<br />

susta<strong>in</strong> life.<br />

Some of the <strong>in</strong>sights we had<br />

by evaluat<strong>in</strong>g 50 entries relate<br />

to the importance of the<br />

context as a determ<strong>in</strong>ant for<br />

solutions. Mumbai is different<br />

from Chennai <strong>and</strong> there is no<br />

such a th<strong>in</strong>g as “one solution<br />

fits all”.<br />

Many designers, consciously or<br />

unconsciously, design for real<br />

estate pressure. It is daunt<strong>in</strong>g<br />

that our cities are the subject<br />

of real estate speculation, but<br />

what is really worry<strong>in</strong>g is the<br />

fact that designers <strong>and</strong> planners<br />

have <strong>in</strong>ternalised the<br />

logic of the market <strong>and</strong> are<br />

constantly cater<strong>in</strong>g for it. Societal<br />

issues go beyond market<br />

forces, <strong>and</strong> it seems clear to<br />

us that the market does not<br />

offer an answer for those who<br />

cannot enter it, because they<br />

earn so little. The question of<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g affordability is pivotal<br />

to underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g why <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanisation occurs <strong>in</strong> the first<br />

place.<br />

In general, architectural<br />

schools around the world are<br />

fail<strong>in</strong>g to address governance<br />

as a crucial framework for<br />

design. This has several undesirable<br />

consequences for<br />

the work of students: a lot of<br />

solutions seem shallow <strong>and</strong><br />

detached from reality, because<br />

the knowledge stemm<strong>in</strong>g from<br />

stakeholders is not recognised,<br />

nor used.<br />

The question of what is <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

rema<strong>in</strong>s. How can<br />

we underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

outside of the western-oriented<br />

conceptions of modernity<br />

<strong>and</strong> progress? We certa<strong>in</strong>ly<br />

need to underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

<strong>in</strong> context, <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> relation<br />

to the political <strong>and</strong> societal<br />

forces operat<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> different<br />

societies. <strong>Informal</strong>ity is often<br />

<strong>in</strong>tegrated <strong>in</strong> productive processes,<br />

<strong>and</strong> it’s clear we need<br />

to cater for livelihoods <strong>and</strong><br />

not only hous<strong>in</strong>g. Hous<strong>in</strong>g is<br />

only one element of the puzzle,<br />

one of many. Integrat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> work seems<br />

desirable <strong>in</strong> many cases, <strong>and</strong><br />

the non-<strong>in</strong>tegration of hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> livelihoods seems to be<br />

the cause of failure for many<br />

a hous<strong>in</strong>g policy. Location,<br />

location, location, says Sukanya<br />

Krishnamurthy, <strong>and</strong> she is<br />

right <strong>in</strong>sofar <strong>in</strong>formal settlers<br />

will look for places where jobs<br />

<strong>and</strong> opportunities are readily<br />

available, or where connectivity<br />

allows for travel. Hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

solutions that evict the poor<br />

to distant peripheries seem to<br />

be particularly pernicious <strong>and</strong><br />

undesirable. They are dest<strong>in</strong>ed<br />

to fail.<br />

The notion of publicness is<br />

another crucial dimension <strong>in</strong><br />

slum upgrad<strong>in</strong>g strategies. This<br />

is reflected not only on the<br />

public space, but also <strong>in</strong> participation<br />

<strong>and</strong> democratic decision-mak<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

The role of the<br />

state is different everywhere,<br />

but there is always a need for<br />

strong state action, to promote<br />

<strong>in</strong>tegrated development <strong>and</strong><br />

scale-up solutions. The state<br />

seems the only agent capable<br />

of organis<strong>in</strong>g public goods on<br />

a gr<strong>and</strong> scale, simply because<br />

public goods are generally not<br />

profitable, as they must enjoyed<br />

by all for free.<br />

This notion of publicness,<br />

collective action <strong>and</strong> public<br />

participation is strong among<br />

Lat<strong>in</strong> American designers<br />

<strong>and</strong> planners, while Southern<br />

Asian designers seem to be<br />

more concerned with provid<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the basic necessities for<br />

life. Lat<strong>in</strong> American designers<br />

are also concerned about how<br />

to overcome the boundaries<br />

(or the walls) separat<strong>in</strong>g formal<br />

from <strong>in</strong>formal. Integration<br />

is the keyword for them, while<br />

Asian designers are more worried<br />

about liveability, probably<br />

because <strong>in</strong> the Indian or<br />

Bangladeshi city, poverty <strong>and</strong><br />

richness, formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

already coexist, while <strong>in</strong> Lat<strong>in</strong><br />

America <strong>in</strong>formality means<br />

spatial segregation.<br />

Good upgrad<strong>in</strong>g strategies<br />

addressed susta<strong>in</strong>ability <strong>in</strong> its<br />

three essential dimensions:<br />

social, economic <strong>and</strong> environmental,<br />

with the last one<br />

particularly urgent <strong>in</strong> view of<br />

climate change <strong>and</strong> the utter<br />

vulnerability of <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

dwellers to extreme climate<br />

events <strong>and</strong> “natural disasters”.<br />

F<strong>in</strong>ally, successful strategies<br />

were argumentative <strong>and</strong> asked<br />

the right questions.


62 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Honourable<br />

mentions


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 63<br />

honourable<br />

mention<br />

Tirana, Albania<br />

INFORDER DOMINO: AN INNOVATIVE AND FLEXIBLE<br />

RANGE OF PROPOSALS FOR PASKUQAN IN KAMEZ<br />

MUNICIPALITY, TIRANA, ALBANIA<br />

Am<strong>in</strong>a Chouairi<br />

Chiara Magli<br />

Mariaelena Scaglia<br />

Antonio Sposetti<br />

Politecnico di Milano<br />

ITALY


64 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Inforder<br />

AA11<br />

Dom<strong>in</strong>o<br />

INFORDER DOMINO<br />

An <strong>in</strong>novative <strong>and</strong> flexible range of proposals for<br />

Paskuqan District <strong>in</strong> the Kamez Municipality, Albania<br />

An <strong>in</strong>novative <strong>and</strong> flexible range of<br />

proposals for Paskuqan <strong>in</strong> Kamez<br />

Municipality, Tirana, Albania<br />

TIRANA, ALBANIA<br />

AMINA CHOUAIRI , CHIARA MAGLI , MARIAELENA SCAGLIA, ANTONIO SPOSETTI<br />

POLITECNICO DI MILANO, ITALY<br />

INFORDER DOMINO OR DIGGING INTO ALBANIAN INFORMAL<br />

BEHAVIOURS<br />

Inforder Dom<strong>in</strong>o arises as a plann<strong>in</strong>g reply <strong>in</strong> the northern peri-urban area of Tirana, <strong>in</strong> Paskuqan, Kamez Municipality.<br />

The project wants to meld the typical vocation of the place (<strong>in</strong>f-ormal) with the will<strong>in</strong>gness to deliver guidel<strong>in</strong>es (order),<br />

which, once established, could requalify the neighborhood through the dom<strong>in</strong>o effect.<br />

In order to clearly def<strong>in</strong>e the project’s ideas <strong>and</strong> goals, a deep analysis has been conducted <strong>in</strong> order to underst<strong>and</strong> the<br />

formation <strong>and</strong> the development of Albanian <strong>in</strong>formal settlements. The ma<strong>in</strong> cause of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements proliferation<br />

has to be related to <strong>in</strong>ternal <strong>and</strong> external migration <strong>and</strong> poor economic conditions occurred <strong>in</strong> Albania after the<br />

communist dictatorship. In fact, the majority part of the scattered built up <strong>in</strong>formal areas is located <strong>in</strong> the surround<strong>in</strong>gs<br />

of those cities - as Tirane or Durres - which suffered the most the arrival of migrants <strong>in</strong> the latest part of XX century.<br />

After hav<strong>in</strong>g studied the work <strong>and</strong> research processes onducted by ALUIZNI, the governmental Agency for Legalisation,<br />

Urbanisation <strong>and</strong> Integration of <strong>Informal</strong> Areas <strong>and</strong> Build<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> took <strong>in</strong>to account various important laws related<br />

to the restitution of property rights of former owners launched <strong>in</strong> the past few years, the project’s goal is try<strong>in</strong>g to<br />

<strong>in</strong>clude this process while adopt<strong>in</strong>g a different approach methodology.<br />

In Albania, where the presence of the central government has always been a sore po<strong>in</strong>t of political <strong>and</strong> legislative<br />

activities, especially after the collapse of the Berl<strong>in</strong> Wall, the <strong>in</strong>tervention should be thought through the bottom-up<br />

approach <strong>in</strong> order to strive to a significant change, both socially <strong>and</strong> economically. Particularly <strong>in</strong> a former communist<br />

country, where the population has always been thaught to renounce <strong>and</strong> share everyth<strong>in</strong>g brutally <strong>and</strong> forcefully,<br />

there needs to re-educate each citizen groups what does it mean to live <strong>in</strong> an open community. Only thanks to the<br />

people co-operation <strong>and</strong> mutual participation, societies can aspire to shared common goods, universal respect for<br />

human dignity <strong>and</strong> basic human <strong>and</strong> civil rights, these days more <strong>and</strong> more forgotten.<br />

Sett<strong>in</strong>g the community welfare as the ma<strong>in</strong> goal to achieve, the project here proposed does not force any k<strong>in</strong>d of <strong>in</strong>tervention<br />

<strong>in</strong>to the Pasqukan district but wants to take advantage of the spirit of self-construction def<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g the vocation<br />

of this place. The proposals work on the def<strong>in</strong>ition of a prototype never tested <strong>in</strong> Albania, <strong>in</strong> which every actor - from<br />

the farmer to the politician - is necessary to transform disorder <strong>in</strong>to order, dynamism <strong>in</strong>to opportunity.<br />

“If we observe the most marg<strong>in</strong>al areas of Tirana focus<strong>in</strong>g our attention on the lack of basic services or <strong>in</strong>frastructures,<br />

we could f<strong>in</strong>d out a dense layer of “structures” under-represented or not yet recognized (social relationships<br />

or self-made expressions) which express <strong>in</strong>stead, <strong>in</strong> a hidden way, a great potential of energy typical<br />

of the city. […] From the design po<strong>in</strong>t of view, the surveys along the borders of the city can be used as a laboratory<br />

for study<strong>in</strong>g the adaptability <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>novation of the urban space com<strong>in</strong>g from the <strong>in</strong>habitants themselves. “<br />

Chiara Nifosì


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 65<br />

The four <strong>in</strong>fographics represent the population behaviour <strong>in</strong> 2017. This quantitative data is important <strong>in</strong> order to underst<strong>and</strong> the proliferation, after<br />

the Berl<strong>in</strong> Wall fall, of Albanian <strong>in</strong>formal settlements. The human flow had a deep impact on Tirana, which became the majorly <strong>in</strong>formalized, together<br />

with the coastal city of Durres.


66 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

After a prolonged analysis, the team found a synthetic way to represent the ma<strong>in</strong> features of the <strong>in</strong>formal settlement of Paskuqan, underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g its<br />

structure <strong>and</strong> its urban protagonists.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 67<br />

PASKUQAN AND ITS INFORMAL SYSTEM<br />

The set area for the project’s development is Paskuqan, a small city <strong>in</strong> the Municipality of Kamez located along the<br />

northern boundaries of Tirana, Albania. This settlement is strongly characterized by the predom<strong>in</strong>ance of <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

build<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> constructions spread all over its surface measur<strong>in</strong>g 11.5 km². Alongside with this <strong>in</strong>formal vocation, a<br />

lake, Liqeni I Paskuqanit, a park, Parku I Paskuqanit, <strong>and</strong> a river are the natural resources of Paskuqan district. Unfortunately,<br />

dur<strong>in</strong>g the survey, they resulted to be very polluted, untreated <strong>and</strong> left aside.<br />

In Paskuqan, 58.7% of the constructions are <strong>in</strong>formal therefore there is no regulation or control to monitor the city<br />

rapid evolution. More <strong>in</strong> general, 14% of Albania l<strong>and</strong> does not have documented ownership <strong>and</strong> consequently, this<br />

lack of <strong>in</strong>formation makes the underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g of urban changes almost unpredictable.<br />

The lack of the basic public services as public transportation, schools, health care centers <strong>and</strong> hospitals, urban growth<br />

plans <strong>and</strong> waste management makes liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> such environment more difficult <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>complete, arriv<strong>in</strong>g easily to def<strong>in</strong>e<br />

many of Paskuqan areas as dormitories. The <strong>in</strong>formal constructions have taken place without adequate water supply,<br />

sewer systems, access roads <strong>and</strong> other <strong>in</strong>frastructures. Unfortunately, the law on Legalization <strong>and</strong> Urban Plann<strong>in</strong>g of<br />

<strong>Informal</strong> Zones of October 2004 does not deal directly with the problems of <strong>in</strong>adequate <strong>in</strong>frastructure <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>tegration<br />

of these <strong>in</strong>formal zones <strong>in</strong>to the active <strong>and</strong> central urban system.<br />

The central government is here completely absent <strong>and</strong> if there is no state then there is no law. On the other h<strong>and</strong>,<br />

the livel<strong>in</strong>ess of certa<strong>in</strong> parts of the neighborhood tends to be comfort<strong>in</strong>g, testify<strong>in</strong>g the active commercial spirit <strong>and</strong><br />

entrepreneurship aris<strong>in</strong>g dur<strong>in</strong>g the last years. Self-established activities as game room <strong>and</strong> arcades, bars <strong>and</strong> meet<strong>in</strong>g<br />

places, car washes <strong>and</strong> bridal shops colonize the ma<strong>in</strong> road, Unaza e Madhe, transform<strong>in</strong>g it <strong>in</strong>to a sort of attractive<br />

strip.<br />

After hav<strong>in</strong>g observed that the pr<strong>in</strong>cipal commercial dynamics happen on the ma<strong>in</strong> road cross<strong>in</strong>g the whole district, simultaneously,<br />

no community spaces or public facilities - as parks, gardens, sidewalks or streetlights - have been found.<br />

In fact, the only actors <strong>in</strong> this environment are the so-called pixels, s<strong>in</strong>gle-family isolated <strong>and</strong> fenced villas, <strong>and</strong> the<br />

voids, parcels completely empty used sometimes as illegal garbage dumps, playgrounds for children or graz<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>and</strong>.<br />

The road, Unaza e Madhe, as stated before, testifies two different type of density along its course: one higher, more<br />

commercially devoted, active, alive <strong>and</strong> compact <strong>in</strong> its first stretch; another lower, where houses are more scattered,<br />

with slower velocities <strong>in</strong> its second stretch.<br />

“Today, Europe’s challenge is less about build<strong>in</strong>g new cities than about transform<strong>in</strong>g exist<strong>in</strong>g ones to create a<br />

more balanced <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>clusive society. In this context, architecture must rega<strong>in</strong> its capacity to shape not just the<br />

design of build<strong>in</strong>gs, but also the design of social solutions. By comb<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g these two capacities, architecture can<br />

help crystallize the pr<strong>in</strong>ciples of better hous<strong>in</strong>g.”<br />

Marco Ste<strong>in</strong>berg


68 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The n<strong>in</strong>e shared rules f<strong>in</strong>d here their correct representation. The masterplan shows briefly the desired impact on the Paskuqan district: a symbiotic<br />

precence of commercial vocation <strong>and</strong> public spaces availability.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 69<br />

INFORDER DOMINO: A NEW COMMUNITY WELFARE FOR PASKUQAN<br />

Start<strong>in</strong>g from the previous analysis <strong>and</strong> observation, <strong>in</strong> order to improve social welfare <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>volve the citizenry <strong>in</strong>to<br />

this process, the project evolves towards the def<strong>in</strong>ition of n<strong>in</strong>e shared rules to be applied <strong>and</strong> adopted by the whole<br />

neighborhood. They refer ma<strong>in</strong>ly to the built environment <strong>and</strong> the <strong>in</strong>frastructure system <strong>in</strong> order to give them a major<br />

level of <strong>in</strong>tegrity <strong>and</strong> structure.<br />

These n<strong>in</strong>e suggestions - or guidel<strong>in</strong>es - are developed <strong>in</strong> order to walk along <strong>and</strong> pursue the UN-Habitat Goals for a<br />

Susta<strong>in</strong>able Future (SDGs), <strong>in</strong> the specific the Goal 11 “Make cities <strong>and</strong> human settlements <strong>in</strong>clusive, safe, resilient <strong>and</strong><br />

susta<strong>in</strong>able”. The best aspect of develop<strong>in</strong>g this program <strong>in</strong> an 11.5 km² area is the possibility to manage <strong>and</strong> control<br />

better spaces, human <strong>and</strong> societal <strong>in</strong>terrelations, urban challenges <strong>and</strong> environmental opportunities these actions can<br />

give a start to.<br />

The n<strong>in</strong>e shared rules should be taken as start<strong>in</strong>g po<strong>in</strong>ts for a better liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> welfare conditions <strong>in</strong> Paskuqan <strong>and</strong><br />

later on, s<strong>in</strong>ce they are thought not to be onerous economically speak<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong> similar <strong>in</strong>formal settlements <strong>in</strong> the rest of<br />

Albania. The general goal here is to enforce the societal sector, the trustfulness <strong>in</strong> the central government - which can<br />

become an active stakeholder to susta<strong>in</strong> the improvement of the neighborhood - <strong>and</strong> economic possibilities <strong>in</strong> Albania.<br />

It is not to be forgotten that Albania is a country that has still open the communist dictatorship wound, <strong>and</strong>, hopefully,<br />

with helps, supports <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>dications could take one step further towards the concretization of the admission <strong>in</strong>to the<br />

European Union.<br />

The n<strong>in</strong>e shared rules are:<br />

#1 the maximum height for a build<strong>in</strong>g has to around six metres (2 floors), but if an additional level wants to<br />

be added by the owners the ground floor has to be commercial <strong>in</strong> order to promote economic livel<strong>in</strong>ess;<br />

#2 possibly, new build<strong>in</strong>gs along the ma<strong>in</strong> street, Unaza e Madhe, have to complete the l<strong>in</strong>ear visualization<br />

of the front;<br />

#3 fences are admitted but have to be visually permeable or mitigated by plants or shrubs;<br />

#4 voids amongst houses, ab<strong>and</strong>oned l<strong>and</strong>s or l<strong>and</strong>s without documented ownerships are freezed, 30%<br />

become shared farml<strong>and</strong>s <strong>and</strong> vegetable gardens open to the community, 20% is dest<strong>in</strong>ed to ecological <strong>in</strong>terventions<br />

<strong>and</strong> the remnant becomes public spaces <strong>and</strong> gardens for children;<br />

#5 at least one side of the parcel has to be shared;<br />

#6 unf<strong>in</strong>ished build<strong>in</strong>gs happen<strong>in</strong>g on the front of the ma<strong>in</strong> commercial road, if not completed <strong>in</strong> two years,<br />

are subject of agreement with the municipal adm<strong>in</strong>istration to conform rule 1;<br />

#7 new build<strong>in</strong>gs, <strong>in</strong> two years, have to be equipped with the eco-susta<strong>in</strong>able basic kit;<br />

#8 well enlightened <strong>and</strong> appropriate sidewalks give back spaces, safety <strong>and</strong> visual order to pedestrians;<br />

#9 secondary streets are dest<strong>in</strong>ed exclusively to pedestrians <strong>and</strong> vehicles are admitted only by right of way<br />

<strong>and</strong>, more generally, are allowed to circulate on the ma<strong>in</strong> roads.<br />

Cont<strong>in</strong>uously, Inforder Dom<strong>in</strong>o tries to imag<strong>in</strong>e how the shape of Paskuqan city <strong>and</strong> its <strong>in</strong>habitants’ behaviors <strong>and</strong><br />

daily actions can modify themselves be<strong>in</strong>g related to these new n<strong>in</strong>e guidel<strong>in</strong>es. These ideas can become reality <strong>and</strong><br />

can function only at the precise moment <strong>and</strong> if they are accepted <strong>and</strong> shared by the community they are referr<strong>in</strong>g<br />

to. Alongside with the two different densities, two different answers are thought to be received <strong>and</strong> catalyzed by this<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal settlement: one <strong>in</strong> l<strong>in</strong>e with the commercial vocation <strong>in</strong> the first stretch of Unaza e Madhe <strong>and</strong> another one<br />

more related with the possibility of bigger community open spaces <strong>in</strong> the second stretch.<br />

Furthermore, the chronological development is of central <strong>in</strong>terest. Witness<strong>in</strong>g personally the crucial aspects of this<br />

neighborhood, the importance of conceiv<strong>in</strong>g a development by phases is pivotal. The ma<strong>in</strong> aspects to develop first<br />

are correlated with the idea of gently reconstitute a public behavior <strong>in</strong> Paskuqan. Later on to dislocate public spaces<br />

<strong>and</strong> make common goods easily available to improve the general welfare. In the end, the goal is to push <strong>and</strong> concur<br />

towards a social equity, stability <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>clusiveness.<br />

Cities have the capability of provid<strong>in</strong>g someth<strong>in</strong>g for everybody, only because, <strong>and</strong> only when, they are created<br />

by everybody.<br />

Jane Jacobs


70 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

How should the team represent the concretization of the payback for the Paskuqan district? The vision here offered is hypothetical but not so far<br />

from the reality hoped for these type of settlements spread all over Albania.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 71<br />

CONCLUSION AND CONSIDERATIONS<br />

F<strong>in</strong>ally, sett<strong>in</strong>g a hypothetical conclusion date to the programmed processes <strong>in</strong> 2070, a synthesis image has been produced.<br />

Would it be possible to obta<strong>in</strong> a propositive behavior which meets <strong>and</strong> support the n<strong>in</strong>e shared rules previously<br />

proposed? The scenario is here displayed: a positive answer <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>tegration of the project guidel<strong>in</strong>es. The structure<br />

of the neighborhood has changed, <strong>in</strong> the voids spread <strong>and</strong> scattered all over, previously ab<strong>and</strong>oned, a new form of<br />

public aggregation has grown: vegetable gardens, playgrounds <strong>and</strong> green areas are now <strong>in</strong>tegral services of Paskuqan.<br />

Consequently, the <strong>in</strong>habitants’ lives of the district have changed. A different range of opportunities <strong>and</strong> possibilities<br />

have been opened up; new <strong>and</strong> differentiated workplaces have been imported; many solid rights <strong>and</strong> common goods<br />

have been achieved. Truthfully, it has been taken <strong>in</strong>to consideration that the anthropological <strong>and</strong> societal characters<br />

are the most difficult to change <strong>and</strong> once the process has started it requires a lot of time to happen completely.<br />

Through the storyboard, the goal is to underst<strong>and</strong> the possible reactions <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>terpretations acted by different population<br />

age groups. A fictional family, actually based on real people met dur<strong>in</strong>g the survey, have been portrayed here <strong>in</strong><br />

order to show how the different layers of the project can really <strong>in</strong>teract with Paskuqan <strong>in</strong>habitants. Antela, Evis, Esther,<br />

Afrim <strong>and</strong> Adan are the chosen characters testify<strong>in</strong>g through their actions the realization of the project.<br />

In conclusion, the physical model presented wants to be the synthesis of both the reason<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> the n<strong>in</strong>e shared rules<br />

proposed. Thought as a board game, eighteen different cards are present <strong>in</strong> the box: n<strong>in</strong>e cards display<strong>in</strong>g different<br />

environments <strong>in</strong> the Paskuqan district (the commercial front, the voids, the villas…) <strong>and</strong> n<strong>in</strong>e cards represent<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

expla<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> detail the shared rules of the project. Pick<strong>in</strong>g one card at time, after read<strong>in</strong>g its description, people have<br />

to place the red magnetic elements available <strong>in</strong> the box (commercial build<strong>in</strong>gs, private build<strong>in</strong>gs, s<strong>in</strong>gle floor <strong>and</strong> double<br />

floor porches, low <strong>and</strong> permeable fences, shared sites, agricultural field plate, recycl<strong>in</strong>g waste plate, pedestrian<br />

cross<strong>in</strong>g, street light, cars, trees plate) onto the white base represent<strong>in</strong>g a portion of the Paskuqan neighbourhood,<br />

obviously accord<strong>in</strong>g to the rules.


72 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 73


74 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 75


76 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 77


78 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 79<br />

honourable<br />

mention<br />

Karachi, Pakistan<br />

GARBAGEISTAN* - THE LAND OF ‘IMPURE’<br />

A SANITATION SOLUTION FOR AN INFORMAL<br />

NEIGHBOURHOOD BUILT ON TRASH<br />

Ferya Ilyas<br />

Shizhe Ma<br />

Yil<strong>in</strong> Lai<br />

University of<br />

Stuttgart<br />

GERMANY


80 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Garbageistan*, the l<strong>and</strong> of<br />

Garbageistan* - the l<strong>and</strong> of ‘impure’<br />

the impure<br />

A sanitation solution for an <strong>in</strong>formal neighbourhood<br />

AA143.<br />

built on trash<br />

A sanitation solution for an <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

neighbourhood built on trash<br />

KARACHI, PAKISTAN<br />

FERYA ILYAS, SHIZHE MA, YILIN LAI<br />

MSC INTEGRATED URBANISM AND SUSTAINABE DESIGN, UNIVERSITY OF STUTTGART<br />

MSC INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING, UNIVERSITY OF STUTTGART<br />

PITCH YOUR IDEA<br />

For the residents of Machar Colony, their congested, <strong>in</strong>formal neighbourhood is a place where people eat together,<br />

celebrate together <strong>and</strong> mourn together. Their cultural <strong>and</strong> religious beliefs tell them to be grateful for what they have<br />

- family, shelter <strong>and</strong> food, rather than compla<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g about what they don’t have - water supply, electricity <strong>and</strong> good<br />

education. But even as they ignore all that is miss<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> their neighbourhood <strong>and</strong> get on with their life, they can’t help<br />

but compla<strong>in</strong> about the tonnes of garbage that make up their urban l<strong>and</strong>scape.<br />

The waste management system is dysfunctional almost <strong>in</strong> the entire city but the situation is acute <strong>in</strong> Machar Colony<br />

which was built on l<strong>and</strong> encroached with the help of garbage. In early 80s, mafia-like l<strong>and</strong> grabbers began to dump<br />

heaps of trash near the sea to reclaim new l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> a creative way of encroachment, made needy families build<br />

temporary hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the area. Over the period of 35 years, shanties changed <strong>in</strong>to brick houses, streets started to take<br />

shape <strong>and</strong> refugees from Bangladesh, Myanmar <strong>and</strong> Afghanistan began to call this home. While the neighbourhood<br />

grew <strong>and</strong> changed dur<strong>in</strong>g this time, what rema<strong>in</strong>ed constant was the garbage. A storm dra<strong>in</strong> runs through the middle<br />

of the Colony but is today choked with plastic bags <strong>and</strong> shrimp shells; on top of this, human waste is improperly released<br />

<strong>in</strong>to it through rubber pipes. The streets <strong>and</strong> empty spaces are also littered with trash as residents conveniently<br />

dump their household waste wherever they want.<br />

In this ‘dirty’ sett<strong>in</strong>g, our project ‘Garbageistan’ seeks to address the issue of waste management by acknowledg<strong>in</strong>g<br />

people’s expressed desire to live <strong>in</strong> a cleaner environment <strong>and</strong> by mak<strong>in</strong>g use of the community bond that exists <strong>in</strong><br />

Machar Colony. The project has a multi-faceted approach: recycle household <strong>and</strong> fishery-related waste, build a sanitation<br />

network <strong>and</strong> revitalise the storm dra<strong>in</strong>. Start<strong>in</strong>g with a pilot project which will build one recycle centre, two digestion<br />

tanks <strong>and</strong> a network of sewer l<strong>in</strong>es <strong>in</strong> a small block, the goal is to replicate the pilot <strong>in</strong> the entire neighbourhood<br />

over a period of 10 years <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> three phases.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 81<br />

Image WELCOME title <strong>and</strong> TO Annotation KARACHI’S : Uctorum, MACHAR mor averis COLONY viderei WHERE et vilia 700,000 re im hiliam PEOPLE tus cae opte, LIVE cam WITHOUT te, dion BASIC sulati stat, SERVICES octo <strong>in</strong> Etrit SUCH , Loreta AS re ims.<br />

ELECTRICITY AND WATER SUPPLY.


82 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Image title <strong>and</strong> Annotation : Uctorum, mor averis viderei et vilia re im hiliam tus cae opte, cam te, dion sulati stat, octo <strong>in</strong> Etrit , Loreta re ims.<br />

LOCATED NEAR THE SEA, THIS INFORMAL SETTLEMENT IS HOME TO PEOPLE ASSOCIATED WITH THE<br />

FISHING INDUSTRY.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 83<br />

CONTEXT AND PROCESS<br />

If you are new to Machar Colony, a walk through the narrow lanes of this <strong>in</strong>formal settlement can tickle many senses.<br />

Heaps of trash for as far as your eyes can see; stench of plastic bags <strong>and</strong> leftover food rott<strong>in</strong>g together <strong>and</strong> a b<strong>and</strong><br />

of mosquitos bit<strong>in</strong>g your sk<strong>in</strong> would welcome you to this neighbourhood. To an average person, liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> such a condition<br />

would be out of question but around 700,000 people belong<strong>in</strong>g to low-<strong>in</strong>come groups reside <strong>in</strong> this <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlement.<br />

Built on l<strong>and</strong> owned by the federal government as well as l<strong>and</strong> reclaimed from sea, Machar Colony is located right next<br />

to the most important port of the country but lacks basic <strong>in</strong>frastructure such as sewage <strong>and</strong> water supply system. The<br />

dra<strong>in</strong> that runs through the neighbourhood holds years of trash that is almost rock solid <strong>and</strong> makes a perfect breed<strong>in</strong>g<br />

ground for several diseases that haunt the neighbourhood.<br />

Sometimes dubbed as the biggest ‘refugee camp’ <strong>in</strong> South Asia because of its demographics, Machar Colony is home<br />

to poorly-paid fisherman <strong>and</strong> cheap manual labour. With s<strong>in</strong>gle families rang<strong>in</strong>g from eight to 10 people, both men<br />

<strong>and</strong> women work to earn a liv<strong>in</strong>g while children also make up a big part of the labour market.<br />

While the situation <strong>in</strong> Machar Colony may seem discourag<strong>in</strong>g at first glance, a closer look reveals a wide variety of<br />

opportunities that can be used to progressively improve the liv<strong>in</strong>g condition of the neighbourhood.<br />

Firstly, the Colony is located near one of the ma<strong>in</strong> wastewater treatment plants <strong>in</strong> the city which is currently work<strong>in</strong>g<br />

below its capacity. With the capacity to treat 245,000 cubic meters sewerage per day, the plant only processes<br />

159,000 m3/d. The residual capacity is technically enough to treat all the wastewater produced by the neighbourhood<br />

which is estimated to be 25 litres per person per day.<br />

Secondly, Machar Colony lies next to one of the major roads which connects the southern part of Karachi to the rest<br />

of the city, mak<strong>in</strong>g the neighbourhood an accessible area <strong>in</strong> terms of transportation. A tra<strong>in</strong> track also crawls by the<br />

periphery of the Colony which, though currently unused, is part of the <strong>in</strong>ter-city circular railway system whose revival<br />

is on the top of the public transportation agenda of the city.<br />

And f<strong>in</strong>ally, as the neighbourhood is located near Karachi port, any plan to exp<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> improve the port will have a<br />

direct impact on the Colony. Accord<strong>in</strong>g to a development plan, the port authorities want to reclaim l<strong>and</strong> from the sea<br />

<strong>and</strong> construct a cargo village <strong>in</strong> the area for transport<strong>in</strong>g goods to the rest of the city as well as the country. While on<br />

one h<strong>and</strong>, this could mean trouble for the <strong>in</strong>formal settlement which might be seen as a security threat or an eyesore,<br />

on the other h<strong>and</strong> this could act as a catalyst for the transformation of the area, offer<strong>in</strong>g new employment opportunities<br />

<strong>and</strong> br<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> basic services to the Colony.<br />

With these challenges <strong>and</strong> opportunities <strong>in</strong> m<strong>in</strong>d, we narrowed down our focus to two ma<strong>in</strong> types of waste: household<br />

waste <strong>and</strong> fishery-related trash. The household waste is ma<strong>in</strong>ly composed of plastic bags which are widely used across<br />

the city for carry<strong>in</strong>g everyth<strong>in</strong>g from vegetables, milk to clothes. The other major component of the household waste<br />

is dal chawwal (boiled rice with lentil curry) - a traditional <strong>and</strong> beloved Bengali meal eaten almost every day. S<strong>in</strong>ce the<br />

neighbourhood has no electricity, stor<strong>in</strong>g leftover food <strong>in</strong> a cool place is out of option. The fishery-related trash ma<strong>in</strong>ly<br />

conta<strong>in</strong>s shrimp shells. Everyday at 5am, men, women <strong>and</strong> children walk to the port to collect baskets full of shrimps<br />

which they peel dur<strong>in</strong>g the day <strong>in</strong> return of a meagre amount of money.


84 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Image title <strong>and</strong> Annotation : Uctorum, mor averis viderei et vilia re im hiliam tus cae opte, cam te, dion sulati stat, octo <strong>in</strong> Etrit , Loreta re ims.<br />

GARBAGEISTAN ENVISIONS CHANGING THE POLLUTED STORM DRAIN INTO A CLEAN CHANNEL OF WATER<br />

WHICH TRANSPORTS TREATED WASTEWATER TO THE SEA.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 85<br />

DESIGN VISION AND STRATEGIES *<br />

In the next ten years <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> three phases, Garbageistan seeks to develop an <strong>in</strong>tegrated waste management system <strong>in</strong><br />

Machar Colony. The goals are to:<br />

build a sewage network <strong>in</strong> the entire settlement, transport<strong>in</strong>g waste from toilets to process<strong>in</strong>g units <strong>and</strong> to city’s waste<br />

treatment plant located nearby<br />

process everyday household <strong>and</strong> commercial waste to elim<strong>in</strong>ate the accumulation of trash <strong>in</strong> streets <strong>and</strong> open spaces<br />

<strong>and</strong> produce electricity.<br />

revitalise the storm dra<strong>in</strong> by remov<strong>in</strong>g trash <strong>and</strong> us<strong>in</strong>g it as a channel to release treated wastewater <strong>in</strong>to the sea<br />

use Machar Colony as an example for waste management <strong>in</strong> the rest of the city<br />

Process<br />

In the first phase, we plan to build a waste management centre, two digestion tanks <strong>and</strong> sewage network <strong>in</strong> a small<br />

block as a pilot project. Build<strong>in</strong>g on the experiences <strong>and</strong> research done by another NGO called Concern for Children<br />

(CFC), we will locate the pilot project near the stormwater dra<strong>in</strong> which we underst<strong>and</strong> is the hotspot for the waste<br />

problem of the neighbourhood; also it will be visible to most of the residents who we want to engage <strong>and</strong> work with.<br />

For its own work purpose, CFC had divided Machar Colony <strong>in</strong>to five zones, three of which lie right next to the storm<br />

dra<strong>in</strong> while the other two are a little further. Garbageistan makes use of this spatial configuration for all its phases as<br />

it works well with our strategy. The waste management centre of the pilot project will collect <strong>and</strong> sort trash from the<br />

block it is located <strong>in</strong>; the plastic bags will be sold to the plastic recycl<strong>in</strong>g company called Green Earth Recycl<strong>in</strong>g which<br />

has been work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the city s<strong>in</strong>ce early 90s to recycle <strong>and</strong> reuse plastic. The biowaste will be sent to the digestion<br />

tanks which will process the waste <strong>and</strong> produce electricity. S<strong>in</strong>ce the energy produced will be of less amount <strong>and</strong> low<br />

power, the project proposes to use it for community kitchens to replace the need of cutt<strong>in</strong>g nearby mangrove forests<br />

for firewood. The digestion tanks will also treat wastewater from the sewage system. While these steps will prevent<br />

addition of new trash <strong>in</strong>to the storm dra<strong>in</strong>, the project plans to progressively remove exist<strong>in</strong>g garbage from the dra<strong>in</strong><br />

to restore the channel to its orig<strong>in</strong>al use. The goal here is to provide a recreational <strong>and</strong> aesthetically-pleas<strong>in</strong>g space to<br />

the residents as well as use the dra<strong>in</strong> to release treated water <strong>in</strong>to the sea.<br />

In the second phase, the pilot project will be replicated to other parts of the neighbourhood along the dra<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> other<br />

zones, <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g the number of waste management centres <strong>and</strong> digestion tanks as well as clean<strong>in</strong>g the dra<strong>in</strong> further<br />

<strong>and</strong> build<strong>in</strong>g more sewer l<strong>in</strong>es.<br />

In the third phase, the project targets to build the sewer system <strong>in</strong> the entire neighbourhood. Given the limited<br />

capacity of digestion tanks to treat waste, we only plan to <strong>in</strong>stall them along the dra<strong>in</strong> to release treated water <strong>in</strong>to<br />

the channel. For other parts of the neighbourhood, the project plans to connect the sewer l<strong>in</strong>es to the city’s waste<br />

treatment centre.


86 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 87


88 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Developement phase<br />

ZONE_04<br />

ZONE_04<br />

Government sewage l<strong>in</strong>e<br />

ZONE_04<br />

ZONE_05<br />

ZONE_05<br />

TP3 (Sewage Water<br />

Treatement Plant - 3)<br />

ZONE_05<br />

ZONE_01<br />

ZONE_01<br />

ZONE_01<br />

ZONE_02<br />

ZONE_02<br />

Mangroves<br />

forest<br />

Proposed sewage l<strong>in</strong>e<br />

ZONE_02<br />

ZONE_03<br />

ZONE_03<br />

ZONE_03<br />

Phase I 2 years Phase II 4 years Phase III 4 years<br />

Phase 1, Pilot Project, make used of the<br />

experiences <strong>and</strong> resources of CFC to<br />

start, the location will be actors <strong>and</strong> the<br />

problematic hotspot.<br />

Phase 2, develop<strong>in</strong>g the strategies along the<br />

open storm dra<strong>in</strong>, copy<strong>in</strong>g the pilot project to the<br />

blocks along the dra<strong>in</strong>.<br />

Phase 3, build up the whole sanitary system for the settlement.<br />

Dredg<strong>in</strong>g all the waste sediment <strong>in</strong> the open dra<strong>in</strong>age, clean<br />

up the accumulated trash dumps of the entire settlement, <strong>and</strong><br />

revitalized the coastal ecosystem.<br />

Government sewage l<strong>in</strong>e<br />

ZONE_04<br />

ZONE_05<br />

PILOT<br />

PROJECT<br />

ZONE_01<br />

Proposed sewage l<strong>in</strong>e<br />

ZONE_02<br />

ZONE_03<br />

200 M<br />

Master plan


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 89<br />

VISON<br />

Design: Pilot prject


90 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Ferya Ilyas<br />

Yil<strong>in</strong> Lai<br />

Shizhe Ma<br />

A word from the group<br />

FERYA ILYAS, SHIZHE MA, YILIN LAI, UNIVERSITY OF STUTTGART, GERMANY<br />

We are three students of University<br />

of Stuttgart from Pakistan<br />

(Ferya), Ch<strong>in</strong>a (Ma) <strong>and</strong> Taiwan<br />

(Yil<strong>in</strong>) Ferya is a journalist from Karachi;<br />

she has a bachelor’s degree <strong>in</strong> Mass<br />

Communication with specialisation <strong>in</strong> pr<strong>in</strong>t<br />

journalism. She worked for a newspaper<br />

for six years dur<strong>in</strong>g which she reported on<br />

urban issues prevalent <strong>in</strong> Karachi. Ma is an<br />

environmental eng<strong>in</strong>eer currently do<strong>in</strong>g<br />

his master’s <strong>in</strong> Infrastructure Plann<strong>in</strong>g. His<br />

academic <strong>in</strong>terests lie <strong>in</strong> how to implement<br />

blue-green <strong>in</strong>frastructures to address<br />

climate change <strong>in</strong> cities. Yil<strong>in</strong> is a l<strong>and</strong>scape<br />

architect, focus<strong>in</strong>g on plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> design<strong>in</strong>g<br />

green <strong>in</strong>frastructure. She has work experience<br />

<strong>in</strong> plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> construction fields<br />

<strong>and</strong> was <strong>in</strong>spired to study urbanism after<br />

travell<strong>in</strong>g to 11 brilliant cities <strong>in</strong> different<br />

parts of the world.<br />

For us, <strong>in</strong>formality is organic, <strong>in</strong>genious<br />

<strong>and</strong> complex. While at first we were<br />

<strong>in</strong>troduced to <strong>in</strong>formality as someth<strong>in</strong>g bad,<br />

over the years we have learnt that there’s<br />

more opportunity than threats <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanisation. Due to the severe lack of<br />

<strong>in</strong>frastructure, uncontrolled growth <strong>and</strong><br />

<strong>in</strong>tense <strong>in</strong>equality, <strong>in</strong>formality is probably<br />

the most urgent task faced by planners<br />

for susta<strong>in</strong>able development. But it is also<br />

the most beautiful example of co-creation;<br />

how people come together to address their<br />

needs <strong>in</strong> a city which doesn’t care much for<br />

them. Given the magnitude of this phenomenon<br />

- dense population, limited resources<br />

<strong>and</strong> unofficial development, the topic deserves<br />

a closer <strong>in</strong>spection with the simple<br />

aim of mak<strong>in</strong>g people’s lives better.<br />

While tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g new planners <strong>in</strong> how to<br />

address <strong>in</strong>formality, the academia must<br />

take a multidiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary approach to underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality. <strong>Informal</strong> urbanisation<br />

is like a city with<strong>in</strong> a city, with its own<br />

political, social <strong>and</strong> economic dynamics<br />

<strong>and</strong> that’s is exactly why it needs to be seen<br />

holistically, rather than just as a spatial<br />

configuration. Most importantly, people’s<br />

wellbe<strong>in</strong>g should be at the centre of all discussions,<br />

<strong>in</strong>terventions <strong>and</strong> recommendations<br />

for <strong>in</strong>formality <strong>and</strong> this just not means<br />

keep<strong>in</strong>g them <strong>in</strong> m<strong>in</strong>d when plann<strong>in</strong>g for<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality but ask<strong>in</strong>g them for solutions.<br />

They are the experts of their habitat <strong>and</strong><br />

they should be the one guid<strong>in</strong>g the process<br />

of chang<strong>in</strong>g conditions for better.<br />

Go<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>to the specifics, study<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

should deal with real-life cases, actual<br />

<strong>in</strong>terventions <strong>and</strong> long-term plann<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

Each context is different <strong>and</strong> by provid<strong>in</strong>g<br />

students the opportunities to work directly<br />

<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formality, educational <strong>in</strong>stitutions can<br />

equip students with the right skills, knowledge<br />

<strong>and</strong> underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g needed to work<br />

<strong>in</strong> this ever grow<strong>in</strong>g field of urbanism. Also,<br />

s<strong>in</strong>ce majority of the <strong>in</strong>formality is <strong>in</strong> the<br />

‘Global South’, it is important that students<br />

are not advised to apply plann<strong>in</strong>g practises<br />

of the ‘developed world’ to the ‘develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

countries’ because their realities are<br />

poles apart; s<strong>in</strong>ce there seems to be a gap<br />

<strong>in</strong> terms of research done on <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

<strong>in</strong> the ‘Global South’, students should be<br />

encouraged to dig deep <strong>in</strong> the topic <strong>and</strong><br />

develop new theories <strong>and</strong> frameworks<br />

that can help further research <strong>and</strong> future<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 91<br />

Diego, Pablo <strong>and</strong> Sule dur<strong>in</strong>g pre-selection of the 20 f<strong>in</strong>alists


92 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The second place was<br />

shared between two<br />

teams


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 93<br />

Salvador, Brazil<br />

COMMUNITY ARTICULATION IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD<br />

A YOUTH PROCESS IN SUBURBIO FERROVIARIO OF<br />

SALVADOR, BRAZIL<br />

2Ana Clara Oliveira de Araújo<br />

Camila P<strong>in</strong>ho de Mello<br />

Mariana Ribeiro Pardo<br />

Federal University of Bahia<br />

BRAZIL


94 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Community articulation <strong>in</strong><br />

AA 135<br />

COMMUNITY ARTICULATION IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD<br />

the neighbourhood<br />

A youth process <strong>in</strong> Subúrbio Ferroviário of Salvador, Brazil<br />

A youth process <strong>in</strong> Suburbio Ferroviario of<br />

Salvador, Brazil<br />

SALVADOR, BRAZIL<br />

ANA CLARA OLIVEIRA DE ARAÚJO, CAMILA PINHO DE MELLO, MARIANA RIBEIRO PARDO<br />

FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF BAHIA<br />

COMMUNITY ARTICULATION IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD<br />

The project Community Articulation <strong>in</strong> the Neighbourhood (or CAN) proposes to th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>and</strong> produce the city <strong>in</strong> a collaborative<br />

perspective, through a process of formation <strong>and</strong> mobilization of young people, between 14 <strong>and</strong> 18 years old,<br />

that attend high school public <strong>in</strong>stitutions <strong>and</strong> are part of the Community Schools <strong>in</strong> the Subúrbio Ferroviário area,<br />

which is a peripheral zone <strong>in</strong> north-western part of the city of Salvador, <strong>in</strong> Brazil. The proposal is configured as a plan<br />

of socio-educational actions, which discuss the thematic of Education <strong>and</strong> City from six axes: Environment, Culture,<br />

Health, Urban Mobility, Collective Spaces <strong>and</strong> Income Generation. These axes have been chosen <strong>in</strong> the field, with <strong>in</strong>habitants<br />

<strong>and</strong> others social agents <strong>in</strong> the locality of Escada, a neighbourhood <strong>in</strong> the Subúrbio Ferroviário.<br />

The contact with the Community School of Escada, by a project of the Federal University of Bahia, made the relationship<br />

with other educational <strong>in</strong>stitutions easier due the network action with four other Community Schools: (2) Nova<br />

Constitu<strong>in</strong>te, (3) São José Operário, (4) Nossa Senhora Medianeira <strong>and</strong> (5) V<strong>in</strong>te de Novembro. All these schools are<br />

<strong>in</strong>serted <strong>in</strong> the area of the Subúrbio Ferroviário of Salvador, <strong>and</strong> work with pedagogical actions with teenagers to contribute<br />

<strong>in</strong> the expression of the citizenship. These actions help <strong>in</strong> the development of active people <strong>and</strong> the awareness<br />

of their social responsibilities <strong>in</strong> the space where they <strong>in</strong>habit.<br />

To change urban spaces it is important to consider the participation <strong>and</strong> the autonomy of citizens <strong>in</strong> the decisions regard<br />

the city. Study<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> practic<strong>in</strong>g the urban plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the educational perspective helps the <strong>in</strong>strumentalization<br />

of people to the social action. The pr<strong>in</strong>cipal partners to this project are young people, who participate of activities <strong>in</strong><br />

the community schools, <strong>in</strong> dialogue with different social agents: <strong>in</strong>habitants of the neighbourhood, teachers, college<br />

students, cultural agents <strong>and</strong> others.<br />

The target audience have been chosen <strong>in</strong> reason of their potential for community mobilization, political organization<br />

of young people, network articulation <strong>in</strong> formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal fields <strong>and</strong> circulation of <strong>in</strong>formation. As partners <strong>in</strong> the<br />

organization <strong>and</strong> realization of the proposal, we have students of the Federal University of Bahia that fit <strong>in</strong> this context<br />

through a permanent <strong>in</strong>terdiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary extension project with the community. The university extension allows to<br />

students a professional formation with social responsibility, with the possibility of partnerships with state bureaus to<br />

f<strong>in</strong>anc<strong>in</strong>g the proposal.<br />

The project will be <strong>in</strong>cluded <strong>in</strong> the school year <strong>in</strong> the community schools, s<strong>in</strong>ce March to November, consider<strong>in</strong>g<br />

holidays <strong>in</strong> July. The implementation can be <strong>in</strong> the next school year, which will starts <strong>in</strong> 2019, develop<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> weekly<br />

meet<strong>in</strong>gs between the high school students, college students, teachers <strong>and</strong> specific guests for each axe addressed.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 95<br />

Community Articulation <strong>in</strong> the Neighbourhood: Proposal of a collective <strong>and</strong> collaborative urban plann<strong>in</strong>g (Personal production).


96 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The axes <strong>in</strong> the territory: the themes were chosen <strong>in</strong> the work field <strong>and</strong> with the popular participation (Personal production).


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 97<br />

CONTEXT AND PROCESS<br />

Demporem ulparibus, nonsequam ide es eium volendam sequae <strong>in</strong>cid mi, et opta dolupta nobitem aboraep erovit<br />

The proposal is situated <strong>in</strong> the locality of Escada, <strong>in</strong> the area of Subúrbio Ferroviário of Salvador, capital of Bahia, the<br />

am quatiisquam fugit aut ero <strong>in</strong>ctas ipit, num etustiatio escitis quundicium, volut <strong>in</strong>ullatent magnis ex et quatio. Itae<br />

biggest state <strong>in</strong> the northeast side of Brazil. Accord<strong>in</strong>g to the Brazilian Institute of Geographic <strong>and</strong> Statistics (IBGE),<br />

vollent quid ut et quas et expla volest, quas acculla boreiurio. Itae num fugit earcili bereseque simagnias es eicatet<br />

this area of the city, occupied s<strong>in</strong>ce the mid-n<strong>in</strong>eteenth century, has about 10% of the Salvador population, almost<br />

optas <strong>and</strong>unt quibeatem quis qui ius<strong>and</strong>i aut et aperchilla nis volut raturiatem arumend itibusa estrum excerum de<br />

290 thous<strong>and</strong> people, whose 78% declares themselves as black or brown sk<strong>in</strong> people. Among the socioeconomic <strong>in</strong>dicators<br />

about this zone, we have the average monthly <strong>in</strong>come per family, with 4 people, correspond<strong>in</strong>g to R$906,68<br />

debitatibus, sum ipicid quaturecest ent accatur molorroriati doluptas rem iume comnis con pa ducienimaio. Nam<br />

eium quuntur s<strong>in</strong>verc hillitibea dolorem ipsum volut et ducimet eumquat fuga. S<strong>in</strong>ia volor aut quis quatati as dolecab<br />

(US$242.45), lower than the national m<strong>in</strong>imum salary.<br />

orernam ius modit, s<strong>in</strong>ulparum faceriores et plis vendeli atempos dolupta pa pellatur? Quia que voluptaque ium eiciisit<br />

idernat us<strong>and</strong>is plabori aturessi ventionsed que rernat rempeditibus mi, <strong>in</strong>ctur sedionsent estiunt, torerum repudi<br />

In the field of education, Salvador, which is the fourth most populous city of Brazil, present worry<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formations.<br />

doluptium velia iliquiscid ut que sust, seque volorum, omnis evenda qui blam et faces magnat latur?<br />

Accord<strong>in</strong>g to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), <strong>in</strong> research developed <strong>in</strong> 2010, only 50,24% of<br />

young people between 14 <strong>and</strong> 18 years f<strong>in</strong>ished the elementary school. Besides, 78,91% of the population between<br />

Um velibus, ute net mos et, optat<strong>in</strong> ulparum et latus ea et libuste ssunt, sitia sitae cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, ommo <strong>in</strong>t laut dolor<br />

6 <strong>and</strong> 17 years, who attended regular basic education, had until 2 years of lag <strong>in</strong> the age-grade proportion. Also, only<br />

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17,6% of people between 18 <strong>and</strong> 24 years, <strong>in</strong> this period, was <strong>in</strong> college. These data shows the vulnerability condition<br />

optat eossitibus.Tibus magnihic te cum qui commod et ut et quassit, consectam re sunt libus mo quosto quibus mi,<br />

<strong>and</strong> the social <strong>in</strong>equality of this population.<br />

tem. Et quam aligeni maximporunde nobis ius recae volorrunto officium explant, aut que re dolorer rorepello quibus<br />

volupta se nisquaest pedias ium et plab ium idem et voluptio. Od maio blabor aut et alitatem ra dolupta voluptatur,<br />

In the Subúrbio Ferroviário of Salvador, we have 14 public schools that offer free high school to the population, spread<br />

etus ess<strong>in</strong>us aut molo cus.<br />

<strong>in</strong> seven of fifteen neighbourhoods of the area. Besides, there is a network of five community schools, which offers<br />

a socio-educational programme for teenagers. In approach with the Community School of Nossa Senhora de Escada,<br />

Uga. Ulparci ut lat aut ant, cus eicilitem ipit fugiatur ma pliquo evenihillaut officim odioribusci venet re volor accus<br />

<strong>and</strong> with the community where it is located, through the Faculty of Architecture, which started dur<strong>in</strong>g the year 2017,<br />

consequi te nonsequi<strong>and</strong>i <strong>and</strong>a poraest veliciis quae dolor ad modips<strong>and</strong>a de volectissim <strong>and</strong>ae eum re earitia vendae<br />

were discovered new possibilities <strong>in</strong> the city. Such possibilities propose a dialogue between education <strong>and</strong> urban plann<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

consider<strong>in</strong>g the participation <strong>and</strong> the autonomy of the citizens <strong>in</strong> decisions about the cities.<br />

none odit dolo ius et et, omnis deratusam essedi sum eatusa volupt<strong>in</strong>it omnisit, teturestrum aut des reictae resequis<br />

autatem re si bea sequaeri nihilitae id ex et mo maximag nienti que cone rem <strong>in</strong>ciistias et ut delia pelibeaquae nis<br />

reperum, sitium dolliqui aut optaepedi doluptiorum et vidis diss<strong>in</strong>cte veligen turitem ad ea corehenis que lacepresto<br />

The approach with the locality of Escada implied a process of study <strong>in</strong> the field – <strong>and</strong> with the field – from the speech<br />

to officiatio. Itatiis velenda arcid eiureped modit harum sit es rat et labo. Nem. Ut ipita dipsundae volorum iducius,<br />

of its residents , gett<strong>in</strong>g together different people to th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>and</strong> propose the city spaces. In opposite to the traditional<br />

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political planes, which benefits the economic <strong>in</strong>terests of a small part of the population <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>crease pre-existent<br />

que re busam dolum s<strong>in</strong>um a quia num eostrum dolor aut quassit voloribus niscilit omnimillat.Ut utem quas del expliti<br />

social asymmetries, are proposed new methodologies of citizen participation. This popular action, through education,<br />

onectae nusdam que re busam dolum s<strong>in</strong>um a quia num eostrum dolor aut quassit voloribus niscilit omnimillat.<br />

br<strong>in</strong>gs new perspectives to the social transformation, mak<strong>in</strong>g possible the dialogue with different social agents: the<br />

Trem de Ferro Movement; the cultural space Acervo da Laje; associations of residents; <strong>and</strong> government representatives,<br />

like the Mário Leal Ferreira Foundation, which works with the urban plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Salvador.<br />

Um velibus, ute net mos et, optat<strong>in</strong> ulparum et latus ea et libuste ssunt, sitia sitae cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, ommo <strong>in</strong>t laut dolor aut<br />

li<strong>and</strong>a doluptia sum ipiet am et voles eosa volorunt.At <strong>in</strong>t ad eost poris et ese con et dit quiscias et por asitiati optat<br />

eossitibus.Tibus magnihic te cum qui commod et ut et quassit, consectam re sunt libus mo quosto quibus mi, tem. Et<br />

The <strong>in</strong>teraction with these different people helped the debate about the problematic <strong>and</strong> potentialities of the area,<br />

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se nisquaest pedias ium et plab ium idem et voluptio. Et quam aligeni maximporunde nobis ius recae volorrunto<br />

def<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Escada six axes to work: environment, health, culture, urban mobility, collective spaces <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>come generation.<br />

From the work that has already been developed <strong>in</strong> the socio-educational project of the Community School<br />

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of Escada, it is proposed a process of student formation <strong>and</strong> mobilization, through the horizontal construction of a<br />

citizen action.


98 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Methodology of the proposal: how the activies will take place <strong>in</strong> the school year (Personal production).


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 99<br />

MAKING IT HAPPEN!<br />

This proposal presents itself as a possibility to amplify the debate about the city, by the construction of a citizen<br />

conscious <strong>and</strong> the young position <strong>in</strong> face to urban planes that implicate the space where they live. Start<strong>in</strong>g from a<br />

network of community schools <strong>in</strong> the Subúrbio Ferroviário of Salvador, we propose a process of community formation<br />

<strong>and</strong> mobilization to young people, between 14 <strong>and</strong> 18 years old, from high school <strong>in</strong>stitutions. The project looks for a<br />

dialogue between Education <strong>and</strong> City with six axes that have a relation with urban plann<strong>in</strong>g: environment, health, culture,<br />

urban mobility, collective spaces <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>come generation. The CAN project is an experience of collective actions<br />

that <strong>in</strong>clude popular participation, by the association between school, community <strong>and</strong> public university to th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>and</strong><br />

construct a different model of territorial ord<strong>in</strong>ation <strong>and</strong> management.<br />

We believe <strong>in</strong> the importance of discuss<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> creat<strong>in</strong>g alternatives for the urban plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>side schools, <strong>in</strong>volv<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the students <strong>in</strong> the debate of the right to the city <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>strumentaliz<strong>in</strong>g them with tools that help <strong>in</strong> the claim to<br />

their rights while citizens. It is also important to underst<strong>and</strong> their own city as a space to learn, <strong>and</strong> where is possible<br />

to make social, affective, territorial <strong>and</strong> cultural relationships that symbolize the history <strong>and</strong> the quotidian context of<br />

local population. In this sense, it is fundamental to mobilize young people, who are <strong>in</strong> the process to start<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the<br />

electoral system (<strong>in</strong> Brazil, it is possible to vote s<strong>in</strong>ce 16 years old), to th<strong>in</strong>k, discuss <strong>and</strong> claim for the effectiveness of<br />

public politics to help <strong>in</strong> the construction of a more just <strong>and</strong> democratic city.<br />

The CAN proposal has the <strong>in</strong>tention <strong>in</strong> be<strong>in</strong>g a process of collective formation <strong>and</strong> action that will happen weekly, <strong>in</strong><br />

the school year, <strong>in</strong>side the Community School of Escada. These activities will be performed <strong>in</strong> the opposite shift of<br />

the curricular m<strong>and</strong>atory agenda of high school public <strong>in</strong>stitutions. The Education State Bureau may regularize them<br />

as a complementary activity, mak<strong>in</strong>g official the project <strong>and</strong> help<strong>in</strong>g with f<strong>in</strong>anc<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> with certificate for the scholar<br />

record of the student. Other important vision of the project is the partnership with the Federal University of Bahia,<br />

underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g the social responsibility of a public university <strong>and</strong> putt<strong>in</strong>g together an <strong>in</strong>terdiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary team of students<br />

<strong>and</strong> professors to help with the organization <strong>and</strong> effectiveness of the activities.<br />

It is also important to underst<strong>and</strong> that mak<strong>in</strong>g the project <strong>in</strong>stitutional doesn’t decrease the <strong>in</strong>fluence of local population,<br />

community school or university, whom will be responsible for the proposal management <strong>and</strong> effectiveness. The<br />

<strong>in</strong>stitutionalization presents the importance of the government to provide adequate <strong>in</strong>vestments <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>frastructure<br />

to the activities. To this project, it is possible to count with the support of the Urban Development Bureau, the Culture<br />

Bureau <strong>and</strong> the Education Bureau. It is proposed an effective partnership between the State, the community <strong>and</strong> the<br />

public university.<br />

The project will take place <strong>in</strong> three stages, which will be distributed over eight months: (1) Approach <strong>and</strong> axe’s design;<br />

(2) formative process <strong>and</strong> collective actions of the six axes; <strong>and</strong> (3) conclusion <strong>and</strong> process systematization.<br />

(1) The first stage, which will happen <strong>in</strong> the 1st month, will be a place to approach <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>teract with all the people<br />

<strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> the project, allow<strong>in</strong>g the development of a sensibility <strong>and</strong> contextualization with the territory. Also, it will<br />

be possible to design, to adjust or either to modify the axes that will be worked with.<br />

(2) The second stage will be developed <strong>in</strong> the month 2 to 7, which means one month per axe of work. Each axe, by its<br />

turn, will be split <strong>in</strong> two moments. In the first two weeks, with theoretical tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>strumentalization about rights<br />

<strong>and</strong> strategies to claim the axe <strong>in</strong> question. The last two weeks, with more practical view, when the young students<br />

will plan collective actions <strong>in</strong> the neighbourhood. These practical activities can be workshops, micro <strong>in</strong>terventions,<br />

meet<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> others.<br />

(3) The third <strong>and</strong> last stage will take place <strong>in</strong> the last month, the 8, <strong>in</strong> a moment of conclusion <strong>and</strong> process evaluation.<br />

Also, will be possible to th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>in</strong> ways to gather <strong>and</strong> systemize all content <strong>and</strong> experiences occurred <strong>in</strong> the year. The<br />

f<strong>in</strong>al production may be share <strong>and</strong> accessed by other people across onl<strong>in</strong>e platforms, exhibitions or others strategies<br />

def<strong>in</strong>ed by the participants.


100 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Urban <strong>and</strong> social perspectives: the proposal <strong>in</strong>tents to articulate young people from Subúrbio Ferroviário area (Personal production).


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 101<br />

URBAN AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES<br />

The CAN proposal has a huge potential of transformation <strong>in</strong> the time-space where it will be placed. The strengthen<strong>in</strong>g<br />

of a citizen conscious, which may be horizontal constructed <strong>in</strong> idealized dialogues <strong>and</strong> activities, has the possibility of<br />

re<strong>in</strong>sertion of these <strong>in</strong>dividuals <strong>in</strong> the dispute field of the urban <strong>and</strong> regional plann<strong>in</strong>g, believ<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the importance of<br />

popular participation to build the city. In this sense, it has been def<strong>in</strong>ed the approach with the six axes designed <strong>in</strong> a<br />

process of <strong>in</strong>terlocution with the territory of Escada.<br />

By the moment when the Urban Development Bureau, the Culture Bureau <strong>and</strong> the Education Bureau are active, there<br />

is a new relationship between the population <strong>and</strong> the public services. This activation provides a new way to work, <strong>in</strong><br />

a local perspective <strong>and</strong> for the social agents, th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g the social rights <strong>in</strong> a horizontal model. Also, the participation of<br />

a public university helps <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>tegration between <strong>in</strong>stitutional tools <strong>and</strong> social dem<strong>and</strong>s, th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g about a collective<br />

knowledge construction, which implies a permanent renovation accord<strong>in</strong>g to the reality of the city.<br />

The young students, by their turn, will be actives agents <strong>in</strong> the space, strengthened by a network of <strong>in</strong>stitutional support<br />

to implement, create, <strong>and</strong> exp<strong>and</strong> the range of actions <strong>in</strong> the space they <strong>in</strong>habit. They also can support social<br />

movements that already exist <strong>in</strong> the territory, like cultural spaces, <strong>in</strong>habitant associations <strong>and</strong> others. The project aims<br />

are the expectation of multiplication of these actions, which should occur by circulation of <strong>in</strong>formation, articulation of<br />

formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal networks, community mobilization <strong>and</strong> young political organization. To th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>and</strong> to actively build<br />

the city implies a sense of belong<strong>in</strong>g to the space.<br />

After this first experience <strong>in</strong> the Community School of Escada, the project should be implemented <strong>in</strong> the others community<br />

schools <strong>in</strong> the area of Subúrbio Ferroviário of Salvador: (2) Nova Constitu<strong>in</strong>te, <strong>in</strong> the neighbourhood of Periperi;<br />

(3) São José Operário, <strong>in</strong> the locality of Coutos; (4) Nossa Senhora Medianeira <strong>and</strong> (5) V<strong>in</strong>te de Novembro, both <strong>in</strong><br />

the district of Paripe. Beside this, the participants <strong>in</strong> their own neighbourhoods can afford the proposal.<br />

Gather<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> groups <strong>and</strong> organiz<strong>in</strong>g ourselves politically is a fundamental <strong>and</strong> revolutionary action nowadays. S<strong>in</strong>ce the<br />

military dictatorship <strong>in</strong> the 80s, <strong>and</strong> recently with the presidential impeachment <strong>in</strong> 2016, the <strong>in</strong>security <strong>and</strong> disbelief <strong>in</strong><br />

the actual political system, <strong>in</strong> which have been denied collective actions <strong>and</strong> mobilizations, has grown. For this reason,<br />

it is very important to put the vote for the young people as a fundamental <strong>and</strong> democratic action.<br />

Also <strong>in</strong> 2016, the new federal government created the programme Médiotec with the provisional measure 746/2016.<br />

This programme implied a change of public high school education with a technical formation, which makes the poor<br />

students don’t see the university as their space. As a result of this situation the social <strong>in</strong>equality <strong>in</strong>creases, putt<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

poor students <strong>in</strong> technical courses <strong>and</strong> the rich young people <strong>in</strong> universities.<br />

The CAN project has the challenge of address<strong>in</strong>g democratic <strong>and</strong> horizontal ideas with the local population of the<br />

neighbourhood of Escada, th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> build<strong>in</strong>g the city as a collaborative plan. The possibility of empower<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> articulat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the population of Subúrbio Ferroviário presents itself as a potential way to change the <strong>in</strong>equality system that<br />

is common <strong>in</strong> Global South cities. The social <strong>in</strong>equality <strong>in</strong> Salvador touches old economic <strong>and</strong> racial problems which<br />

affect the poor people. For this reason, it is fundamental to br<strong>in</strong>g the population together, see<strong>in</strong>g the young people as<br />

the way to concretize ideas <strong>and</strong> actions <strong>in</strong> the urban plann<strong>in</strong>g.


102 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

SALVADOR<br />

SUBÚRBIO<br />

FERROVIÁRIO<br />

BAHIA<br />

BAHIA<br />

BRASIL<br />

BRASIL<br />

GROUP<br />

AA135


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 103<br />

CAN<br />

COMMUNITY ARTICULACION IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD<br />

The Community Articulation <strong>in</strong> the Neighbourhood (CAN) is a urban plann<strong>in</strong>g project with the theme of Education <strong>and</strong> City<br />

that proposes a articulation process between high school students, community, public university <strong>and</strong> state bureaus to address<br />

better solutions to change the social condition <strong>in</strong> the Subúrbio Ferroviário, a peripheral area <strong>in</strong> the north-western <strong>in</strong> the city of<br />

Salvador, <strong>in</strong> Brazil. This proposal is located <strong>in</strong> the neighbourhood of Escada, which has the Community School of Escada that<br />

works <strong>in</strong> a network with four others community schools <strong>in</strong> pedagogical actions to contribute for the expression of the citizenship<br />

by teenagers. The proposal is configured as a plan of socio-educational actions, which discuss Education <strong>and</strong> City from<br />

six axes: Environment, Culture, Health, Urban Mobility, Collective Spaces <strong>and</strong> Income Generation.<br />

CONTEXT AND PROCESS<br />

SALVADOR<br />

2,950,000 PEOPLE<br />

SUBÚRBIO<br />

FERROVIÁRIO<br />

290,000 PEOPLE<br />

MOUNTHLY INCOME<br />

PER FAMILY<br />

50.24%<br />

(4 PEOPLE)<br />

OF YOUNG PEOPLE<br />

BETWEEN 14 AND 18 YEARS<br />

$242.45<br />

TO SERVE 15 NEIGHBOURHOODS<br />

IN THE SUBÚRBIO FERROVIÁRIO<br />

14 STATE<br />

SCHOOLS<br />

(HIGH SCHOOL)<br />

FINISHED ELEMENTARY SCHOOL<br />

17.6%<br />

OF YOUNG PEOPLE<br />

BETWEEN 18 AND 24 YEARS<br />

ARE IN COLLEGE<br />

The data about the Subúrbio Ferroviário reveals a large population <strong>in</strong> social <strong>and</strong> economic vulnerabitity conditions that are<br />

accentuated by political planes directed for economic <strong>in</strong>terests of a small part of people. The approach with the locality of<br />

Escada implied a process of study <strong>in</strong> the field – <strong>and</strong> with the field – from the speech of its residents, gett<strong>in</strong>g together different<br />

people to th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>and</strong> propose the city spaces. This popular action, through education, br<strong>in</strong>gs new perspectives to the social<br />

transformation, mak<strong>in</strong>g possible the dialogue with different social agents. In approach with the Community School of Escada,<br />

<strong>and</strong> with the community where it is located, through the Faculty of Architecture, which started dur<strong>in</strong>g the year 2017, were discovered<br />

new possibilities <strong>in</strong> the city. Such possibilities propose a dialogue between education <strong>and</strong> urban plann<strong>in</strong>g, consider<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the participation <strong>and</strong> the autonomy of the citizens <strong>in</strong> decisions about the cities.


104 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

THE PROJECT<br />

This proposal presents itself as a possibility to amplify the debate about the city, by the construction<br />

of a citizen conscious <strong>and</strong> the young position <strong>in</strong> face to urban planes that implicate the space where<br />

they live. Start<strong>in</strong>g from a network of community schools <strong>in</strong> the Subúrbio Ferroviário of Salvador, we<br />

propose a process of community formation <strong>and</strong> mobilization to young people, between 14 <strong>and</strong> 18<br />

years old, from high school <strong>in</strong>stitutions. The project looks for a dialogue between Education <strong>and</strong> City<br />

with six axes that have a relation with urban plann<strong>in</strong>g: environment, health, culture, urban mobility,<br />

collective spaces <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>come generation. The CAN project is an experience of collective actions that<br />

<strong>in</strong>clude popular participation, by the association between school, community <strong>and</strong> public university<br />

to th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>and</strong> construct a different model of territorial ord<strong>in</strong>ation <strong>and</strong> management.<br />

Education <strong>and</strong> City<br />

collective actions + popular participation<br />

AXE 1 AXE 2 AXE 3 AXE 4 AXE 5<br />

ENVIRONMENT<br />

HEALTH<br />

CULTURE<br />

URBAN<br />

MOBILITY<br />

COLLECTIVE<br />

SPACES<br />

AXE 6<br />

INCOME<br />

GENERATION<br />

T<br />

sc<br />

c<br />

T<br />

meet<strong>in</strong>gs<br />

activities<br />

actions<br />

workshops<br />

By the moment when the Urban Development Bureau, the Culture Bureau <strong>and</strong> the Education Bureau<br />

are active, there is a new relationship between the population <strong>and</strong> the public services. This activation<br />

provides a new way to work, <strong>in</strong> a local perspective <strong>and</strong> for the social agents, th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g the social rights<br />

<strong>in</strong> a horizontal model. Also, the participation of a public university helps <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>tegration between<br />

<strong>in</strong>stitutional tools <strong>and</strong> social dem<strong>and</strong>s, th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g about a collective knowledge construction, which<br />

implies a permanent renovation accord<strong>in</strong>g to the reality of the city.<br />

community<br />

high school<br />

students<br />

public<br />

university<br />

government<br />

E<br />

te<br />

a<br />

governance participation partnership <strong>in</strong>vestment<br />

GROUP<br />

AA135<br />

CAN<br />

COMMUNITY ARTICULACION IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 105<br />

have an <strong>in</strong>fluence<br />

on decisions about<br />

the city!<br />

express op<strong>in</strong>ions!<br />

access<br />

rights !<br />

he CAN proposal has the <strong>in</strong>tention <strong>in</strong> be<strong>in</strong>g a process of collective formation <strong>and</strong> action that will happen weekly, <strong>in</strong> the<br />

hool year, <strong>in</strong>side the Community School of Escada. These activities will be performed <strong>in</strong> the opposite shift of the curriular<br />

m<strong>and</strong>atory agenda of high school public <strong>in</strong>stitutions.<br />

he project will take place <strong>in</strong> three stages, which will be distributed over eight months:<br />

2<br />

1<br />

Approach <strong>and</strong><br />

axe’s design<br />

formative process <strong>and</strong><br />

collective actions of the six axes<br />

JAN FEB MAR APR<br />

-<br />

- APPROACH ENVIRONMENT<br />

MAY JUN JUL AUG<br />

HEALTH CULTURE -<br />

URBAN<br />

MOBILITY<br />

3<br />

conclusion <strong>and</strong><br />

process systematization<br />

SEP OCT NOV DEC<br />

COLLECTIVE<br />

SPACES<br />

INCOME<br />

GENERATION<br />

CONCLUSION<br />

-<br />

ach axe will be split <strong>in</strong> two moments. In the first, with theoretical tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>strumentalization about rights <strong>and</strong> stragies<br />

to claim the axe <strong>in</strong> question. The second, with more practical view, when the young students will plan collective<br />

ctions <strong>in</strong> the neighbourhood. These practical activities can be workshops, micro <strong>in</strong>terventions, meet<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> others.<br />

axes<br />

1<br />

<strong>in</strong>strumentalization<br />

2<br />

collective actions<br />

activities<br />

multiplication


106 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

THE 6 AXES<br />

territorialized <strong>in</strong> Escada<br />

1 ENVIRONMENT<br />

Escada is a urban settlement that has<br />

relations with different physical <strong>and</strong><br />

natural aspects of the territory - the<br />

approach with the sea, the relief, the<br />

green spaces <strong>and</strong> native vegetation.<br />

However, these areas has been compromised<br />

with improper disposal of waste<br />

<strong>and</strong> sewage. In this sense, the population<br />

has mobilized community actions to promote<br />

awareness about the ma<strong>in</strong>tenement<br />

<strong>and</strong> care with the nature.<br />

2 HEALTH<br />

The brazilian population is assisted<br />

by a huge public health system<br />

(called SUS). In Escada, this system<br />

presents a precarious situation that<br />

had grown because the only public<br />

health center was closed <strong>in</strong> 2016.<br />

This event made <strong>in</strong>existent the<br />

public service <strong>in</strong> this part of the<br />

city.<br />

4<br />

The Subúrbio Ferr<br />

important railway<br />

the identity of the<br />

<strong>in</strong> the discussion<br />

urban mobility. Th<br />

nity to <strong>in</strong>crease<br />

transportation faci<br />

URB<br />

MOB<br />

5<br />

COLLECTIVE<br />

SPACES<br />

The neighbourhood of Escada has a limited collective<br />

spaces. They usually use the beach, the church or<br />

the streets as places to collective relations <strong>and</strong> social<br />

<strong>in</strong>teraction. This axe works <strong>in</strong> the sense of improve<br />

the existent spaces <strong>and</strong> to th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>in</strong> implementation<br />

<strong>and</strong> consolidation of news spaces.<br />

CELEBRATION<br />

OF IEMANJÁ<br />

SIDNEY’S HOUSE<br />

GROUP<br />

AA135<br />

6<br />

INCOME<br />

GENERATION<br />

Accord<strong>in</strong>g to the data of the Economic <strong>and</strong> Social<br />

Studies of Bahia Super<strong>in</strong>tendence (SEI), 25.7% of the<br />

economical active population <strong>in</strong> Salvador <strong>and</strong> metropolitan<br />

area are unemployed. In an effort to<br />

reduce this situation, <strong>in</strong> this location we have popular<br />

<strong>in</strong>itiatives to generate <strong>in</strong>come to their families<br />

through groups of solidarity economy <strong>and</strong> local<br />

bus<strong>in</strong>ess.<br />

CULTURAL CENTER<br />

PEDAÇO DE AFRICA<br />

CESEP<br />

VOCATIONAL<br />

EDUCATION<br />

STUDY CENTER<br />

AND LIBRARY<br />

NILTON’S HOUSE


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 107<br />

3<br />

CULTURE<br />

AN<br />

ILITY<br />

oviário of Salvador has a<br />

system that it is part of<br />

population <strong>and</strong> is a po<strong>in</strong>t<br />

with the State about<br />

is debate is an opportuthe<br />

perspectives about<br />

lities <strong>in</strong> a large way.<br />

COMMUNITY<br />

KITCHEN<br />

The local population has their own lifestyle<br />

<strong>and</strong> tradition that affect <strong>in</strong> the feel<strong>in</strong>g of<br />

belong<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> their area. So, we believe <strong>in</strong> the<br />

potencial of transmit <strong>and</strong> discussion the local<br />

culture of the students.<br />

LEGEND<br />

Proposal area<br />

ENVIRONMENT<br />

Backyards<br />

Green area<br />

Pollution<br />

HEALTH<br />

<strong>Public</strong> health center<br />

Private hospital<br />

CULTURE<br />

Church<br />

NOSSA SRA<br />

DE ESCADA<br />

COMMUNITY SCHOOL<br />

NOSSA SRA DE ESCADA<br />

MARKETPLACE<br />

Cultural Center<br />

Library<br />

Craftsman<br />

Fisherman<br />

ESCADA’S PUB<br />

URBAN MOBILITY<br />

Bus stop<br />

NATURAL RESERVE<br />

PUBLIC HEALTH<br />

CENTER CLOSED<br />

Tra<strong>in</strong> stop<br />

Bicycle path<br />

Railway<br />

COLLECTIVE SPACES<br />

Meet<strong>in</strong>g places<br />

Beach<br />

Kids area<br />

Football Field<br />

PROTEST<br />

12.28.2016<br />

PRIVATE HOSPITAL<br />

ALAYDE COSTA<br />

INCOME GENERATION<br />

Solidarity economy<br />

Local bus<strong>in</strong>ess<br />

NORTH<br />

0 m 25 m 50 m


LEGEN<br />

P<br />

108 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

URBAN AND SOCIAL<br />

PERSPECTIVES<br />

The CAN proposal has a huge potential of transformation <strong>in</strong> the time-<br />

-space where it will be placed. The strengthen<strong>in</strong>g of a citizen conscious,<br />

which may be horizontal constructed <strong>in</strong> idealized dialogues<br />

<strong>and</strong> activities, has the possibility of re<strong>in</strong>sertion of these <strong>in</strong>dividuals <strong>in</strong><br />

the dispute field of the urban <strong>and</strong> regional plann<strong>in</strong>g, believ<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the<br />

importance of popular participation to build the city. By the moment<br />

when the State Bureaus are active, there is a new relationship between<br />

the population <strong>and</strong> the public services. This activation provides a<br />

new way to work, <strong>in</strong> a local perspective <strong>and</strong> for the social agents,<br />

th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g the social rights <strong>in</strong> a horizontal model. Also, the participation<br />

of a public university helps <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>tegration between <strong>in</strong>stitutional<br />

tools <strong>and</strong> social dem<strong>and</strong>s, th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g about a collective knowledge<br />

construction, which implies a permanent renovation accord<strong>in</strong>g to the<br />

reality of the city.<br />

new<br />

possibilities<br />

In 2016, the new f<br />

with the provisio<br />

change of public<br />

which makes thes<br />

project pretends t<br />

real possibility.<br />

materialize<br />

ideas<br />

politic<br />

participa<br />

public<br />

university<br />

conscious<br />

vote<br />

communi<br />

articulati<br />

community<br />

government<br />

high school<br />

students<br />

The projec<br />

should occ<br />

networks, c<br />

<strong>and</strong> to acti<br />

this first ex<br />

implement<br />

viário of Sa<br />

São José O<br />

(5) V<strong>in</strong>te de<br />

pants <strong>in</strong> th<br />

GROUP<br />

AA135


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 109<br />

SÃO TOMÉ<br />

DE PARIPE<br />

PARIPE<br />

ederal government created the programme Médiotec<br />

nal measure 746/2016. This programme implied a<br />

high school education with a technical formation,<br />

e students don’t see the university as their space. This<br />

o amplify the student vision to see the university as a<br />

COMMUNITY SCHOOL<br />

N. SRA. MEDIANEIRA<br />

COMMUNITY SCHOOL<br />

VINTE DE NOVEMBRO<br />

CAJAZEIRAS<br />

al<br />

tion<br />

FAZENDA<br />

COUTOS<br />

ty<br />

on<br />

Gather<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> groups <strong>and</strong> organiz<strong>in</strong>g ourselves politically is<br />

a fundamental <strong>and</strong> revolutionary action nowadays. S<strong>in</strong>ce<br />

the military dictatorship <strong>in</strong> the 80s, <strong>and</strong> recently with the<br />

presidential impeachment <strong>in</strong> 2016, the <strong>in</strong>security <strong>and</strong><br />

disbelief <strong>in</strong> the actual political system, <strong>in</strong> which have been<br />

denied collective actions <strong>and</strong> mobilizations, has grown.<br />

For this reason, it is very important to put the vote for the<br />

young people as a fundamental <strong>and</strong> democratic action.<br />

COMMUNITY SCHOOL<br />

NOVA CONSTITUINTE<br />

COUTOS<br />

COMMUNITY SCHOOL<br />

SÃO JOSÉ OPERÁRIO<br />

t aims are the expectation of multiplication of these actions, which<br />

ur by circulation of <strong>in</strong>formation, articulation of formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

ommunity mobilization <strong>and</strong> young political organization. To th<strong>in</strong>k<br />

vely build the city implies a sense of belong<strong>in</strong>g to the space. After<br />

perience <strong>in</strong> the Community School of Escada, the project should be<br />

ed <strong>in</strong> the others community schools <strong>in</strong> the area of Subúrbio Ferrolvador:<br />

(2) Nova Constitu<strong>in</strong>te, <strong>in</strong> the neighbourhood of Periperi; (3)<br />

perário, <strong>in</strong> the locality of Coutos; (4) Nossa Senhora Medianeira <strong>and</strong><br />

Novembro, both <strong>in</strong> the district of Paripe. Beside this, the particieir<br />

own neighbourhoods can afford the proposal.<br />

D<br />

NEXT STEPS...<br />

ROJECT AREA AND IMPACTS IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD<br />

PERIPERI<br />

PRAIA<br />

GRANDE<br />

COMMUNITY SCHOOL<br />

N. SRA DE ESCADA<br />

ALTO DA<br />

TERESINHA<br />

MULTIPLICATION PROCESS<br />

TO STUDENT HOUSES<br />

TO THE OTHERS COMMUNITY SCHOOLS<br />

ITACARANHA<br />

ESCADA<br />

ILHA<br />

AMARELA<br />

IMPACTS IN OTHERS NEIGHBOURHOODS<br />

NORTE<br />

0 km 0,5 km 1 km


110 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

DETAIL FROM THE PROPOSAL.<br />

A word from the group<br />

ANA CLARA OLIVEIRA DE ARAÚJO, CAMILA PINHO DE MELLO, MARIANA RIBEIRO PARDO<br />

Ana Clara Oliveira de Araújo is a<br />

5th year student of Architecture<br />

<strong>and</strong> Urbanism <strong>in</strong> the Federal<br />

University of Bahia (UFBA), hav<strong>in</strong>g attended<br />

an exchange year programme, between<br />

september 2015 <strong>and</strong><br />

august 2016, <strong>in</strong> the<br />

University of<br />

Seville (US),<br />

<strong>in</strong> Seville,<br />

Spa<strong>in</strong>, with a<br />

scholarship<br />

from CNPq/<br />

Brazil (National<br />

Council<br />

for Scientific<br />

<strong>and</strong> Technological<br />

Development). S<strong>in</strong>ce<br />

ANA CLARA<br />

november 2013, she<br />

is part <strong>in</strong> Curiar<br />

- Model Office of Architecture <strong>and</strong> Urbanism<br />

of UFBA, where she works<br />

with horizontal <strong>and</strong> participative<br />

projects with communities <strong>and</strong><br />

social movements <strong>in</strong> the city of<br />

Salvador <strong>and</strong> the metropolitan<br />

area. She was born <strong>and</strong> raised <strong>in</strong><br />

this city, where she participated<br />

<strong>in</strong> social projects with themes of<br />

susta<strong>in</strong>ability <strong>and</strong> public education<br />

<strong>in</strong> the school age. Her study <strong>in</strong>terests<br />

<strong>in</strong>clude participatory methodologies CAMILA<br />

<strong>and</strong> projects, university extension, <strong>in</strong>terdiscipl<strong>in</strong>arity,<br />

cartographic processes, as also<br />

spatial justice, the right to the city <strong>and</strong> the<br />

right to hous<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

Camila P<strong>in</strong>ho de Mello is a 3th year student<br />

of Psychology <strong>in</strong> the Federal University<br />

of Bahia (UFBA), where she works with Community<br />

Social Psychology <strong>in</strong> an university<br />

extension project named Comucidade. She<br />

was born <strong>and</strong> raised <strong>in</strong> a high middle class<br />

family <strong>in</strong> Salvador, where the <strong>in</strong>equality of<br />

the city has always caught her attention.<br />

She worked for two years <strong>in</strong> the NGO TETO<br />

Brazil, with community projects to provide<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal assessments. She also<br />

participated <strong>in</strong> student movement, where<br />

she have been approached about themes<br />

such as violence, racism <strong>and</strong> sexism. In the<br />

work with university extension<br />

projects, she realised how<br />

architecture also plays<br />

a role <strong>in</strong> the processes<br />

of exclusion<br />

<strong>and</strong> restrictions<br />

of basic rights.<br />

Furthermore, she<br />

is also <strong>in</strong>terested<br />

<strong>in</strong> childhood studies,<br />

work<strong>in</strong>g with<br />

children <strong>in</strong> schools,<br />

recreations <strong>and</strong> the relation<br />

between child <strong>and</strong> na-<br />

ture. She is the<br />

co-founder<br />

of the<br />

project<br />

OCA -<br />

Holiday<br />

Activities,<br />

where<br />

she works<br />

<strong>in</strong> the field<br />

of childhood.<br />

Mariana Ribeiro<br />

Pardo is a 5th year MARIANA<br />

student of Architecture<br />

<strong>and</strong> Urbanism <strong>in</strong> the Federal University<br />

of Bahia (UFBA). She also attended an<br />

exchange year programme <strong>in</strong> the University<br />

of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), <strong>in</strong> the<br />

city of San Sebastian, <strong>in</strong> Spa<strong>in</strong>, between<br />

september 2015 <strong>and</strong> august 2016, with a<br />

scholarship from CNPq/Brazil. She was born<br />

<strong>and</strong> raised <strong>in</strong> Salvador <strong>and</strong> the metropolitan<br />

area, <strong>in</strong> a family context that has always<br />

encouraged the struggle for the collective.<br />

Her model is her mother, who always participated<br />

<strong>in</strong> actions <strong>and</strong> collective dem<strong>and</strong>s,<br />

<strong>and</strong> today works directly with public<br />

policies for women. In the course, she had<br />

the opportunity to work with collective<br />

processes <strong>in</strong> the Curiar, which has become<br />

a parallel formation space. In works with<br />

communities <strong>and</strong> social movements, chil-


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 111<br />

dren <strong>and</strong> adolescents have always crossed<br />

her paths <strong>and</strong> caught her attention. She believes<br />

<strong>in</strong> the power of the mobilization <strong>and</strong><br />

participation of children <strong>and</strong> teenagers to<br />

th<strong>in</strong>k <strong>and</strong> to build more just <strong>and</strong> democratic<br />

cities. Therefore, she is <strong>in</strong>terested <strong>in</strong> alternative<br />

pedagogies, participatory methodologies<br />

<strong>and</strong> projects, university extension <strong>and</strong><br />

the right to the city.<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formality with education<br />

Brazil, as well as all Lat<strong>in</strong> America, has<br />

been fac<strong>in</strong>g, s<strong>in</strong>ce the 1970s, a contemporary<br />

process of urban spectacularization<br />

that reveals a logic of social segregation,<br />

which implies the expansion of peripheries,<br />

s<strong>in</strong>ce the low-<strong>in</strong>come population is<br />

expelled from city centers. The peripheries<br />

are spaces of transition between the<br />

formal <strong>and</strong> the <strong>in</strong>formal city, with precarious<br />

urban <strong>in</strong>frastructure, few collective<br />

spaces, schools, health units <strong>and</strong> others<br />

equipments that should contemplate an<br />

<strong>in</strong>habited space. In this sense, the field of<br />

urban plann<strong>in</strong>g has an important role <strong>in</strong><br />

pay<strong>in</strong>g attention to these processes <strong>and</strong><br />

try<strong>in</strong>g to f<strong>in</strong>d solutions that improve the life<br />

<strong>in</strong> those areas. However, <strong>in</strong> the Architecture<br />

<strong>and</strong> Urbanism still have few spaces to<br />

discuss <strong>and</strong> to th<strong>in</strong>k about the social role of<br />

the profession <strong>and</strong> to debate issues related<br />

with urban reform, the right to the city <strong>and</strong><br />

the <strong>in</strong>visibility of some population strats.<br />

The universities have the potential to be<br />

a space of transgression, break<strong>in</strong>g the walls<br />

<strong>and</strong> tak<strong>in</strong>g place <strong>in</strong> visible <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>visible<br />

areas of the cities. It is necessary to <strong>in</strong>itiate<br />

debates on what thoughts are be<strong>in</strong>g built<br />

<strong>in</strong> university spaces, <strong>and</strong> also construct<strong>in</strong>g<br />

a relation with others discipl<strong>in</strong>es as<br />

psychology, sociology, geography <strong>and</strong> law.<br />

The <strong>in</strong>terdiscipl<strong>in</strong>arity is an important way<br />

to face the contemporary urban challenges,<br />

by mak<strong>in</strong>g possible an <strong>in</strong>tegration between<br />

university <strong>and</strong> community. This relation, <strong>in</strong><br />

Brazil, has been occurred from university<br />

extension, which with teach<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> research<br />

processes completes the basic triad<br />

of public higher education. The university<br />

extension activities have ga<strong>in</strong>ed more <strong>and</strong><br />

more space with the underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g of the<br />

importance of a commitment from the<br />

university with the social reality where it is<br />

<strong>in</strong>serted.<br />

In the same way, the basic education has<br />

the opportunity to promote an <strong>in</strong>tegration<br />

between the students <strong>and</strong> the community,<br />

with a pedagogical function that isn’t<br />

restricted to formal learn<strong>in</strong>g, but also to<br />

contribute <strong>in</strong> the expression of citizenship.<br />

The education is a common responsibility<br />

that implies the reunion of different actors<br />

of the city, as well as listen<strong>in</strong>g to the children<br />

<strong>in</strong> the process. The exercise of citizenship<br />

is someth<strong>in</strong>g that should be learned<br />

<strong>in</strong> school, <strong>and</strong> implies the struggle to our<br />

rights <strong>and</strong> the take on our duties. When the<br />

public space is built <strong>in</strong> partnership with <strong>in</strong>habitants,<br />

they are educated <strong>in</strong> the process,<br />

<strong>and</strong> become responsible for those places.<br />

Study<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> practic<strong>in</strong>g the urban plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong> an educational perspective help <strong>in</strong> the<br />

association between university <strong>and</strong> community,<br />

<strong>and</strong> help to underst<strong>and</strong> education<br />

as a meet<strong>in</strong>g center of diverse people that<br />

can contribute to solve the challenges of<br />

the city. We believe that!<br />

DETAIL FROM THE PROPOSAL.


112 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 113<br />

Burj Rasheed,<br />

Egypt<br />

PRODUCTIVE <strong>INFORMALITY</strong> -BURG RASHEED 2050<br />

2Florangela Chahuayo<br />

Ahmad Mamdouh<br />

Laura Vargas<br />

Philipp W<strong>in</strong>ter<br />

University of Cairo<br />

EGYPT


Productive <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Burj Rasheed 2050<br />

114 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Productive <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Burj Rasheed 2050<br />

CAIRO, EGYPT<br />

FLORANGELA CHAHUAYO, AHMAD MAMDOUH, LAURA VARGAS, PHILIPP WINTER<br />

CAIRO UNIVERSITY<br />

PITCH YOUR IDEA<br />

Burj Rasheed (Rosetta) is an <strong>in</strong>formal coastal community located on the estuary of the river Nile <strong>in</strong> Northern Egypt.<br />

Today, it is an outpost of Rasheed proper <strong>and</strong> home to roughly 20.000 people who f<strong>in</strong>d a livelihood ma<strong>in</strong>ly <strong>in</strong> fish<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> agriculture.<br />

Its location on the low-ly<strong>in</strong>g alluvial floodpla<strong>in</strong>s of the Nile delta <strong>in</strong> direct proximity to the Mediterranean pose a great<br />

risk to the agricultural community <strong>in</strong> times of climate change <strong>and</strong> ris<strong>in</strong>g sea levels. Furthermore, a steady <strong>in</strong>crease <strong>in</strong> soil<br />

sal<strong>in</strong>ity <strong>and</strong> an expected decrease of freshwater put the community under pressure. Due to the absence governmental<br />

services, Burj Rasheed has to deal with problems <strong>in</strong> waste management <strong>and</strong> water treatment. This, comb<strong>in</strong>ed with<br />

population pressure <strong>and</strong> an ever-<strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formal urbanization <strong>and</strong> soil seal<strong>in</strong>g, Burj Rasheed st<strong>and</strong>s as an example<br />

for many settlements <strong>in</strong> the peri-urban <strong>and</strong> rural regions of the Nile Delta.<br />

The vision is to facilitate Burj Rasheeds development to become a local community capable of provid<strong>in</strong>g a livelihood for<br />

it’s people <strong>in</strong> times of global change. Focuss<strong>in</strong>g on the two ma<strong>in</strong> corridors <strong>in</strong> the city, we comb<strong>in</strong>e susta<strong>in</strong>able development<br />

with enhanced productivity. The Waterfront corridor is, despite be<strong>in</strong>g a primary source of <strong>in</strong>come for the local<br />

fish<strong>in</strong>g community, a neglected open space that is be<strong>in</strong>g used for the disposal of waste <strong>and</strong> waste water. A careful reorganization<br />

of open spaces will <strong>in</strong>corporate the historic fortress <strong>in</strong>to the community <strong>and</strong> create new educational <strong>and</strong><br />

economic possibilities. The communal organization of waste management <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g the up-cycl<strong>in</strong>g of the gathered raw<br />

materials improve not only the environmental conditions, but also the livelihood <strong>and</strong> overall wellbe<strong>in</strong>g of the people<br />

e.g. by <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g the quality <strong>and</strong> therefore value of fish be<strong>in</strong>g produced. The <strong>in</strong>troduction of susta<strong>in</strong>able fish farm<strong>in</strong>g<br />

techniques improve both the quality of water <strong>and</strong> of the produce.<br />

In the agricultural corridor we see similar problems of solid waste <strong>and</strong> waste water treatment, on top of an expected<br />

decrease of agricultural production. Here, the sprawl of the settlement <strong>in</strong>to the agricultural l<strong>and</strong> forms green pockets<br />

that reach far <strong>in</strong>to the settlement. This is be<strong>in</strong>g turned <strong>in</strong>to an advantage by turn<strong>in</strong>g these pockets from mere farm<strong>in</strong>g<br />

l<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>to productive agricultural hubs that work on a circular pattern of resource distribution. Indoor farm<strong>in</strong>g, aquaponics<br />

<strong>and</strong> constructed wetl<strong>and</strong>s form a system that <strong>in</strong>tegrate agricultural <strong>and</strong> domestic production <strong>and</strong> consumption.<br />

The two corridors will be connected by a set of public spaces with<strong>in</strong> the dense organic street network of Burj Rasheed<br />

that will be turned productive by means of urban agriculture, the harvest of solar power <strong>and</strong> the <strong>in</strong>tegration of social<br />

spaces.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 115<br />

General vision <strong>and</strong> regional maps


116 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Interventions


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 117<br />

FIT IMAGE(S) HERE<br />

CONTEXT AND PROCESS<br />

Demporem Historically, Burj ulparibus, Rasheeds nonsequam location ide on the es eium left bank volendam of the sequae Nile, 65km <strong>in</strong>cid East mi, of et Alex<strong>and</strong>ria opta dolupta <strong>and</strong> nobitem at the po<strong>in</strong>t aboraep where erovit the<br />

am Egypt’s quatiisquam lifel<strong>in</strong>e meets fugit the aut Mediterranean, ero <strong>in</strong>ctas ipit, num is the etustiatio basis of it’s escitis existence. quundicium, The 15th volut century <strong>in</strong>ullatent fortress magnis of Qaitbay ex et quatio. bears Itae witness<br />

to quid it’s orig<strong>in</strong>s ut et quas a military et expla outpost volest, guard<strong>in</strong>g quas acculla the mouth boreiurio. of the Itae Nile, num when fugit Rasheed earcili bereseque proper, today simagnias a city of es 70.000, eicatet<br />

vollent<br />

optas was Egypt’s <strong>and</strong>unt ma<strong>in</strong> quibeatem port. S<strong>in</strong>ce quis the qui late ius<strong>and</strong>i 19th aut century, et aperchilla both Rasheed nis volut as well raturiatem as Burj Rasheed arumend have itibusa seen estrum a strong excerum decrease<br />

debitatibus, <strong>in</strong> economic sum <strong>and</strong> military ipicid quaturecest significance. ent Today, accatur Rasheed molorroriati is a regional doluptas center rem for iume food, comnis textile con <strong>and</strong> tobacco pa ducienimaio. <strong>in</strong>dustry. Nam Burj<br />

eium Rasheed quuntur is a mostly s<strong>in</strong>verc agricultural hillitibea dolorem community ipsum of 20.000, volut et that ducimet is most eumquat well known fuga. as S<strong>in</strong>ia the volor place aut where quis the quatati famous as dolecab Rosetta<br />

orernam stone has ius been modit, discovered. s<strong>in</strong>ulparum It is grow<strong>in</strong>g faceriores parallel et plis to vendeli the Nile atempos an <strong>in</strong>formal dolupta urbanization pa pellatur? processes Quia que are voluptaque form<strong>in</strong>g a populated ium eiciisit<br />

corridor idernat connect<strong>in</strong>g us<strong>and</strong>is plabori it to Rasheed aturessi that ventionsed lies 5km que to the rernat South-East. rempeditibus mi, <strong>in</strong>ctur sedionsent estiunt, torerum repudi<br />

doluptium Burj Rasheed velia economy iliquiscid is based ut que ma<strong>in</strong>ly sust, seque on agri- volorum, <strong>and</strong> aquaculture omnis evenda that form qui blam the major et faces sources magnat of latur? <strong>in</strong>come. Aquaculture is<br />

comprised of fish<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the Mediterranean as well as fish farms <strong>in</strong> the Nile <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> ponds on l<strong>and</strong> provide, while the agricultural<br />

velibus, sector ute provides net mos a variety et, optat<strong>in</strong> of cereals, ulparum vegetables, et latus ea legumes, et libuste <strong>and</strong> ssunt, fruits,. sitia agriculture sitae cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, is dependent ommo on irrigation <strong>in</strong>t laut dolor with<br />

Um<br />

aut water li<strong>and</strong>a taken doluptia from the sum Nile ipiet some am 25km et voles upstream. eosa volorunt.At Due to a series <strong>in</strong>t of ad barrages eost poris <strong>and</strong> et dams ese con no natural et dit quiscias flow of freshwater et por asitiati arrives<br />

<strong>in</strong> eossitibus.Tibus Burj Rasheed anymore, magnihic result<strong>in</strong>g te cum qui <strong>in</strong> the commod <strong>in</strong>trusion et of ut saltwater, et quassit, an consectam <strong>in</strong>crease <strong>in</strong> re riverbed sunt libus siltation mo quosto <strong>and</strong> the quibus accumu-<br />

mi,<br />

optat<br />

tem. lation Et of quam agricultural aligeni <strong>and</strong> maximporunde domestic waste nobis water ius recae <strong>in</strong> the volorrunto now stagnant officium river. Not explant, only does aut que this re pose dolorer a major rorepello health quibus risk to<br />

volupta the community, se nisquaest the river pedias has ium also et changed plab ium from idem be<strong>in</strong>g et voluptio. a vital part Od of maio the community’s blabor aut et identity alitatem to ra a neglected dolupta voluptatur, backdrop<br />

etus used ess<strong>in</strong>us for waste aut disposal, molo cus. despite its significance for aquaculture <strong>and</strong> the fact that children swim <strong>and</strong> play <strong>in</strong> it <strong>in</strong> summer.<br />

While Burj Rasheed itself is ma<strong>in</strong>ly located on a higher ly<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>and</strong> its agricultural areas ma<strong>in</strong>ly lay on floodpla<strong>in</strong>s, result<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong> Ulparci the expected ut lat aut flood<strong>in</strong>g ant, cus of ca. eicilitem 50% the ipit this fugiatur area by ma 2050. pliquo This evenihillaut poses a major officim risk for odioribusci the communities venet re that volor heavily accus<br />

Uga.<br />

consequi rely it as te a nonsequi<strong>and</strong>i source of <strong>in</strong>come. <strong>and</strong>a poraest veliciis quae dolor ad modips<strong>and</strong>a de volectissim <strong>and</strong>ae eum re earitia vendae<br />

none A lack odit of educational dolo ius et et, possibilities omnis deratusam comb<strong>in</strong>ed essedi with sum production eatusa volupt<strong>in</strong>it methods that omnisit, create teturestrum little added-value aut des reictae to the products resequis<br />

autatem results <strong>in</strong> re low si bea <strong>in</strong>comes sequaeri <strong>and</strong> a nihilitae partial id reliance ex et mo on remittances maximag nienti from que family cone members rem <strong>in</strong>ciistias abroad. et ut Especially delia pelibeaquae women suffer nis<br />

reperum, from a lack sitium of educational dolliqui aut possibilities, optaepedi which doluptiorum oftentimes et vidis prevents diss<strong>in</strong>cte them veligen from provid<strong>in</strong>g turitem ad for ea the corehenis livelihood que of lacepresto the family.<br />

to Despite officiatio. these Itatiis issues velenda <strong>and</strong> the arcid <strong>in</strong>formal eiureped character modit of harum the settlement, sit es rat et the labo. hous<strong>in</strong>g Nem. stock Ut ipita <strong>and</strong> dipsundae general liv<strong>in</strong>g volorum conditions iducius, <strong>in</strong><br />

nonseque Burj Rasheed quo are derit comparably liquae. Nam good am <strong>in</strong> fuga. an <strong>in</strong>ternational Ut optatis quatquianis perspective sa <strong>and</strong> simus. are on Ut utem par with quas other del <strong>in</strong>formal expliti onectae settlements nusdam or<br />

que ‘Ashwa’yyat’ re busam <strong>in</strong> dolum Egypt. s<strong>in</strong>um Solid, a multi quia story num eostrum apartment dolor houses aut quassit made of voloribus cement, niscilit brick <strong>and</strong> omnimillat.Ut mortar form utem the majority quas del expliti of the<br />

onectae local hous<strong>in</strong>g nusdam stock. que An re <strong>in</strong>creased busam dolum build<strong>in</strong>g s<strong>in</strong>um activity a quia as a num form eostrum of <strong>in</strong>vestment dolor aut has quassit resulted voloribus <strong>in</strong> an unregulated niscilit omnimillat. growth that is<br />

<strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly seal<strong>in</strong>g the agricultural l<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>and</strong> around Burj Rasheed. Due to the absence of urban plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> an high<br />

Um rate velibus, of private ute l<strong>and</strong>ownership, net mos et, optat<strong>in</strong> a fragmentation ulparum et latus of settled ea areas libuste occurs ssunt, that sitia results sitae cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, agricultural ommo pockets <strong>in</strong>t laut surrounded dolor aut<br />

li<strong>and</strong>a by peri-urban doluptia fabric sum <strong>and</strong> ipiet vice am versa. et voles This eosa puts volorunt.At major stress <strong>in</strong>t on ad the eost agricultural poris et ese l<strong>and</strong> con through et dit waste quiscias disposal et por which asitiati <strong>in</strong> optat turn<br />

eossitibus.Tibus has negative effects magnihic on the te quality cum qui of agricultural commod et goods ut et quassit, be<strong>in</strong>g produced. consectam re sunt libus mo quosto quibus mi, tem. Et<br />

quam aligeni maximporunde nobis ius recae volorrunto officium explant, aut que re dolorer rorepello quibus volupta<br />

se nisquaest pedias ium et plab ium idem et voluptio. Et quam aligeni maximporunde nobis ius recae volorrunto<br />

officium explant, aut que re dolorer rorepello quibus volupta se nisquaest pedias ium et plab ium idem et voluptio.


118 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Corridors of Rasheed; Challanges, Strategies <strong>and</strong> Susta<strong>in</strong>able Development Goals


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 119<br />

DESIGN VISION AND STRATEGIES<br />

In the light of the challenges that Burj Rasheed faces now <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> the future, the aim is to create a local community capable<br />

of provid<strong>in</strong>g a livelihood for its population <strong>in</strong> times of global change. Our proposal seeks to <strong>in</strong>tegrate susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

development with <strong>in</strong>creased productivity <strong>and</strong> enhanced education <strong>in</strong> order to put Rasheeds population <strong>in</strong> a position<br />

to ensure satisfactory liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions <strong>and</strong> resilience to environmental risks by themselves.<br />

Through data analysis <strong>and</strong> site visits we found two major corridors that def<strong>in</strong>e the urban layout as well as social <strong>and</strong><br />

economic activities: The waterfront corridor <strong>and</strong> the agricultural corridor. Our proposal focuses on these two corridors,<br />

as well as a dense network of smaller <strong>in</strong>ner-urban streets <strong>and</strong> public spaces that connect the two called urban<br />

pockets.<br />

The corridors share a set of twelve specific objectives deal<strong>in</strong>g with certa<strong>in</strong> challenges <strong>and</strong> opportunities.<br />

Perhaps the most far-reach<strong>in</strong>g efforts will be taken <strong>in</strong> the agricultural corridor. Organized <strong>in</strong> 4 phases, the aim is to<br />

use the exist<strong>in</strong>g green pockets <strong>and</strong> turn them <strong>in</strong>to ecological <strong>and</strong> agricultural hubs that are <strong>in</strong> a close relation to the<br />

houses surround<strong>in</strong>g them. The residents appropriate these spaces, develop <strong>and</strong> care for them themselves. Aquaponic<br />

systems on rooftops mean the efficient use of space <strong>and</strong> water. Domestic wastewater that is nowadays collected <strong>in</strong><br />

underground tanks <strong>and</strong> disposed of <strong>in</strong> empty plots outside Burj Rasheed is collected <strong>and</strong> treated <strong>in</strong>side the green<br />

pockets <strong>in</strong> a r<strong>in</strong>g of constructed wetl<strong>and</strong>s. The Water is then used to irrigate crops grown <strong>in</strong> a polycultural system or<br />

with<strong>in</strong> greenhouses. This results <strong>in</strong> an <strong>in</strong>creased efficiency of soil use <strong>and</strong> raises agricultural yields. As a positive side<br />

effects, the <strong>in</strong>creased productivity <strong>and</strong> significance <strong>in</strong> terms of water treatment means ris<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>and</strong> values protect these<br />

spaces from urbanization <strong>and</strong> their eventual seal<strong>in</strong>g. Circular fish farm<strong>in</strong>g methods mentioned above also serve as a<br />

l<strong>in</strong>k between agricultural <strong>and</strong> waterfront zones s<strong>in</strong>ce they are buffer between l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> sea, sow down coastal erosion<br />

<strong>and</strong> thus help protect valuable agricultural l<strong>and</strong>.<br />

To qualify the waterfront, the neglected historic fortress <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g its immediate surround<strong>in</strong>g will be <strong>in</strong>tegrated <strong>in</strong>to<br />

the city by creat<strong>in</strong>g a community <strong>and</strong> educational center with<strong>in</strong>, <strong>and</strong> by open<strong>in</strong>g it to economic <strong>and</strong> cultural activities.<br />

This way we make use of a significant structure <strong>and</strong> give Burj Rasheed back its historic centerpiece. The second specific<br />

objective is to upgrade <strong>and</strong> strengthen the waterfront by <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g its productivity. To achieve this the production of<br />

fish is the most important asset. By <strong>in</strong>troduc<strong>in</strong>g circular production methods <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g algae <strong>and</strong> mussels, not only the<br />

quality of water <strong>and</strong> fish will be <strong>in</strong>creased, the additional products can be used as (fish)food as well. Flexible spaces<br />

along the waterfront will open up more possibilities for economic activities, <strong>and</strong> an up-cycl<strong>in</strong>g facility for waste not<br />

only helps to clean up the open spaces, it also provides jobs <strong>and</strong> possible raw materials for crafts <strong>and</strong> construction.<br />

The dense organic street network with<strong>in</strong> the settlement will be improved by creat<strong>in</strong>g shad<strong>in</strong>g out of local materials,<br />

while the <strong>in</strong>troduction of green <strong>in</strong>frastructure on empty plots <strong>and</strong> open spaces further reduces temperatures <strong>in</strong> times<br />

of climate change. It doubles as a possibility for the production of food. Thus the walkability of Burj Rasheed will be<br />

improved. A network of these spaces used for economic activity, social spaces, educational or cultural venues means a<br />

heightened experience <strong>and</strong> improved atmosphere. The production of biofules on the other h<strong>and</strong> means that agricultural<br />

wastes <strong>and</strong> reed grown <strong>in</strong> the newly <strong>in</strong>troduced wetl<strong>and</strong>s can be used as resources to vitalize the local economy<br />

while at the same time economically enhanc<strong>in</strong>g the susta<strong>in</strong>ability of local transport systems.<br />

To further improve the liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> work<strong>in</strong>g spaces, a new recycl<strong>in</strong>g process for domestic waste <strong>and</strong> garbage found on<br />

the streets will be <strong>in</strong>troduced. Organized <strong>in</strong> a cooperative by local people, these materials can then be used as resources<br />

for local crafts while educational measures help spread awareness about health risks <strong>and</strong> recycl<strong>in</strong>g possibilities.


120 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Example: Agricultural Corridor


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 121<br />

AUDIENCE DURING THE <strong>CONFRONTING</strong> <strong>INFORMALITY</strong> SYMPOSIUM 2018


122 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 123


124 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 125


126 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 127


128 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Fishmarkeng<br />

Tradions<br />

WATER EXPASION<br />

WEATLAND<br />

Economic<br />

prosperity<br />

SAFEW<br />

Health<br />

Susta<strong>in</strong>ability<br />

Family<br />

COMMUNITY<br />

COOPERATIVE<br />

WOMAN EMPOWERMENT


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 129<br />

INCLUSIVE EDUCATION<br />

Culture<br />

Rehabilitaon<br />

GENDER EQUALITY<br />

Reuse<br />

Climate change<br />

RESILIENCE<br />

FISHING<br />

ATER<br />

PILOT<br />

COMPACTNESS<br />

RECYCLING<br />

RECREATION<br />

Natural resourse<br />

Food quality


130 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

A word from the group<br />

FLORANGELA CHAHUAYO, AHMAD MAMDOUH, LAURA VARGAS, PHILIPP WINTER<br />

Corridors of Rasheed; Challanges, Strategies <strong>and</strong> Susta<strong>in</strong>able Development Goals


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 131<br />

Hello from Cairo! We are Flor,<br />

Ahmad, Philipp <strong>and</strong><br />

Laura.<br />

Together we are develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the project ‘Productive<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity’ <strong>in</strong> Burg<br />

Rasheed (Rosetta), Egypt.<br />

Burg Rasheed is a fish<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> farm<strong>in</strong>g community of<br />

20.000 at the mouth of the<br />

Nile. It occupies a strategic<br />

location <strong>and</strong> its fortress <strong>and</strong><br />

the Rosetta stone that was PHILIPP<br />

found there are of historic<br />

significance. There, we use<br />

local materials, techniques <strong>and</strong><br />

knowledge to <strong>in</strong>tegrate urban <strong>and</strong> rural. The<br />

goal is to <strong>in</strong>crease resilience <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong>ability,<br />

economic prosperity <strong>and</strong> social<br />

<strong>in</strong>tegration. We do so by mak<strong>in</strong>g use of the<br />

urban fr<strong>in</strong>ges <strong>and</strong> the riverfront as both<br />

ecologically <strong>and</strong> economically significant.<br />

Our group consists of:<br />

Florangela Chahuayo<br />

from Cuzco, Peru.<br />

S<strong>in</strong>ce Florangela<br />

graduated as an<br />

architect <strong>in</strong> 2014, she<br />

has worked <strong>in</strong> several<br />

projects <strong>in</strong> the historic<br />

centre of Cuzco. This<br />

<strong>in</strong>cludes work on the<br />

urban cadastre, development<br />

of hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> hotels<br />

for private <strong>in</strong>vestors <strong>and</strong> work FLORANGELA<br />

as a coord<strong>in</strong>ator of new urban<br />

settlements. Now, she is pursu<strong>in</strong>g<br />

a master of Urban Design focused on<br />

the revitalization of historic districts. She<br />

believes that the <strong>in</strong>clusion of communities<br />

as well as universities<br />

is crucial to raise<br />

awareness <strong>and</strong><br />

address <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urbanization,<br />

not only<br />

<strong>in</strong> plann<strong>in</strong>g<br />

but also for<br />

its implementation.<br />

Ahmad Mamdouh<br />

from Cairo,<br />

AHMAD<br />

Egypt<br />

Ahmad is an<br />

architect by profession<br />

<strong>and</strong> he is now study<strong>in</strong>g Urban Design<br />

at Cairo University. His conviction is to help<br />

the people of his country to improve their<br />

quality of liv<strong>in</strong>g. He wants to<br />

use resources <strong>in</strong> an efficient<br />

way <strong>in</strong> order to help people<br />

build a susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

future.<br />

Philipp W<strong>in</strong>ter<br />

from Berl<strong>in</strong>, Germany<br />

Philipp studied<br />

Geography with a focus<br />

on urban development<br />

<strong>and</strong> sociology at Humboldt<br />

University <strong>in</strong> Berl<strong>in</strong>. He worked <strong>in</strong><br />

(sub)cultural urban development<br />

<strong>and</strong> a network of <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

urban bottom-up <strong>in</strong>itiatives <strong>in</strong><br />

Berl<strong>in</strong>, as well as <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>tegrated, participatory<br />

urban development <strong>in</strong> Hamburg. Now he<br />

is pursu<strong>in</strong>g his masters <strong>in</strong> urban design <strong>in</strong><br />

Germany <strong>and</strong> Egypt with a focus on historic<br />

urban districts.<br />

Laura Vargas from Bogota, Colombia.<br />

She graduated as an Architect<br />

from Javeriana University <strong>in</strong><br />

Bogota <strong>in</strong> 2014. She has s<strong>in</strong>ce<br />

worked <strong>in</strong> different enterprises<br />

as project manager.<br />

She is now pursu<strong>in</strong>g a masters<br />

degree <strong>in</strong> Urban Design<br />

with a firm conviction that<br />

the development of the city<br />

should take <strong>in</strong>to account the<br />

values of tangible as well as<br />

<strong>in</strong>tangible heritage <strong>and</strong> that it<br />

should serve as a guid<strong>in</strong>g axis for<br />

future development.<br />

The four of us study the <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

Masters programe Urban Design – Revitalization<br />

of Historic City Districts, which<br />

is a cooperation between Cottbus<br />

University <strong>in</strong> Germany<br />

<strong>and</strong> Cairo <strong>and</strong> Alex<strong>and</strong>ria<br />

Universities <strong>in</strong> Egypt. It<br />

aims at tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g students<br />

<strong>in</strong> the careful rehabilitation<br />

of old city<br />

cores <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> urban <strong>and</strong><br />

architectural design that<br />

takes <strong>in</strong>to consideration<br />

exist<strong>in</strong>g physical <strong>and</strong> social<br />

structures. The project on Burg<br />

Rasheed is this semesters ma<strong>in</strong> LAURA<br />

course <strong>and</strong> is at time of writ<strong>in</strong>g<br />

still be<strong>in</strong>g further elaborated.<br />

It allows us to get <strong>in</strong>-depth experience on<br />

the current developments <strong>and</strong> issues <strong>in</strong><br />

Egyptian cities <strong>and</strong> rural areas. Thanks to<br />

our teacher, Dr. Nabil ElHady, we were able<br />

to explore the topics from different angles.<br />

His approach focus<strong>in</strong>g on exploration<br />

<strong>and</strong> research of solutions meant we were<br />

able to th<strong>in</strong>k outside of the box <strong>and</strong> come<br />

up with creative <strong>and</strong> wholistic ideas. We<br />

wholeheartedly thank him for what he has<br />

enabled us to do.<br />

Liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> study<strong>in</strong>g Urban Design <strong>in</strong><br />

Cairo, Egypt, it is impossible not to talk<br />

about <strong>in</strong>formality. Somewhere between 60<br />

<strong>and</strong> 70% of Cairenes live <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal areas,<br />

<strong>and</strong> developments <strong>in</strong> other Egyptian cities<br />

<strong>and</strong> rural areas do not look much different.<br />

While <strong>in</strong> our masters program this issue<br />

is addressed <strong>in</strong> a creative <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

way, other programs deal with it <strong>in</strong> a<br />

different manner. Slum clearance is still<br />

an option <strong>in</strong> Egypt, <strong>and</strong> only weeks ago an<br />

entire historic <strong>and</strong> derelict neighborhood <strong>in</strong><br />

central Cairo was demolished <strong>in</strong> favour of<br />

sh<strong>in</strong>y glass towers. The results are displacement,<br />

social <strong>and</strong> economic structures be<strong>in</strong>g<br />

broken asunder <strong>and</strong> the loss of a part of<br />

Cairos identity <strong>and</strong> character.<br />

To us, <strong>in</strong>formality is not the problem, but<br />

part of the solution. Work<strong>in</strong>g with rather<br />

than aga<strong>in</strong>st it allows to carefully make use<br />

of local potentials such social <strong>and</strong> economic<br />

structures. S<strong>in</strong>ce <strong>in</strong>formal urban development<br />

is a press<strong>in</strong>g issue of our time,<br />

we th<strong>in</strong>k it is important for students from<br />

various discipl<strong>in</strong>es to be exposed to the<br />

specific characteristics of <strong>in</strong>formality <strong>and</strong><br />

learn how to work with them. It is important<br />

that the students develop a h<strong>and</strong>s-on<br />

approach <strong>and</strong> work closely together with<br />

the community. The fact that our project is<br />

theoretical <strong>and</strong> will not be realized gives us<br />

wider freedom <strong>in</strong> the creative process <strong>and</strong><br />

lets us develop greater visions. But we also<br />

believe that the cont<strong>in</strong>ued ‘reality-check’<br />

of an actual project that is be<strong>in</strong>g<br />

realized poses valuable lessons<br />

to everybody who is <strong>in</strong>volved.<br />

What has helped us is the<br />

variety <strong>in</strong> our backgrounds,<br />

both professionally as well<br />

concern<strong>in</strong>g our countries<br />

of orig<strong>in</strong>. Be<strong>in</strong>g able to<br />

view one topic from different<br />

angles by us<strong>in</strong>g transdiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary<br />

approaches <strong>in</strong> an <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

environment enabled<br />

us to <strong>in</strong>corporate local expertise<br />

<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>ternational experiences.<br />

To encourage collaborations like<br />

this while keep<strong>in</strong>g the “feet on the ground”<br />

seems a good solution to ate <strong>and</strong> tra<strong>in</strong><br />

young professionals <strong>in</strong> the field of <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

urban development.


132 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

First place


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 133<br />

Dakha, Bangladesh<br />

TOWARDS EQUILIBRIUM: A VISION FOE KORAIL AS AN<br />

URBAN GATEWAY<br />

1Rahfatun Nisa Nova<br />

Nazila Sabr<strong>in</strong> Zaman<br />

Ayesha Labiba Khalil<br />

Md. Nazim Udd<strong>in</strong><br />

Monjura Khatun Nisha<br />

BRAC University<br />

BANGLADESH


134 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Towards Equilibrium<br />

A vision for Korail as an urban gateway<br />

DHAKA, BANGLADESH<br />

RAHFATUN NISA NOVA, NAZILA SABRIN ZAMAN, AYESHA LABIBA KHALIL, MD. NAZIM UDDIN, MONJURA<br />

KHATUN NISHA<br />

BRAC UNIVERSITY


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 135<br />

A city where the rich <strong>and</strong> the poor lives side by side is not a common phenomenon.<br />

A city where the rich <strong>and</strong> the poor lives side by side is not a common<br />

The <strong>in</strong>teraction phenomenon. between The the <strong>in</strong>teraction formal <strong>and</strong> between <strong>in</strong>formal the formal creates <strong>and</strong> an <strong>in</strong>formal ecosystem cre-wherates the an rich ecosystem with <strong>and</strong> the other. where poor Dhaka one lives lives side is transform<strong>in</strong>g by harmony side is with not <strong>in</strong>to the a gated common other. communities, Dhaka phenomenon. thus<br />

one<br />

A lives city <strong>in</strong> where harmony<br />

The challeng<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>teraction is transform<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the between ecosystem<br />

<strong>in</strong>to the of<br />

gated formal the<br />

communities,<br />

city. <strong>and</strong> <strong>Informal</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal thus<br />

settlements creates challeng<strong>in</strong>g an ecosystem are<br />

the<br />

vibrant<br />

ecosystem<br />

of the city. <strong>Informal</strong> settlements are vibrant areas with <strong>in</strong>tense<br />

where areas one with<br />

lives <strong>in</strong>tense harmony public public life, with<br />

life, they<br />

the other.<br />

are the Dhaka<br />

gateways is transform<strong>in</strong>g<br />

to to the the city, city, allow<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>to allow<strong>in</strong>g gated<br />

poor poor communities,<br />

families families to thus set<br />

challeng<strong>in</strong>g foot the to the city set ecosystem <strong>and</strong> foot build <strong>in</strong> the livelihoods. of city the <strong>and</strong> city. build However, <strong>Informal</strong> livelihoods. the settlements problem However, arises are the vibrant problem when areas the balance with<br />

<strong>in</strong>tense between public the<br />

arises<br />

formal life, when they <strong>and</strong><br />

the are <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

balance the gateways between<br />

is lost. Equilibrium to the the formal city, <strong>and</strong> allow<strong>in</strong>g power,<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal poor economy<br />

is families lost.<br />

<strong>and</strong> to sociospatial<br />

<strong>in</strong> the aspect achieved<br />

set<br />

Equilibrium <strong>in</strong> power, economy <strong>and</strong> socio-spatial aspect needs to be<br />

foot city <strong>and</strong> needs to<br />

build<br />

allow to be livelihoods.<br />

them achieved to susta<strong>in</strong><br />

However, to allow <strong>in</strong> the them city.<br />

problem to Therefore, susta<strong>in</strong> arises <strong>in</strong> this the when<br />

project city. the Therefore, balance<br />

between this project the aims formal aims to br<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> to the <strong>in</strong>formal br<strong>in</strong>g equilibrium the is lost. equilibrium <strong>in</strong>to Equilibrium action through <strong>in</strong>to <strong>in</strong> power, action community economy through partici-anpation needs <strong>and</strong><br />

community sociospatial<br />

participation aspect <strong>and</strong><br />

allow to allow be the<br />

the achieved <strong>in</strong>formal to communities allow them to to become susta<strong>in</strong> become<br />

self <strong>in</strong> self the susta<strong>in</strong>ed<br />

susta<strong>in</strong>ed city. Therefore, to hold<br />

to hold position <strong>in</strong> the society. It focuses on the empowerment of<br />

this position project <strong>in</strong> community-based the aims society. to br<strong>in</strong>g It organisations focuses the equilibrium on as the a media empowerment <strong>in</strong>to for action development through of community-based<br />

<strong>in</strong><br />

participation organisations Korail, <strong>and</strong> as one a allow media of Dhaka’s the for <strong>in</strong>formal development largest communities slums. <strong>in</strong> Korail, to one become of Dhaka’s self susta<strong>in</strong>ed largest slums. to hold<br />

position <strong>in</strong> the society. It focuses on the empowerment of community-based<br />

organisations as a media for development <strong>in</strong> Korail, one of Dhaka’s largest slums.


136 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 137<br />

Pitch Your Idea<br />

A city where the rich <strong>and</strong> the poor live side-by-side <strong>and</strong> serve each other is<br />

not a common phenomenon. This mix of people from different socio-economic<br />

background has become the culture of the city <strong>and</strong> has transformed<br />

Dhaka <strong>in</strong>to a cosmopolitan. The <strong>in</strong>teraction between the formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

segments of the city makes it an ecosystem where one lives <strong>in</strong> harmony with<br />

the other <strong>and</strong> a disruption <strong>in</strong> the system may lead to dramatic effects. Recent<br />

urban development drives of gett<strong>in</strong>g rid of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements however, are<br />

sub-divid<strong>in</strong>g the city <strong>in</strong>to gated communities. Thus, challeng<strong>in</strong>g the ecosystem<br />

of the city.<br />

<strong>Informal</strong> settlements are gateways to the city, they allow poor families to<br />

set foot <strong>in</strong> the city, build livelihoods <strong>and</strong> form strong networks of solidarity.<br />

Dwellers negotiate, work <strong>and</strong> even fight to get a spot <strong>in</strong> the city. This is<br />

spatially translated <strong>in</strong>to vibrant areas with <strong>in</strong>tense public life, <strong>in</strong> which many<br />

activities <strong>and</strong> uses coexist, creat<strong>in</strong>g an <strong>in</strong>terrelated social fabric <strong>and</strong> a strong<br />

sense of belong<strong>in</strong>g. However, the problem arises when the balance between<br />

the formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal is lost.<br />

The <strong>in</strong>formal settlements are chronically neglected <strong>in</strong> government policy,<br />

plann<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>and</strong> practice. This neglect is mostly due to the rural bias where the<br />

government focuses on rural poverty eradication rather than on the urban<br />

poor, as they are considered “illegal”. The evictions are mostly due the l<strong>and</strong><br />

value of the area where the settlements are located. A great imbalance can<br />

be easily observed <strong>in</strong> terms of socio-economic aspects. Even though the people<br />

<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements are actively <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> jobs <strong>and</strong> activities, they<br />

are still victims of social exclusion when it comes to their liv<strong>in</strong>g environment.<br />

Slum dwellers experience different types of problems associated with their<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions that manifest as a result of different forms of deprivation<br />

from the economic, physical, social, <strong>and</strong> political aspect. They live <strong>in</strong> overcrowded,<br />

poorly constructed structures, often with <strong>in</strong>secure l<strong>and</strong> tenure. The<br />

lack of basic needs, forces the dwellers to turn to unfair means to achieve<br />

them, thus, giv<strong>in</strong>g them the tag of be<strong>in</strong>g “illegal”. With the lack of government’s<br />

<strong>in</strong>itiatives, the only source of help that they get is from NGOs. The<br />

NGOs have contributed to a great amount to enhance liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions <strong>in</strong> the<br />

communities; however, their work is yet limited provid<strong>in</strong>g services rather than<br />

empower<strong>in</strong>g the entire community.<br />

The l<strong>and</strong> of the <strong>in</strong>formal settlements is considered major opportunities for<br />

profit mak<strong>in</strong>g. But what if they were viewed as opportunities for humanitarian<br />

development? Is it possible to reduce the major imbalance between<br />

the formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal? Through merg<strong>in</strong>g top- down policy structures with<br />

bottom up community level participation these <strong>in</strong>itiatives may actually start<br />

to function. Equilibrium <strong>in</strong> terms of power, economy <strong>and</strong> socio-spatial aspect<br />

needs to be achieved <strong>in</strong> order to allow them to susta<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> the city. They are<br />

human be<strong>in</strong>gs who have the right to work <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> urban areas <strong>and</strong><br />

allow<strong>in</strong>g the equilibrium will encourage social <strong>in</strong>clusion <strong>and</strong> thus lead to a<br />

balanced urban life.


138 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Figure: Contextual Analysis


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 139<br />

Context <strong>and</strong> Process<br />

One of the best places to witness the <strong>in</strong>teraction between the formal <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

is Korail. Located along Gulshan Lake; Korail is one of Dhaka’s largest<br />

slums cover<strong>in</strong>g almost 170 acres of l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> is home to approximately 148,891<br />

people. The <strong>in</strong>habitants work <strong>in</strong> garment factories, as rickshaw pullers <strong>and</strong><br />

housemaids <strong>in</strong> the surround<strong>in</strong>g upper-class neighbourhood. Many of the<br />

families have been liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the area for more than 15 years <strong>and</strong> made Korail a<br />

vibrant urban neighbourhood. Be<strong>in</strong>g ravaged by fire almost every year, Korail<br />

still st<strong>and</strong>s amidst the heart of the city, almost mimick<strong>in</strong>g a jelly-fish that can<br />

regenerate its own body parts.<br />

Sudden eviction drives <strong>and</strong> lack of l<strong>and</strong> tenure security are amongst the<br />

major problems that dom<strong>in</strong>ate the area. Moreover, the lack of official demarcation<br />

of the area leads to l<strong>and</strong> encroachment thus caus<strong>in</strong>g to the lake be<strong>in</strong>g<br />

filled up to meet the grow<strong>in</strong>g populations’ spatial dem<strong>and</strong>s. This causes<br />

deterioration of the water body thus affect<strong>in</strong>g the surround<strong>in</strong>g areas. Like<br />

other <strong>in</strong>formal settlements, lack of access to the basic utility needs is forc<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the <strong>in</strong>habitants to consider unfair ways of avail<strong>in</strong>g the services. Due to the<br />

lack of monitor<strong>in</strong>g, the rent is unregulated <strong>and</strong> is extremely high compared to<br />

the rent per square feet <strong>in</strong> formal settlements. Due to the lack of transparency,<br />

f<strong>in</strong>ancial transactions go<strong>in</strong>g on <strong>in</strong> the area is caus<strong>in</strong>g a huge dra<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> the<br />

economy.<br />

A number of NGOs are work<strong>in</strong>g to develop the liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions <strong>in</strong> Korail.<br />

These <strong>in</strong>itiatives are mostly <strong>in</strong> service based where they are given direct<br />

access to health, sanitation, education <strong>and</strong> microcredit programs. However,<br />

these NGO <strong>in</strong>itiatives are not participatory <strong>in</strong> terms of community engagement<br />

<strong>and</strong> thus do not contribute to capacity build<strong>in</strong>g. As a result, the communities<br />

are dependent on them.<br />

An activity that has susta<strong>in</strong>ed <strong>and</strong> transformed <strong>in</strong>to a community led <strong>in</strong>itiative<br />

was the formation of a community-based organization (CBO). This CBO,<br />

formed <strong>in</strong> 2005 monitored by a local NGO, DSK, collected bills from the dwellers<br />

<strong>and</strong> paid the government <strong>in</strong> return of water supply. This <strong>in</strong>itiative was fully<br />

run by the locals <strong>and</strong> was highly accepted by the dwellers. Over the years<br />

they succeeded to function properly <strong>and</strong> eventually transformed <strong>in</strong>to their<br />

own entity now known as Central Community Based Organization (CCBO).<br />

Keep<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> m<strong>in</strong>d the resources available <strong>and</strong> the social acceptability of the<br />

people to such <strong>in</strong>itiatives, this project aims to focus on bottom up community<br />

lead development merged with top-down policy <strong>in</strong>itiatives. It focuses on capacity<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g of the community to ga<strong>in</strong> confidence of the government to run<br />

as a legal urban settlement. It aims to transform Korail <strong>in</strong>to a self-susta<strong>in</strong>ed<br />

community that has the capacity to function on its own as an <strong>in</strong>cubator for<br />

the urban poor.


140 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Figure: Design vision <strong>and</strong> strategies


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 141<br />

Design Vision <strong>and</strong> Strategies<br />

Consider<strong>in</strong>g the exist<strong>in</strong>g condition of Korail, there are three th<strong>in</strong>gs that need immediate<br />

attention <strong>in</strong> order to reach equilibrium. These are, l<strong>and</strong> tenure security, access to basic<br />

utility <strong>and</strong> services <strong>and</strong> capacity build<strong>in</strong>g of <strong>in</strong>habitants for community empowerment.<br />

Keep<strong>in</strong>g this <strong>in</strong> m<strong>in</strong>d, the project considers two aspects, policy <strong>and</strong> strategy development<br />

<strong>and</strong> spatial development to complement the development activities.<br />

In rural areas, a common practice for community development is through formation of<br />

community based organisations (CBO), this <strong>in</strong>volves a participatory bottom up approach<br />

<strong>in</strong> community development <strong>and</strong> often is seen to have positive outcomes. This<br />

<strong>in</strong>itiative however, is not widely seen <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements <strong>in</strong> urban areas. “A small<br />

tree could not grow if it is underneath the shadow of another, larger tree.” Keep<strong>in</strong>g this<br />

<strong>in</strong> m<strong>in</strong>d, this project proposes the exist<strong>in</strong>g CCBO to be enhanced <strong>and</strong> used a media for<br />

communication <strong>and</strong> development for the community. The responsibility of the CCBO<br />

will be to develop policies <strong>and</strong> strategies with collaboration with the government <strong>and</strong><br />

NGOs <strong>and</strong> also manage the community.<br />

Currently, the CCBO has 15 core members <strong>and</strong> 45 general members with 200 to 800<br />

households be<strong>in</strong>g monitored per member. Work<strong>in</strong>g with collect<strong>in</strong>g bills for water<br />

supply, CCBO’s success <strong>and</strong> its social acceptance, can allow a similar <strong>in</strong>itiative for other<br />

services to take place as well. Therefore, the first segment of the project <strong>in</strong>volves the<br />

formation of a more comprehensive CCBO.<br />

The proposed organogram of the organization has a team consist<strong>in</strong>g of the president,<br />

vice-president <strong>and</strong> correspond<strong>in</strong>g office staff that will be <strong>in</strong> the headquarters <strong>and</strong> will<br />

be <strong>in</strong>-charge communicat<strong>in</strong>g with NGOs <strong>and</strong> government authorities to ensure the<br />

policy management, monitor the community as well as arrange capacity build<strong>in</strong>g programs.<br />

The committee members are divided <strong>in</strong>to two parts, core members <strong>and</strong> general<br />

members. The general members will be responsible for monitor<strong>in</strong>g clusters with<strong>in</strong> the<br />

area, which now will consist of around 200 to 250 households.<br />

Now, how will the CCBO function? The mission of the CCBO is to be a comprehensive<br />

media for development to build a self-susta<strong>in</strong>ed community; hence it will be divided<br />

<strong>in</strong>to eight w<strong>in</strong>gs, namely: bill collection, construction <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>in</strong>tenance, rectification<br />

<strong>and</strong> rent collection, security <strong>and</strong> public rights, sanitation <strong>and</strong> waste management,<br />

health <strong>and</strong> education. Each of these w<strong>in</strong>gs will have a set of goals <strong>and</strong> objectives that<br />

need to be achieved over time. The Headquarter will be responsible for the collect<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>itial funds <strong>and</strong> required support for these activities.<br />

With the expansion of the CCBO, a lot more members are needed. Currently, the CCBO<br />

has a lack of participation from women members therefore the newly proposed organization<br />

seeks to encourage female participation. In order to make women the leaders<br />

of the CBOs women empowerment through provid<strong>in</strong>g education <strong>and</strong> tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g is highly<br />

needed. Therefore this project proposes to use the UPPR Social model to enhance their<br />

participation. This model works with women <strong>and</strong> girls to overcome their disadvantaged<br />

social position by encourag<strong>in</strong>g them to take on leadership roles with<strong>in</strong> their communities.<br />

The CCBO is expected to be a fully community-run organization where community<br />

participation will be highlighted. This approach is expected to allow the government<br />

to ga<strong>in</strong> confidence over the community’s capacity <strong>and</strong> encourage the government to<br />

promote poverty eradication drives for the urban poor. Through be<strong>in</strong>g with the government,<br />

can legalize access to utility services, allow<strong>in</strong>g a more transparent f<strong>in</strong>ancial<br />

transaction, which has been miss<strong>in</strong>g from the system over the years. This way the government<br />

can benefit through collect<strong>in</strong>g the revenue for provid<strong>in</strong>g the service <strong>and</strong> the<br />

dwellers benefit through a more regulated bill<strong>in</strong>g system <strong>and</strong> access to proper electricity,<br />

water <strong>and</strong> gas supply.


142 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Despite proposals of the government, resettlement <strong>in</strong> an outside location will ultimately<br />

not benefit Korail <strong>in</strong>habitants, because their livelihoods are based <strong>in</strong> the area <strong>and</strong><br />

its surround<strong>in</strong>gs. Also the shar<strong>in</strong>g of the l<strong>and</strong> with private or public developers cannot<br />

be considered a solution. Therefore it has become essential for the government to<br />

reconsider its l<strong>and</strong> distribution activities <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>clude the option to lease out l<strong>and</strong> to<br />

the urban poor. Consider<strong>in</strong>g the l<strong>and</strong> tenure problem, the government can provide l<strong>and</strong><br />

tenure to the <strong>in</strong>habitants <strong>and</strong> also impose certa<strong>in</strong> policies that can be applied <strong>in</strong> order<br />

to receive <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong> l<strong>and</strong> tenure security. All associated stakeholders are taken <strong>in</strong>to<br />

consideration <strong>and</strong> the project proposes a policy for tenure legalization through which<br />

tenure security may function. This policy will allow the government to monitor <strong>and</strong><br />

control the population of the area <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> addition, reduce l<strong>and</strong> encroachment.<br />

The policy <strong>in</strong>volves a set of criteria that need to be met <strong>in</strong> order to achieve tenure <strong>in</strong><br />

the area. This policy will consider the <strong>in</strong>come generation of a household based on<br />

two aspects, time bound <strong>and</strong> asset bound. The expected scenario of the policy is as<br />

follows:<br />

The exist<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>habitants of Korail will undergo an <strong>in</strong>itial asset calculation that will be<br />

conducted by the CCBO. Households that are found to have an accumulative asset that<br />

goes beyond the ultra-poor or poor <strong>in</strong>come level will be entitled to pay community<br />

welfare funds on a monthly basis <strong>in</strong> order to achieve <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong> the tenure or will<br />

be offered a space <strong>in</strong> the government resettlement community. The households that<br />

are at the poor <strong>and</strong> ultra poor level will be given a tenure for a period of time as an<br />

opportunity to earn a liv<strong>in</strong>g by stay<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> this area. At regular <strong>in</strong>tervals this process will<br />

be repeated. In the next round of asset monitor<strong>in</strong>g, the households will be expected<br />

to generate a certa<strong>in</strong> amount of <strong>in</strong>come. If a household fails to generate the expected<br />

amount of <strong>in</strong>come over the given time, they will be entitled to shift the government<br />

proposed resettlement communities. On the contrary, if a household reaches the<br />

low-<strong>in</strong>come level they will be entitled to pay the community development fund <strong>in</strong>order<br />

to cont<strong>in</strong>ue their tenure.<br />

The core idea is to convert Korail <strong>in</strong>to an <strong>in</strong>cubator. A space where urban poor will be<br />

given an opportunity to flourish <strong>in</strong> the urban area. Dur<strong>in</strong>g the tenure, the families will<br />

have an opportunity to ga<strong>in</strong> h<strong>and</strong>s on tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> various skills. Vocational tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

organized by the CCBO <strong>in</strong> collaboration with NGOs offered will enable them to get jobs<br />

<strong>in</strong> the formal sector. The poverty reduction <strong>in</strong>itiative <strong>and</strong> community empowerment<br />

objective can also be achieved to an extent through this proposal.<br />

Spatial development is essential to allow these activities to take place. Capacity<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g activities will require space, which at this moment is almost non-existent <strong>in</strong><br />

the area. Some roads need to be reconstructed; this can be conducted by the CCBO<br />

through the fund that will be generated by the community welfare fund collected from<br />

the dwellers themselves. Interactive activity spaces will be located on important <strong>in</strong>teractions<br />

of road networks, this will allow the activities to be more visible <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>crease<br />

social acceptance <strong>and</strong> also attract more people to be a part of it. In addition to this,<br />

some platforms for community recreation as well as multipurpose activities are be<strong>in</strong>g<br />

proposed on the water edge, thus allow<strong>in</strong>g the water edge to be preserved.<br />

Korail is an excellent place to create a developmental model that exhibits sensitivity<br />

to residents <strong>and</strong> allows their participation <strong>in</strong> an equitable redevelopment of their<br />

neighbourhood. Reach<strong>in</strong>g an equilibrium is essential, through this proposed model,<br />

an equilibrium can be reached <strong>in</strong> term social acceptance of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements <strong>and</strong><br />

allow economic balance with<strong>in</strong> the community as well as the formal environment. It<br />

will allow the people of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements ga<strong>in</strong> equal opportunity to be a part of the<br />

urban society rather than a burden on it.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 143


144 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 145


146 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 147


148 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 149


150 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

A word from the group<br />

AYESHA LABIBA KHALIL, MONJURA KHATUN NISHA, NAZILA SABRIN ZAMAN, NAZIM UDDIN, RAHFATUN NISA NOVA<br />

Figure: Idea for CCBO


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 151<br />

Towards Equilibrium is the bra<strong>in</strong>child of<br />

a five-member group compris<strong>in</strong>g of Architects,<br />

a community-mobilizer <strong>and</strong> a public<br />

health specialist.<br />

Rahfatun Nisa<br />

Nova is an architect,<br />

with a special<br />

<strong>in</strong>terest <strong>in</strong><br />

built environment<br />

<strong>and</strong><br />

development.<br />

After graduat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

from BRAC<br />

University, Dhaka<br />

<strong>in</strong> 2013, she worked<br />

under the supervision<br />

of Ar. Mar<strong>in</strong>a<br />

Tabassum(<br />

Award recipient of Aga Khan Development<br />

Network, 2014-2016 cycle) for four years.<br />

Besides this, she also worked<br />

as research assistant <strong>and</strong><br />

participated <strong>in</strong> various<br />

development projects<br />

<strong>and</strong> tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g funded<br />

by the World Bank<br />

<strong>and</strong> other organizations.<br />

Rahfatun Nisa Nova<br />

Monjura Khatun<br />

Nisha is a current<br />

PhD c<strong>and</strong>idate from the<br />

Sydney School of <strong>Public</strong><br />

Health at the University of<br />

Sydney. She has worked<br />

with ICDDR,B as a research<br />

<strong>in</strong>vestigator for two years.<br />

Monjura Khatun Nisha<br />

Md. Nazim Udd<strong>in</strong> is community mobilizer<br />

work<strong>in</strong>g with Dustha Shasthya Kendra<br />

(DSK ngo) s<strong>in</strong>ce 2012. Over this time he has<br />

worked on various projects based <strong>in</strong> Korail<br />

such as PEHUP (Promot<strong>in</strong>g Environmental<br />

Help for the Urban Poor,<br />

2012-2016). Currently<br />

he is work<strong>in</strong>g<br />

under the project<br />

WASH for<br />

Urban Poor<br />

(Improv<strong>in</strong>g<br />

environmental<br />

health &<br />

resilience of<br />

WASH amongst<br />

Urban) (2016-till<br />

now) <strong>in</strong><br />

Korail.<br />

Through<br />

these<br />

Nazim Udd<strong>in</strong><br />

work Mr. Udd<strong>in</strong> has ga<strong>in</strong>ed first-h<strong>and</strong><br />

experience of work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Korail,<br />

which has been a huge<br />

contribution <strong>in</strong> this project.<br />

His underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g of the<br />

people <strong>and</strong> their issues<br />

has enabled the team to<br />

ga<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> depth knowledge<br />

about how this area<br />

runs.<br />

Nazila Sabr<strong>in</strong> Zaman is a<br />

recent graduate from<br />

the Department of<br />

Architecture at BRAC<br />

University. She has a<br />

small onl<strong>in</strong>e based bus<strong>in</strong>ess, through which<br />

she is pursu<strong>in</strong>g her <strong>in</strong>terest on mak<strong>in</strong>g<br />

small crafts.<br />

Nazila Sabr<strong>in</strong> Zaman<br />

Ayesha Labiba Khalil is an architect <strong>and</strong><br />

an aspir<strong>in</strong>g academic. Upon graduat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

from BRAC University <strong>in</strong> 2016, she is<br />

currently work<strong>in</strong>g as a teach<strong>in</strong>g assistant<br />

<strong>and</strong> also pursu<strong>in</strong>g a masters<br />

<strong>in</strong> Disaster Management at<br />

department of Architecture at<br />

BRAC University. She has a keen<br />

<strong>in</strong>terest <strong>in</strong> work<strong>in</strong>g with urban<br />

development issues <strong>in</strong><br />

the global south.<br />

Be<strong>in</strong>g an architect<br />

<strong>in</strong> a<br />

develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

country is<br />

no simple<br />

task. Besides underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

the aesthetics <strong>and</strong> functionality<br />

of a build<strong>in</strong>g, a lot of<br />

attention needs to be put on the<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal sector as it<br />

plays a huge role <strong>in</strong> the<br />

urban form. As a part of<br />

our formal architectural education, we were<br />

always encouraged to work with social issues<br />

<strong>and</strong> low-<strong>in</strong>come communities. This has<br />

played a vital role <strong>in</strong> shap<strong>in</strong>g the way we<br />

perceive <strong>in</strong>formality. <strong>Informal</strong> sector plays a<br />

huge role <strong>in</strong> the process of urbanization of<br />

a city. It is not just a doma<strong>in</strong> for the urban<br />

poor but the formal sector also benefits<br />

from the activities that take place <strong>in</strong> the<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal sector. We feel it is important to<br />

address the <strong>in</strong>formality with<strong>in</strong> the city <strong>and</strong><br />

its confrontation must be done through a<br />

bottom up <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>ter-discipl<strong>in</strong>ary approach.<br />

We believe it is important to underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>formality<br />

<strong>and</strong> discuss <strong>in</strong>formal urbanization<br />

<strong>in</strong> both undergraduate <strong>and</strong> graduate level<br />

Ayesha Labiba Khalil<br />

as it allows the student to broaden their<br />

perspective of the world.<br />

Urban development for<br />

many countries might not<br />

be a necessity for many cities,<br />

but it is surely an important<br />

issue for the global<br />

south. However, we believe<br />

it should not just be limited<br />

to the global south. The<br />

curriculum should promote a<br />

more sensitive approach where<br />

<strong>in</strong>clusivity should be embedded.<br />

It is important for students from<br />

all parts of the world to underst<strong>and</strong><br />

the issues go<strong>in</strong>g on around the world.<br />

Urban design taught around the world is<br />

often seem to be <strong>in</strong>applicable <strong>in</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

countries like Bangladesh. This is where the<br />

conflict between theory <strong>and</strong> practice arises<br />

<strong>and</strong> therefore we feel, it is important that a<br />

more responsive approach is practiced <strong>and</strong><br />

taught so that theory <strong>and</strong> practice can complement<br />

each other rather than conflict.<br />

Correspond<strong>in</strong>gly, when the Global South<br />

is be<strong>in</strong>g addressed, it is quite important<br />

to identify the differences among Africa,<br />

Lat<strong>in</strong> America <strong>and</strong> South Asia <strong>in</strong><br />

terms of geography, culture,<br />

<strong>and</strong> every other aspect. To<br />

acknowledge the <strong>in</strong> depth<br />

contextual challenges, it<br />

is really important that<br />

we have region-focused<br />

curriculums. Moreover<br />

the particular faculty,<br />

field trips <strong>and</strong> action-oriented<br />

studios should have<br />

the reflection of such <strong>in</strong>tegrity.<br />

In addition to that, shar<strong>in</strong>g<br />

perspectives, op<strong>in</strong>ions <strong>and</strong> expressions<br />

is an <strong>in</strong>tegral part of the learn<strong>in</strong>g<br />

process, therefore we believe, mak<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

student body more diversified by enroll<strong>in</strong>g<br />

student from cross-cultural backgrounds<br />

is essential. With students from developed<br />

countries <strong>and</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g countries<br />

learn<strong>in</strong>g together, we believe the <strong>in</strong>tellectual<br />

products that will result will surely be<br />

comprehensive <strong>and</strong> have a vital role to play<br />

<strong>in</strong> the field of development.


152 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

ORGANISERS DURING THE<br />

SELECTION OF THE 20 FINALISTS


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 153


154<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The 15 f<strong>in</strong>alists


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 155<br />

ORIANA DE LUCIA & RICARDO<br />

AVELLA DURING THE SELECTION<br />

OF THE 20 FINALISTS


156 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The Walkable City<br />

The case of Sector 4, Dharavi<br />

MUMBAI, INDIA<br />

PRAMADA JAGTAP, PRANAV THOLE, KAMLA RAHEJA VIDYANIDHI<br />

KAMLA RAHEJA VIDYANIDHI INSTITUTE FOR ARCHITECTURE/ MUMBAI UNIVERSITY<br />

AA14<br />

The Walkable City<br />

Case of sector IV, Dharavi<br />

The project is an exploration to address the complex issue of affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g through the case of sector 4<br />

Dharavi, mumbai. Dharavi is one of the largest <strong>in</strong>formal settlements, cover<strong>in</strong>g an area of 200 hectares <strong>in</strong> the city of<br />

Mumbai. It houses approximately 1million with a density of 600-1000 people per hectare. The <strong>in</strong>tent of the project<br />

is to look at Dharavi Redevelopment plan <strong>and</strong> build a critical response to it by test<strong>in</strong>g it to a certa<strong>in</strong> capacity <strong>and</strong><br />

<strong>in</strong> do<strong>in</strong>g so, look <strong>in</strong>to the details of policies <strong>and</strong> regulations while suggest<strong>in</strong>g alternative methods to counter the<br />

pre-exist<strong>in</strong>g notions of build<strong>in</strong>g construction.<br />

Why do we need to address the issue of <strong>in</strong>formality?<br />

The projec<br />

dharavi, m<br />

Mumbai. It<br />

Why do we<br />

The issue o<br />

ents severa<br />

The curren<br />

<strong>in</strong> such hig<br />

an extensi<br />

migrant po<br />

How does<br />

The study<br />

to look at t<br />

nance, am<br />

understan<br />

Dharavi is<br />

various tra<br />

public tran<br />

percentag<br />

Slum Reha<br />

commodit<br />

at<strong>in</strong>g profi<br />

BASIC STAN<br />

ture, publi<br />

with care,<br />

The <strong>in</strong>tent<br />

to a certa<strong>in</strong><br />

methods t<br />

The issue of <strong>in</strong>formality <strong>in</strong> urban sett<strong>in</strong>gs, <strong>and</strong> how to approach it has been an important issue for decades. It<br />

presents several challenges rang<strong>in</strong>g from the imagery that it provides along with liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>frastructural<br />

concerns.<br />

The current liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions <strong>in</strong> Dharavi is always under scrut<strong>in</strong>y, due to several issues like lack of security of tenure<br />

<strong>in</strong> such high densities, lack of open spaces even accord<strong>in</strong>g to Mumbai st<strong>and</strong>ards, narrow alleys which are almost<br />

an extension of people’s houses, <strong>in</strong>sufficient health <strong>and</strong> sanitation, no security of jobs with a constant <strong>in</strong>take of<br />

migrant population, amongst several others.<br />

There have been several attempts undergone by multiple government <strong>and</strong> private organisations to address the<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions at Dharavi. However, these are <strong>in</strong>terested <strong>in</strong> the large chunk of real estate value that this piece of<br />

l<strong>and</strong> has to offer rather than address<strong>in</strong>g the liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions.<br />

The project on the contrary attempts to approach this issue with the idea of build<strong>in</strong>g an <strong>in</strong>clusive community, by<br />

not only improv<strong>in</strong>g their way of life <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>frastructure but try<strong>in</strong>g to reta<strong>in</strong> their sense of place <strong>and</strong> their exist<strong>in</strong>g<br />

social structure.<br />

The study <strong>in</strong>volves mapp<strong>in</strong>g various aspects of the settlement through a set of parameters that were used as<br />

lens to look at the fabric. These parameters address<strong>in</strong>g the issues of density, topography, typology, communities<br />

<strong>and</strong> governance, amenities, <strong>and</strong> psycho-geography, urban morphology, economic basis, <strong>and</strong> ownership patterns<br />

allow us to underst<strong>and</strong> the livelihoods <strong>and</strong> economy so as to challenge exist<strong>in</strong>g notions of redevelopment.<br />

The project attempts to develop unique liv<strong>in</strong>g typologies for the work-live population of Dharavi. It is an<br />

opportunity to look at its redevelopment to form communities <strong>and</strong> homes for those while adher<strong>in</strong>g to their<br />

exist<strong>in</strong>g social structure of rentals <strong>and</strong> owners. Be<strong>in</strong>g one of the most densely populated areas on earth, along<br />

with its issues of ownership, lack of <strong>in</strong>frastructure, the issue of Dharavi <strong>and</strong> its complexity desperately dem<strong>and</strong>s<br />

affordable <strong>and</strong> appropriate solutions for liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> a new way to tackle <strong>in</strong>formality.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 157<br />

Analys<strong>in</strong>g proposed masterplans for Sector IV<br />

Critically analys<strong>in</strong>g Dharavi redevelopment plan.


158 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The new imag<strong>in</strong>ation for Dharavi: Proposed Masterplan


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 159<br />

CONTEXT AND PROCESS ( 300 - 500 WORDS)<br />

Demporem ulparibus, nonsequam ide es eium volendam sequae <strong>in</strong>cid mi, et opta dolupta nobitem aboraep erovit<br />

am quatiisquam fugit aut ero <strong>in</strong>ctas ipit, num etustiatio escitis quundicium, volut <strong>in</strong>ullatent magnis ex et quatio. Itae<br />

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eium Dharavi quuntur is situated s<strong>in</strong>verc right hillitibea <strong>in</strong> the dolorem geographic ipsum centre volut of et the ducimet city, next eumquat to the fuga. Mithi S<strong>in</strong>ia river volor <strong>and</strong> is aut <strong>in</strong> quis close quatati proximity as dolecab to<br />

orernam various transport ius modit, systems. s<strong>in</strong>ulparum 50 % faceriores of its population et plis vendeli walks atempos to their dest<strong>in</strong>ation, dolupta pa pellatur? while majority Quia que of the voluptaque rema<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g ium uses eiciisit<br />

public idernat transportation. us<strong>and</strong>is plabori Only aturessi upto 2% ventionsed of the population que rernat uses rempeditibus private vehicles. mi, <strong>in</strong>ctur The sedionsent total area of estiunt, sector torerum 4, (34 hectare) repudi<br />

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Tenants.<br />

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situated next to<br />

the mangroves have existed s<strong>in</strong>ce the beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g of the settlement <strong>and</strong> are the owners of their l<strong>and</strong>, <strong>and</strong> are less<br />

dense as compared to the rema<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g l<strong>and</strong>. The densest portion of the l<strong>and</strong> has about 1200 tenements per hectare.<br />

Um velibus, ute net mos et, optat<strong>in</strong> ulparum et latus ea et libuste ssunt, sitia sitae cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, ommo <strong>in</strong>t laut dolor<br />

aut The li<strong>and</strong>a SRA, i.e, doluptia Slum Rehabilitation sum ipiet am Authority, et voles eosa assigned volorunt.At with the <strong>in</strong>t task ad eost to develop poris et the ese slums con et <strong>in</strong> dit Mumbai quiscias has et looked por asitiati at<br />

optat the redevelopment eossitibus.Tibus model magnihic through te cum the qui lens commod of treat<strong>in</strong>g et ut l<strong>and</strong> et quassit, a commodity, consectam thereby sunt splitt<strong>in</strong>g libus mo the quosto build quibus able area mi,<br />

between the rehab components <strong>and</strong> sale components, generat<strong>in</strong>g profit. Shirish Patel, an urban planner from<br />

tem. Et quam aligeni maximporunde nobis ius recae volorrunto officium explant, aut que re dolorer rorepello quibus<br />

Mumbai rightly po<strong>in</strong>ts out that dur<strong>in</strong>g redevelopment, we must acknowledge that there is a dem<strong>and</strong> for a rise <strong>in</strong><br />

volupta<br />

the PGA,<br />

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meet basic<br />

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ium et<br />

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<strong>in</strong>crease<br />

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<strong>in</strong> FSI<br />

et voluptio.<br />

<strong>in</strong> such neighbourhoods,<br />

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would<br />

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result <strong>in</strong><br />

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voluptatur,<br />

on<br />

etus the <strong>in</strong>frastructure, ess<strong>in</strong>us aut molo public cus. amenities, open ground spaces, roads <strong>and</strong> footpaths. Hence, one needs to approach an<br />

<strong>in</strong>crease <strong>in</strong> FSI with care, while attempt<strong>in</strong>g to <strong>in</strong>crease the PGA, so as to not make the area dysfunctional.<br />

Uga. Ulparci ut lat aut ant, cus eicilitem ipit fugiatur ma pliquo evenihillaut officim odioribusci venet re volor accus<br />

The <strong>in</strong>tent of the project is to look at Dharavi Redevelopment plan <strong>and</strong> build a critical response to it by test<strong>in</strong>g it<br />

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to a certa<strong>in</strong> capacity <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> do<strong>in</strong>g so, look <strong>in</strong>to the details of policies <strong>and</strong> regulations while suggest<strong>in</strong>g alternative<br />

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The way the DRP <strong>and</strong> SRA measures the population to be rehabilitated has a huge discrepancy. The number of<br />

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tenements that are rehabilitated is based on the number of footpr<strong>in</strong>ts that exist on a certa<strong>in</strong> plot of l<strong>and</strong> i.e one<br />

que<br />

house<br />

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population<br />

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48%<br />

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The project looks at the idea of cooperative between the owners <strong>and</strong> the rentals, who live together creat<strong>in</strong>g a certa<strong>in</strong><br />

velibus, social structure ute net mos <strong>in</strong> Dharavi et, optat<strong>in</strong> today. ulparum The idea et latus is to ea look et libuste at an economically ssunt, sitia sitae self cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, sufficient system ommo for <strong>in</strong>t the laut tenants, dolor aut<br />

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build<strong>in</strong>g a sense of collective belong<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> still provid<strong>in</strong>g them with a better quality of life.<br />

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The cooperative is formed by the owners <strong>and</strong> the rentals. The owners will own their own houses, whereas the cooperative<br />

builds magnihic their house te cum for them. qui commod The cooperative et ut et quassit, holds the consectam share of re ownership sunt libus of mo the quosto rentals, quibus whose mi, rent tem. is Et<br />

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reimbursed through the rents paid by the rental population <strong>in</strong> a certa<strong>in</strong> time period.


160 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Section through Scheme A <strong>and</strong> B<br />

Ground floor plan through both schemes


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 161<br />

Can we plan for <strong>in</strong>formality?<br />

The exist<strong>in</strong>g roads are strengthened on the basis of exist<strong>in</strong>g roads <strong>and</strong> cluster boundaries with access to major<br />

transport services, <strong>and</strong> widen<strong>in</strong>g the exist<strong>in</strong>g primary <strong>and</strong> secondary roads. The settlements <strong>in</strong> Dharavi have developed<br />

around religious structures/schools/amenities. These structures are important to the people, but also<br />

the open spaces around them. The DRP fails to identify these open spaces <strong>and</strong> is treat<strong>in</strong>g the built space of these<br />

structures <strong>in</strong> isolation. The project looks to reta<strong>in</strong> exist<strong>in</strong>g social amenities <strong>and</strong> the SRA’s <strong>and</strong> strengthens the exist<strong>in</strong>g<br />

open spaces around them through add<strong>in</strong>g new amenities <strong>in</strong> proximity. The pedestrian network connects all<br />

of these amenities creat<strong>in</strong>g a thoroughfare, with a m<strong>in</strong>imum of 15% of open spaces, thereby <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g the PGA.<br />

The commercial is aligned along exist<strong>in</strong>g major commercial streets <strong>and</strong> open spaces.<br />

The later part of the project <strong>in</strong>volves test<strong>in</strong>g a part of the masterplan through built form.<br />

SCHEME A<br />

The lower floor is a tubular unit consist<strong>in</strong>g of a live + work unit with multiple courtyards determ<strong>in</strong>ed by their work<br />

type; with the commercial units on the streetfront <strong>and</strong> the studios spill<strong>in</strong>g out on the central open space.The thoroughfare<br />

cutt<strong>in</strong>g across the central open space connects the two major commercial streets <strong>and</strong> subsequently the<br />

adjacent open space.<br />

The Pedestrian thoroughfare cutt<strong>in</strong>g across the site has been developed around the exist<strong>in</strong>g religious amenities;<br />

new social <strong>and</strong> educational <strong>in</strong>frastructure like the balwadi, vocational centres <strong>and</strong> others has been built around<br />

these to strengthen the open spaces created.The social or communal spaces happen at multiple levels, start<strong>in</strong>g<br />

from the ground which is an extension of the live work units, <strong>and</strong> an important part of the urban life, the <strong>in</strong>termediate<br />

floor, creat<strong>in</strong>g a semi public space for people to gather <strong>and</strong> communicate, terraces at multiple levels offer<strong>in</strong>g<br />

views of the outside, <strong>and</strong> pockets adjo<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g circulation cores offer<strong>in</strong>g opportunities of engagement dur<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

journey from the street to the house.<br />

The <strong>in</strong>termediate floor becomes a parallel ground area, allow<strong>in</strong>g for various communal activities seperat<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

very public <strong>and</strong> private areas whereas the upper floors are s<strong>in</strong>gly loaded structures overlook<strong>in</strong>g the courtyard or<br />

the street, allow<strong>in</strong>g for smaller terraces <strong>and</strong> gather<strong>in</strong>g spaces, connected by corridors <strong>and</strong> staircases.<br />

SCHEME B<br />

This scheme tests two different types of hous<strong>in</strong>g. one is tower type, which l<strong>in</strong>es the external edge of the cluster<br />

<strong>and</strong> is a s<strong>in</strong>gly loaded typology. The other is the mat type, which covers the ground plane with 3-4 storey low<br />

ma<strong>in</strong>tenance structures.<br />

Multiple unit layouts have been worked out, to l<strong>in</strong>e the s<strong>in</strong>gly loaded corridor, to provide maximum community<br />

<strong>in</strong>teraction. Different sizes of the units have been provided, each hav<strong>in</strong>g a smaller liv<strong>in</strong>g room <strong>in</strong>side, provid<strong>in</strong>g a<br />

larger comb<strong>in</strong>ed “Otla” outside the unit, which is l<strong>in</strong>ked to the corridor. The Different unit layouts allow variations<br />

<strong>in</strong> the volume of the “Otla”s. Build<strong>in</strong>gs are placed parallel to the w<strong>in</strong>d direction on site, <strong>and</strong> have niches (that<br />

double up as refuge or amenity) to allow maximum w<strong>in</strong>d permeability. Courtyards are oriented <strong>in</strong> a way to allow<br />

cross ventilation. The terraced roof top is imag<strong>in</strong>ed to be densely vegetated. These roofs along with bioswales are<br />

connected to water retention areas placed near the open spaces to control storm water flood<strong>in</strong>g, which is common<br />

<strong>in</strong> the area.


162 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

SCHEME A


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 163<br />

SCHEME B


164 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Settlement <strong>in</strong> a fragile soil:<br />

A case study <strong>in</strong> Favela Rio das Pedras<br />

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL<br />

HERICK RIBEIRO DO NASCIMENTO, TAYNÁ SANTIAGO PINTO<br />

PUC-RIO - PONTIFICAL CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF RIO DE JANEIRO<br />

RIO DAS PEDRAS<br />

In the context of the neo-liberal ideology of globalization that valued urban l<strong>and</strong> as a highly contested commodity, <strong>in</strong><br />

the large <strong>and</strong> medium-sized cities of the Global South, while cities grow with a high degree of socio-spatial segregation,<br />

the dem<strong>and</strong> for hous<strong>in</strong>g for the poor is be<strong>in</strong>g supplied by the <strong>in</strong>formal market of urban l<strong>and</strong>. The <strong>in</strong>formal real<br />

state market occurs <strong>in</strong> favelas <strong>and</strong> cl<strong>and</strong>est<strong>in</strong>e settlements that occupy low value l<strong>and</strong> sites oftentimesenvironmentally<br />

vulnerable like occupations of slopes subject to l<strong>and</strong>slides, riverbanks or flat areas subject to flood<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> occupations<br />

of improper soils like soft clay. The occupation of human settlements <strong>in</strong> areas of improper soil is a common issue of<br />

different cities of the Global South <strong>and</strong> will be the focus of this work for“TU DELFT <strong>CONFRONTING</strong> <strong>INFORMALITY</strong>”.<br />

As a case study, we chose Rio das Pedras, a favela with almost 100.000 residentslocated <strong>in</strong> the region of greater urban<br />

expansion of the city of Rio de Janeiro-Brazil between the neighborhoods of Jacarépaguá <strong>and</strong> Barra da Tijuca. These<br />

neighborhoodsregistered the largest number of real estate launches <strong>in</strong> the city between 2000 <strong>and</strong> 2010, represented<br />

mostly by closed condom<strong>in</strong>iums for upper middle class, consider<strong>in</strong>g population growth <strong>in</strong> the order of 28% <strong>in</strong> the<br />

period. Despite the warm<strong>in</strong>g of the construction <strong>in</strong>dustry had generated thous<strong>and</strong>s of employment opportunities,<br />

neither the State nor the Market created new hous<strong>in</strong>g opportunities for lower <strong>in</strong>come populationthat migrated to<br />

the region <strong>in</strong> search of employment. The result was the excessive <strong>and</strong> accelerated grow of the pre-existent <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements <strong>in</strong> the order of 53% growth <strong>in</strong> the period, that not accompanied by improvements <strong>in</strong> urban <strong>in</strong>frastructure<br />

<strong>and</strong> services, created situations of urban congestion that <strong>in</strong> the case of Rio das Pedras favelas, because of the fragility<br />

of the soil, became dramatic.<br />

Recently the municipality of Rio de Janeiro launched the idea of a <strong>Public</strong>-Private Partnership for the replacement of<br />

the favela by a new vertical residential condom<strong>in</strong>ium, which units would be f<strong>in</strong>anced to favela residents. The proposal<br />

revolted residents who protested strongly aga<strong>in</strong>st it, because : First, residents had not been consulted, second the<br />

proposed model does not meet the needs of the local because of higher ma<strong>in</strong>tenance costs, <strong>in</strong>flexibility of the units<br />

for commercial or production uses, <strong>and</strong> ext<strong>in</strong>ction of the street as the ma<strong>in</strong> element for social activities <strong>and</strong> leisure.<br />

Will the solution to the serious problems of <strong>in</strong>frastructure of Rio das Pedras necessarily pass through the removal or<br />

tabula rasa solutions? Would not it be possible to reth<strong>in</strong>k the construction of the urban blocks <strong>in</strong> order to preserve the<br />

exist<strong>in</strong>g urban fabric, economic <strong>and</strong> social structures?<br />

These questions guided the development of this work.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 165<br />

Photo 1- Aerial view of Rio das Pedras <strong>and</strong> Barra da Tijuca neighborhood <strong>in</strong> the background. Source: Herick Ribeiro, 2018.<br />

Photo 2- Commercial street. Source: Tayná Santiago, 2018. Photo 3- New build<strong>in</strong>gs along the river. Source: Tayná Santiago, 2018.<br />

Photo 4- The new condom<strong>in</strong>ium proposed by Municipality. Source: nabarra.tv<br />

Photo 5- Protest aga<strong>in</strong>st Municipality project. Source: Gaby Rocha.


166 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Fragile soil area<br />

City Hall`s empty l<strong>and</strong><br />

Areal<br />

Darcy Ribeiro Square (The only square <strong>in</strong> Areal)<br />

Hydrography<br />

Jacarepaguá Road<br />

Eng. Sousa Filho Avenue<br />

Tijuca<br />

Lagoon<br />

250m<br />

500m<br />

The settlement of Rio das Pedras <strong>in</strong> yellow areas of more fragile soil (soft clay). Below: photo of one sunken house.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 167<br />

FIT IMAGE(S) HERE<br />

1990 2000 2005 2010 2018<br />

Scheme that illustrates the problem of s<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g houses with huge losses to resident households.<br />

SINKING HOUSES<br />

Demporem Although the ulparibus, beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g nonsequam of the occupation ide es eium of Rio volendam das Pedras sequae took <strong>in</strong>cid place mi, <strong>in</strong> et 1951, opta dolupta it was from nobitem the year aboraep 2000 erovit that<br />

am occurred quatiisquam the great fugit explosion aut ero of <strong>in</strong>ctas growth. ipit, Affected num etustiatio by hous<strong>in</strong>g escitis crisis quundicium, <strong>in</strong> the region, volut the <strong>in</strong>ullatent residents magnis organized ex et quatio. through Itae an<br />

vollent Association quid of ut Residents et quas et required expla volest, from quas the government acculla boreiurio. the expropriation Itae num fugit of earcili a large bereseque private l<strong>and</strong>, simagnias claim es that eicatet was<br />

optas attended <strong>and</strong>unt <strong>in</strong> the quibeatem late 1980swith quis qui the ius<strong>and</strong>i agreement aut et that aperchilla it would nis be volut the Association raturiatem of arumend Residents itibusa who would estrum plot excerum the area de<br />

debitatibus, <strong>and</strong> distribute sum the ipicid l<strong>and</strong>. The quaturecest result was ent a regular accatur fabric molorroriati with lots doluptas of 50 m2 rem (5m iume x 10m) comnis of very con high pa density ducienimaio. <strong>in</strong> a soft Nam clay<br />

eium soil. As quuntur <strong>in</strong>itially s<strong>in</strong>verc the occupation hillitibea dolorem of the lots ipsum was done volut et by ducimet tents or eumquat wooden shacks fuga. S<strong>in</strong>ia (light volor constructions), aut quis quatati the situation as dolecab of<br />

orernam repression ius was modit, practically s<strong>in</strong>ulparum imperceptible, faceriores but et plis when vendeli the constructions atempos dolupta began pa to pellatur? be reformed Quia <strong>and</strong> que exp<strong>and</strong>ed voluptaque with ium more eiciisit<br />

durable idernat materials: us<strong>and</strong>is structures plabori aturessi <strong>in</strong> concrete ventionsed <strong>and</strong> walls que <strong>in</strong> rernat masonry rempeditibus of brick, the mi, build<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>in</strong>ctur sedionsent literally began estiunt, to torerum s<strong>in</strong>k. repudi<br />

doluptium velia iliquiscid ut que sust, seque volorum, omnis evenda qui blam et faces magnat latur?<br />

The repression process comes to bizarre situations <strong>in</strong> areas of more fragile soil where a dwell<strong>in</strong>gunit of 2 stages<br />

Um s<strong>in</strong>ks velibus, up to one ute meter net mos every et, optat<strong>in</strong> 3 years, ulparum which means et latus that ea <strong>in</strong> et less libuste than ssunt, 10 years sitia a sitae whole cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, floor stay ommo below <strong>in</strong>t street laut dolor level,<br />

aut what li<strong>and</strong>a generates doluptia humid sum <strong>and</strong> ipiet floodable am et voles spaces eosa , mak<strong>in</strong>g volorunt.At the ground <strong>in</strong>t ad level eost <strong>in</strong>adequate poris et ese for con liv<strong>in</strong>g. et dit The quiscias problem et por had asitiati be<strong>in</strong>g<br />

optat corrected eossitibus.Tibus by families through magnihic new te cum l<strong>and</strong>fills qui <strong>and</strong> commod reposition<strong>in</strong>g et ut et quassit, the slabs consectam to fit the right re sunt foot, libus which mo means quosto a quibus complete mi,<br />

tem. renovation Et quam of the aligeni house maximporunde every 10 years, nobis what ius consumes recae volorrunto all the families’ officium sav<strong>in</strong>gs, explant, an aut untenable que re dolorer situation. rorepello quibus<br />

volupta se nisquaest pedias ium et plab ium idem et voluptio. Od maio blabor aut et alitatem ra dolupta voluptatur,<br />

etus ess<strong>in</strong>us aut molo cus.<br />

OPPRESSION AND COMMERCIAL EXPLOITATION BY DOMAIN<br />

Uga. Ulparci ut lat aut ant, cus eicilitem ipit fugiatur ma pliquo evenihillaut officim odioribusci venet re volor accus<br />

GROUPS<br />

consequi te nonsequi<strong>and</strong>i <strong>and</strong>a poraest veliciis quae dolor ad modips<strong>and</strong>a de volectissim <strong>and</strong>ae eum re earitia vendae<br />

none odit dolo ius et et, omnis deratusam essedi sum eatusa volupt<strong>in</strong>it omnisit, teturestrum aut des reictae resequis<br />

In the context of state retraction <strong>in</strong> Lat<strong>in</strong> America, <strong>in</strong>formal settlements are <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly be<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>fluenced by networks<br />

autatem re si bea sequaeri nihilitae id ex et mo maximag nienti que cone rem <strong>in</strong>ciistias et ut delia pelibeaquae nis<br />

of paramilitaries groups that exploits these territories by sell<strong>in</strong>g private security services, alternative transportation,<br />

reperum, sitium dolliqui aut optaepedi doluptiorum et vidis diss<strong>in</strong>cte veligen turitem ad ea corehenis que lacepresto<br />

<strong>in</strong>ternet <strong>and</strong> cable TV services, monopoliz<strong>in</strong>g the sale of some essential products like gas, dr<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g water <strong>and</strong><br />

to officiatio. Itatiis velenda arcid eiureped modit harum sit es rat et labo. Nem. Ut ipita dipsundae volorum iducius,<br />

eventually also act<strong>in</strong>g with illegal products such as drugs or stolen goods. As powerful groups that act with connivance<br />

nonseque quo derit liquae. Nam am fuga. Ut optatis quatquianis sa simus. Ut utem quas del expliti onectae nusdam<br />

of the State <strong>and</strong> politicians , they exert power through oppression expell<strong>in</strong>g families who refuse to follow the rules of<br />

que re busam dolum s<strong>in</strong>um a quia num eostrum dolor aut quassit voloribus niscilit omnimillat.Ut utem quas del expliti<br />

monopoly. This social context affects families economically <strong>and</strong> consequently is generat<strong>in</strong>g negative implications to<br />

onectae nusdam que re busam dolum s<strong>in</strong>um a quia num eostrum dolor aut quassit voloribus niscilit omnimillat.<br />

the environment.<br />

Um velibus, ute net mos et, optat<strong>in</strong> ulparum et latus ea et libuste ssunt, sitia sitae cuptat<strong>in</strong>us, ommo <strong>in</strong>t laut dolor aut<br />

The high cost of liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Rio das Pedras caused by the exploitation by doma<strong>in</strong> groups <strong>and</strong> soil fragility has generated a<br />

li<strong>and</strong>a doluptia sum ipiet am et voles eosa volorunt.At <strong>in</strong>t ad eost poris et ese con et dit quiscias et por asitiati optat<br />

vicious cycle of exploitation that replicates at many levels. Residents who are owners are exp<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g or reform<strong>in</strong>g their<br />

eossitibus.Tibus magnihic te cum qui commod et ut et quassit, consectam re sunt libus mo quosto quibus mi, tem. Et<br />

homes to exploit new alternative sources of <strong>in</strong>come open<strong>in</strong>g stores on ground level or attach<strong>in</strong>g t<strong>in</strong>y apartments for<br />

quam aligeni maximporunde nobis ius recae volorrunto officium explant, aut que re dolorer rorepello quibus volupta<br />

se nisquaest pedias ium et plab ium idem et voluptio. Et quam aligeni maximporunde nobis ius recae volorrunto<br />

location on the roof slabs, but this expansion has aggravated the problem of constructive repression, mak<strong>in</strong>g clear<br />

that to facethe problem of s<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g we have to consider physical-structural solution but also social <strong>and</strong> economic issues.<br />

officium explant, aut que re dolorer rorepello quibus volupta se nisquaest pedias ium et plab ium idem et voluptio.


168 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Image 1: Proposal of blocks. Image 2: Reaction diagram. Image 3: Ferry block.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 169<br />

As Rio das Pedras is located on the banks of a river <strong>and</strong> a lagoon with soft clay soil; blocks are occupied by s<strong>in</strong>gle-family<br />

residences with conventional foundation of re<strong>in</strong>forced concrete that are seriously affectedby repression, it is impossible<br />

to preserve the exist<strong>in</strong>g constructions, we considered the possibility of relocation <strong>and</strong> reconstruction of each block<br />

<strong>in</strong> the same place they are<strong>in</strong> order to promote a gradual <strong>in</strong>tervention <strong>in</strong> the exist<strong>in</strong>g fabric, block by block, avoid<strong>in</strong>g<br />

great impact on the daily life of the resident population.The first challenge was about what k<strong>in</strong>d of construction <strong>and</strong><br />

foundation could, preserv<strong>in</strong>g high densities, present stability on that type of soil . The first option, discarded by the<br />

costs, would be deep foundations with stakes of 10 to 15 meters depth. The second one, which was adopted, was the<br />

solution of a radier foundation larger than the projection of the supported cargothat should be well distributed <strong>in</strong> the<br />

most balanced way possible, we called FerryBlock Concept.<br />

THE FERRY BLOCK CONCEPT<br />

The concept of the ferry block is that of a large structural surface that occupies the whole block <strong>and</strong> supports loads<br />

very well distributed as if it were a ferry float<strong>in</strong>g on a very soft soil.The very rationalized type of construction <strong>in</strong> terms<br />

of loads brought the idea of replac<strong>in</strong>g the set of s<strong>in</strong>gle-family units with multi-family residential units, which, <strong>in</strong> a way,<br />

contradicts the hous<strong>in</strong>g pattern found there.<br />

COMMUNAL CONDO<br />

Although not a very common typology <strong>in</strong> the favela, the multifamily residential complex presents some <strong>in</strong>terest<strong>in</strong>g<br />

advantages for the case of Rio das Pedras. It is due to the aspect of be<strong>in</strong>g a collective construction that is planned allow<strong>in</strong>g<br />

a greater rationality of the distribution of loads, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g good distribution of weight elements such as vertical<br />

circulation towers (stairs), water storage devices <strong>and</strong> lighter materials such as plaster panels <strong>and</strong> adoption of steel<br />

frame system <strong>in</strong> upper floors.<br />

One important aspectof the multifamily residential complex is the preservation of the relation between the new build<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> the street, consider<strong>in</strong>g that if the morphology result<strong>in</strong>g from the complex is very close to the reality of the<br />

favela, it will be easier to adapt the resident families. In this way we proposed the ma<strong>in</strong>tenance of the same number<br />

of floors (ground floor + 3 floors) <strong>and</strong> the existence of commercial units on the ground floor.<br />

The new set makes it possible to solve various problems of <strong>in</strong>adequate hous<strong>in</strong>g as the example of poorly dimensioned<br />

ladders that become collective <strong>and</strong> st<strong>and</strong>ardized, for <strong>in</strong>stance <strong>and</strong> problems of natural ventilation <strong>and</strong> light<strong>in</strong>g caused<br />

by occupancy of the hole lot (build<strong>in</strong>gs conf<strong>in</strong>ed with doors <strong>and</strong> w<strong>in</strong>dows just fac<strong>in</strong>g the street). Consider<strong>in</strong>g that<br />

climate is very hot <strong>and</strong> humid, houses are very humid because they s<strong>in</strong>k, it is very important to guarantee natural<br />

ventilation <strong>and</strong> the <strong>in</strong>cidence of sun. This condition is important to avoid the spread of diseases such as yellow fever<br />

<strong>and</strong> tuberculosis, that even today are still recurrent <strong>in</strong> favelas.<br />

To <strong>in</strong>habit a multifamily build<strong>in</strong>g means to build relationships between neighbors that allow the collective management<br />

of a space, ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g common areas of use; tak<strong>in</strong>g care of the networks of build<strong>in</strong>g facilities;manag<strong>in</strong>g the garbage,<br />

mail, water reserve <strong>and</strong> distribution; control<strong>in</strong>g expansions; creat<strong>in</strong>gcondom<strong>in</strong>ial rules <strong>and</strong> car<strong>in</strong>g for security.<br />

We do not see this as a problem, on the contrary, it can be potential to re<strong>in</strong>force neighborhood relations, mutual help<br />

<strong>and</strong> solidarity, normally present <strong>in</strong> these communities. We consider the maximum number of 64 hous<strong>in</strong>g / commercial<br />

units (population of 250 residents) for the establishment of these neighborhood units, which we will call here “communal<br />

condom<strong>in</strong>iums”. As the proposal is focused on exist<strong>in</strong>g urban blocks, the proximity between families is already<br />

present, giv<strong>in</strong>g greater conditions for structur<strong>in</strong>g social networks of each communal condo.<br />

Believ<strong>in</strong>g that the urban form is a powerful <strong>in</strong>strument to dynamize the social relations, we proposed the <strong>in</strong>corporation<br />

of common spaces between two or more build<strong>in</strong>gs as semi-public spaces of permanence, configur<strong>in</strong>g a network<br />

of small public spaces that can help to promote vic<strong>in</strong>al networks. We believe that thiscan be a political <strong>in</strong>strument<br />

of resistance aga<strong>in</strong>st exploitation <strong>and</strong> oppression practiced by doma<strong>in</strong> groups. We believe that <strong>in</strong> order to assert the<br />

“Right to the City” (LeFebvre) it is very important to th<strong>in</strong>k beyond the power of the State <strong>and</strong> Justice (Top-down), empower<strong>in</strong>g<br />

citizens<strong>in</strong> their daily life of dwell<strong>in</strong>g (Bottom-up).


170 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Jacarepaguá Road<br />

Eng. Sousa Filho Avenue<br />

4<br />

7<br />

5<br />

1<br />

2<br />

3<br />

Tijuca<br />

Lagoon<br />

The Hous<strong>in</strong>g Program Over Time.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 171<br />

THE HOUSING PROGRAM OVER TIME<br />

1.Urbanization of the City Hall`s empty l<strong>and</strong> with construction of new build<strong>in</strong>g for resettlement of the families occupy<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the banks of the river.<br />

2. Resettlement of the families from the river banks.<br />

3. Protection of river banks with a l<strong>in</strong>ear park. Construction of the ferry blocks <strong>in</strong> the l<strong>and</strong> of the dest<strong>in</strong>ation (showroom).<br />

4.Negotiation with families of a pilot block (<strong>in</strong> area of worst fragile soil).<br />

5. Temporary relocation of families from the pilot block to the ferry blocks <strong>in</strong> the City Hall’s l<strong>and</strong>.<br />

6. Works <strong>in</strong> the pilot block for rebuild<strong>in</strong>g accord<strong>in</strong>g to the ferry blocks model.<br />

7. one year later - families return to the home <strong>in</strong> a ferry blocks model.


172 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Reform<strong>in</strong>g Waste:<br />

AA22<br />

REFORMING WASTE -<br />

PIPING MANSHEYAT NASER<br />

Pip<strong>in</strong>g Mansheyat Naser<br />

The Garbage City – Egypt’s Untouchables<br />

The Garbage City – Egypt’s Untouchables<br />

CAIRO, EGYPT<br />

ARISE WAN, CHARLENE CHAN HUISHAN, KAREEM NEMS , LEE XIAO HUI, MOHAMED MOHARRAM<br />

DESSAU INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE GRADUATE SCHOOL (DIA)/ ANHALT UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED<br />

SCIENCES<br />

The Idea<br />

The relentless growth of cities urges for solutions that relate to the improvement of levels of comfort <strong>in</strong> conf<strong>in</strong>ed spaces<br />

<strong>and</strong> a right to public spaces for the well-be<strong>in</strong>g of the liv<strong>in</strong>g quality of a citizen. This is especially necessary for a change<br />

<strong>in</strong> the forgotten community at the base of Mokattan hill on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt - the world’s largest garbage<br />

village: the garbage city.<br />

When you step <strong>in</strong>to the slums of Mansheyat Nasser, the first unique impression that strikes you would be the piles of<br />

garbage <strong>in</strong> nylon bags stacked, fill<strong>in</strong>g the streets, <strong>and</strong> this is uniquely why this particular slum home to 60,000 people<br />

is also known as ‘the Garbage City’. Cairo’s city garbage is brought to the Garbage City <strong>in</strong> by this group of resid<strong>in</strong>g locals<br />

called the “Zabbaleen” (Arabic for garbage people), who then sort through the garbage to attempt to retrieve any<br />

potentially useful or recyclable items. The Zabaleen are born <strong>in</strong>to the trash trade <strong>and</strong> grow up <strong>in</strong> a ghetto but they’ve<br />

developed efficient way of sort<strong>in</strong>g. These garbage collectors comprise of almost 70% of the city’s population, thus the<br />

reason for its given name. They are <strong>in</strong>evitably one of the most efficient garbage sorters because they manage to sell of<br />

80% of the garbage they collect on a daily basis.<br />

Garbage here consist of the city’s thrown-out <strong>and</strong> leftover stories. The garbage’s are the basic energy of the city. There<br />

are leftover stories that garbage city absorbs to make a livelihood out of what they have. Consider<strong>in</strong>g the amount of<br />

garbage they have to collect <strong>and</strong> sort to earn a liv<strong>in</strong>g, the garbage they collect back to their homes are of an even larger<br />

amount. They would sort the garbage <strong>in</strong> their homes <strong>and</strong> then sell it after. With the lack of access to proper sanitation<br />

across the slum, it makes diseases easier to spread with<strong>in</strong> the city. At present there is little provision of public spaces<br />

with<strong>in</strong> the slum area <strong>and</strong> the <strong>in</strong>frastructures provided are fragmented, ab<strong>and</strong>oned <strong>and</strong> therefore impractical to improve<br />

the liv<strong>in</strong>g quality of the people. Heavily affected by the negative perception of the citizens <strong>in</strong> the city of Cairo towards<br />

the slum, Garbage city is one place not every local Egyptians would step <strong>in</strong>.<br />

This proposal are ideas that are h<strong>and</strong>s-on, <strong>in</strong> the form of small-scale <strong>in</strong>itiatives that uses the scraps <strong>and</strong> waste they have<br />

to convert them <strong>in</strong>to reusable energy <strong>and</strong> add<strong>in</strong>g value to an under-looked element as a shared space among neighborhood.<br />

It is our fundamental assumption that a healthy community should have a right to a clean liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions <strong>and</strong><br />

spaces for engagement <strong>and</strong> exchange among neighbors <strong>and</strong> where strong bonds can be ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong>ed. Initiatives that are<br />

people-centered, empower<strong>in</strong>g all <strong>in</strong>dividuals <strong>and</strong> communities, while enabl<strong>in</strong>g their full <strong>and</strong> mean<strong>in</strong>gful participation<br />

<strong>in</strong> the process. While the <strong>in</strong>itiatives may be small, the idea of chang<strong>in</strong>g one street, one <strong>in</strong>itiatives at a time could be a<br />

big catalyst that could stir up a pride <strong>in</strong> the people of the city <strong>and</strong> improve their liv<strong>in</strong>g quality all <strong>in</strong> all while dim<strong>in</strong>ish<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the prejudice aga<strong>in</strong>st them <strong>in</strong> the process.


REFOR<br />

PIPING<br />

TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 173<br />

AA22<br />

The Gar<br />

An overall graphic vision of the pip<strong>in</strong>g system attached on the ab<strong>and</strong>oned build<strong>in</strong>g with the strategy <strong>in</strong> place.


174 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Introduction of the site, its problems <strong>and</strong> the exisit<strong>in</strong>g conditions.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 175<br />

Simplified diagram expla<strong>in</strong>ation of strategies <strong>and</strong> approach.<br />

Context & Process<br />

Beh<strong>in</strong>d the mounta<strong>in</strong>s of rubbish one starts to see the order, discipl<strong>in</strong>e, diligence <strong>and</strong> the strong sense of pride the Zabaleen<br />

have <strong>in</strong> their work. Families work together <strong>and</strong> earn a liv<strong>in</strong>g; at dawn every morn<strong>in</strong>g, young Zabaleen members of the<br />

community start their daily journey to Cairo <strong>in</strong> horse-drawn carts <strong>and</strong> trucks <strong>in</strong> order to collect rubbish from the city’s apartments<br />

<strong>and</strong> bus<strong>in</strong>esses. By lunchtime all the rubbish collected has been brought back <strong>in</strong>to the slum settlement where every<br />

member of the family; children, parents <strong>and</strong> gr<strong>and</strong>parents set to sort<strong>in</strong>g it. This k<strong>in</strong>d of livelihood has been passed on for a<br />

few generations.<br />

We would start the first phase of this proposal by address<strong>in</strong>g the quality of liv<strong>in</strong>g for each of the families. We believe address<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>formality is not just about creat<strong>in</strong>g more build<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> typologies, rather it’s about underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g the context <strong>and</strong><br />

its needs while com<strong>in</strong>g up with solutions that are affordable, practical <strong>and</strong> workable. Therefore, the proposal would first be<br />

look<strong>in</strong>g at the site <strong>in</strong> a macro scale <strong>and</strong> categoriz<strong>in</strong>g build<strong>in</strong>gs on the site. A reuse of ab<strong>and</strong>oned build<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>in</strong> the area would<br />

be dedicated to rubbish sort<strong>in</strong>g, so that the people would not or lessen the amount of garbage brought back home. Through<br />

this simple logic, it would already have decreased half or more of the amount of rubbish <strong>and</strong> diseases.<br />

In the second phase, the regeneration is on an architectural element of Mansheyat Nasser that has be<strong>in</strong>g left ab<strong>and</strong>oned – on<br />

the rooftops. These spaces will be regenerated based on the assumption all the rubbish on the rooftop would be cleared <strong>and</strong><br />

these spaces could then become shared spaces for the local community. The improvement of the highest layer of this city<br />

would be then a new layer for communal <strong>in</strong>teraction.<br />

In a third phase, smaller <strong>in</strong>itiatives <strong>and</strong> ideas would spread out across the fabric of the slum. The lessons learnt by the local<br />

population through their <strong>in</strong>volvement <strong>and</strong> participation <strong>in</strong> the construction of the build<strong>in</strong>gs could, <strong>and</strong> hopefully would, then<br />

move <strong>in</strong>to the construction of these structures <strong>in</strong> the vic<strong>in</strong>ity of their own dwell<strong>in</strong>gs. These <strong>in</strong>itiatives are a good example of<br />

low-tech susta<strong>in</strong>ability: f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>g a new application for the production of normally unused waste follow<strong>in</strong>g the ideal that noth<strong>in</strong>g<br />

is left beh<strong>in</strong>d, but <strong>in</strong>stead everyth<strong>in</strong>g can f<strong>in</strong>d a new, previously not envisaged, use <strong>and</strong> purpose.


176 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Regenerat<strong>in</strong>g the rooftops as public spaces, shown <strong>in</strong> a perspective plan view.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 177<br />

Design Vision & Strategies<br />

“Every slum is unique <strong>and</strong> regeneration would be successful only if it responds to the genius loci<br />

by collaborat<strong>in</strong>g with the community that builds for themselves.”<br />

The ma<strong>in</strong> idea of our proposal epitomizes the quote. Tackl<strong>in</strong>g slum regeneration or upgrad<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the context of Mansheyat<br />

Nasser <strong>in</strong>cludes tak<strong>in</strong>g actions <strong>in</strong> both the <strong>in</strong>terior liv<strong>in</strong>g quality <strong>and</strong> the exterior public spaces of the site. The general strategy<br />

is to come up with m<strong>in</strong>or <strong>in</strong>terventions with respect to the physical structure us<strong>in</strong>g local upcycl<strong>in</strong>g resources. These local<br />

upcycl<strong>in</strong>g resources ma<strong>in</strong>ly <strong>in</strong>volve urban transformation, us<strong>in</strong>g raw materials such as wood from the garbage collected <strong>and</strong><br />

also good pieces from the local factory nearby.<br />

Our proposal is based on the assumption that the government would do its part on ensur<strong>in</strong>g the clean-up work on the streets<br />

<strong>and</strong> on the rooftops would be carried out. With that at h<strong>and</strong>, the first phase of the proposal is that a new system made from<br />

scraps, unwanted rubbish <strong>and</strong> perhaps some raw materials would then be implemented <strong>in</strong> the designated garbage sort<strong>in</strong>g<br />

build<strong>in</strong>gs. These mechanisms will have pip<strong>in</strong>g that will sort the rubbish <strong>in</strong>to different b<strong>in</strong>s based on the different k<strong>in</strong>ds of<br />

waste such as plastics, alum<strong>in</strong>um, paper, metal <strong>and</strong> glass. The sorters will dispose of the garbage <strong>in</strong>to different gravity pipes<br />

that would connect to different b<strong>in</strong>s, <strong>and</strong> based on the net weight, tokens that could be changed to cash would be then<br />

given. After a day’s of hard work, a designated lorry will drive to the b<strong>in</strong>s on the ground level <strong>and</strong> collect the rubbish every<br />

even<strong>in</strong>g. This system ensures recyclable rubbish are sent out to their factories every even<strong>in</strong>g. The categorization of build<strong>in</strong>g<br />

typologies would also be an encouragement for the people to br<strong>in</strong>g their garbage <strong>in</strong>to the designated build<strong>in</strong>gs, <strong>in</strong>stead of<br />

<strong>in</strong>to their homes where they live.<br />

Besides that, we would also focus on improv<strong>in</strong>g the conditions of the streets, by do<strong>in</strong>g proper clean<strong>in</strong>g up <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>sert<strong>in</strong>g<br />

small <strong>in</strong>itiatives with simple mechanisms. These mechanism are not complicated mach<strong>in</strong>eries but buildable structure with<br />

guidel<strong>in</strong>es to the community. Small projects such as a bio-waste trash b<strong>in</strong> that generates electricity, a balcony w<strong>in</strong>dmill that<br />

harness energy <strong>and</strong> even a plastic shredd<strong>in</strong>g mach<strong>in</strong>e as a children’s playground would further enhance the idea of the reuse<br />

of waste to create someth<strong>in</strong>g useful for the community. For example, our proposal of bio-waste converter b<strong>in</strong>s would allow<br />

the people to dispose their bio-waste <strong>in</strong>to the b<strong>in</strong>s <strong>in</strong> order to generate electricity to power up more parts of their homes.<br />

The w<strong>in</strong>dmill attached on the balconies <strong>and</strong> rooftops that are made from scratch also allows for the storage of energy from<br />

the w<strong>in</strong>dy <strong>and</strong> s<strong>and</strong>y climate. These harnessed energies can be transformed <strong>in</strong>to useful energy of electricity to generate<br />

heat dur<strong>in</strong>g the colder climatic seasons or whenever necessary. Lastly, a plastic shredd<strong>in</strong>g mach<strong>in</strong>e <strong>in</strong> the form of a children’s<br />

playground/play kit could not only encourage children to be a part of the recycl<strong>in</strong>g process but also aid the NGO that are<br />

produc<strong>in</strong>g local crafts from plastics shreds by the women <strong>in</strong> the city. By <strong>in</strong>sert<strong>in</strong>g new activities <strong>and</strong> services, <strong>and</strong> concentrat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

them along the road <strong>in</strong> designated focal po<strong>in</strong>ts we aimed to disperse the development throughout the settlement.<br />

The dense structure of the neighborhood requires specific <strong>in</strong>terventions that create a network of <strong>in</strong>frastructure <strong>and</strong> facilities<br />

based on the logic of micro-<strong>in</strong>tervention. From the central element of a new system to recycle rubbish to the other punctual<br />

components of our proposal, we aimed to work on a small scale but with an eventual much larger vision of <strong>in</strong>tervention.<br />

In the third phase of the proposal, the lessons learnt by the local population through their <strong>in</strong>volvement <strong>and</strong> participation<br />

<strong>in</strong> the construction of the build<strong>in</strong>gs could, <strong>and</strong> hopefully would, then move <strong>in</strong>to the clean<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> construction of the under-used<br />

rooftop elements to be public shared spaces with<strong>in</strong> the close knitted society. The lack<strong>in</strong>g gather<strong>in</strong>g spaces now can<br />

then be replaced by the rooftop spaces. The proposal was born from the desire to create spaces for the people who live <strong>in</strong><br />

the neighborhood <strong>and</strong> for the activities they perform every day. Imag<strong>in</strong>e if housewives could use the rooftop to dry their<br />

laundry, bird towers could be <strong>in</strong>corporated with plant<strong>in</strong>g boxes <strong>and</strong> children could use the bird towers as their playground<br />

<strong>and</strong> kite-fly<strong>in</strong>g grounds. The task we tried to follow was to preserve <strong>and</strong> enhance some aspects of their daily life, especially<br />

those common characters able to further strengthen the exist<strong>in</strong>g social network – such as the bird towers. Rooftops are also<br />

<strong>in</strong>terl<strong>in</strong>ked with each other through bridges or connect<strong>in</strong>g platforms.<br />

While we underst<strong>and</strong> the lure of a universal solution for slum upgrad<strong>in</strong>g, but we are conv<strong>in</strong>ced every slum is unique <strong>and</strong><br />

would be successful only if it responds to the genius loci. The reuse <strong>and</strong> simple regeneration project would use local materials,<br />

local technologies <strong>and</strong> local construction systems provid<strong>in</strong>g not only physical development but also an opportunity for<br />

that to act as a stimulus for the future susta<strong>in</strong>able growth of the neighborhood.


178 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Build<strong>in</strong>g section <strong>and</strong> the process of how the pip<strong>in</strong>g works on the ab<strong>and</strong>oned build<strong>in</strong>g, with step by step guidel<strong>in</strong>es.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 179<br />

Small scale <strong>in</strong>terventions to be proposed along the stretch of the road, enabl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> improv<strong>in</strong>g the qualit of the community.


180 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 181


182 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

AA23<br />

(PRE)Occupy<strong>in</strong>g Anchieta<br />

Build<strong>in</strong>g Urban Inclusion <strong>in</strong> Peripheral São Paulo<br />

(PRE) Occupy<strong>in</strong>g Anchieta<br />

Build<strong>in</strong>g Urban Inclusion <strong>in</strong> Peripheral São<br />

Paulo<br />

SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL<br />

LUCAS LERCHS<br />

KU LEUVEN<br />

KAROLINE ANDRADE BARROS<br />

USP - UNIVERSITY OF SÃO PAULO<br />

INTRODUCTION<br />

As many metropolis <strong>in</strong> the global south, peripheral neighbourhoods proliferate around São Paulo. These communities<br />

often suffer from marg<strong>in</strong>alization <strong>in</strong> physical, as much as <strong>in</strong> social terms. Grajaú, <strong>in</strong> the South of<br />

São Paulo, is such a peripheral self-build districts, developed over time by claims for rights to the city. In this<br />

context, the community of Anchieta emerged <strong>in</strong> 2013 from the occupation of a private <strong>and</strong> environmental<br />

protected l<strong>and</strong>. The owner of the l<strong>and</strong>, a social <strong>in</strong>stitution that fights for the improvement of the peripheral<br />

communities’ education is daily preoccupied with improv<strong>in</strong>g everyday liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions of the community.<br />

The large NGO aims to build towards a peripheral liv<strong>in</strong>g environment that respects the natural l<strong>and</strong>scape,<br />

improves socio-economic conditions <strong>and</strong> offers opportunities for develop<strong>in</strong>g professional skills <strong>and</strong> education.<br />

This project tries to learn from the Anchieta occupation its particular context how stigmatized peripheral dwell<strong>in</strong>g<br />

environments can be improved towards more <strong>in</strong>clusive urban sett<strong>in</strong>gs. The project is organized <strong>in</strong> three dist<strong>in</strong>ct lenses<br />

of the (pre)occupied site, analys<strong>in</strong>g the environmental context, the built fabric <strong>and</strong> the social environment. This<br />

way, the research <strong>and</strong> design project seeks to illustrate the complex problematic of coexistence <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>terdependence<br />

<strong>in</strong> the peripheral city <strong>in</strong> the mak<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>and</strong> allows for more <strong>in</strong>clusive future design scenarios to be imag<strong>in</strong>ed.<br />

These three lenses are tested out <strong>in</strong> three particular read<strong>in</strong>gs of the site, iterat<strong>in</strong>g between analysis <strong>and</strong> project.<br />

The first underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g of the Anchieta occupation is realized ‘from above’, <strong>in</strong> a cartographic analysis.<br />

The second unfolds a look ‘from below’, develop<strong>in</strong>g an <strong>in</strong>terpretative mapp<strong>in</strong>g that stems from specific<br />

trajectories on <strong>and</strong> through the site. Lastly, the third revisited the site through a design exploration.<br />

The project offers an alternative to a global problematic <strong>and</strong> yet constantly neglected: the coexistence between a<br />

precarious marg<strong>in</strong>alized population <strong>and</strong> disappear<strong>in</strong>g valuable natural resources. In Anchieta, the l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> its resources<br />

have been devastated with the same brutality that are neglected the vital needs of vulnerable populations.<br />

In parallel to that, the strange <strong>and</strong> fragile collaboration between the l<strong>and</strong>’s owners <strong>and</strong> the occupant population<br />

turns Anchieta an exceptional opportunity for experimentation. These two groups are work<strong>in</strong>g together to develop<br />

an adequate <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong>able solution able to face the struggles <strong>and</strong> expectations of the various actors. This<br />

negotiation process for coexistence offers the opportunity to generate a pilot project tackl<strong>in</strong>g crucial challenges<br />

shared by contemporary <strong>in</strong>formal development. Ultimately, this exemplar collaboration has the potential to generate<br />

a shift <strong>in</strong> the local m<strong>in</strong>d-sets <strong>and</strong> hopefully <strong>in</strong>fluence legislative decisions <strong>in</strong> terms of socio-urban <strong>in</strong>clusions.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 183<br />

Aerial view of Anchieta’s Community, IAG.


184 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

ELEMENT 01 / SLOPE<br />

15<br />

Everyday’s life journey <strong>in</strong> Anchieta. Alice Larsimont


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 185<br />

Children of the Anchieta’s community, Lucas Lerchs.<br />

CONTEXT AND PROCESS<br />

Anchieta’s occupation is a community that started from the <strong>in</strong>vasion of the IAG’s terra<strong>in</strong> - Instituto Anchieta Grajaú<br />

- <strong>in</strong> 2013. The occupants have devastated the hilly natural reserve by burn<strong>in</strong>g down the vegetation <strong>in</strong> the time<br />

of a weekend. Straight on the ashes, they constructed fragile wooden structures as their shelter’s base to survive.<br />

The owners of the l<strong>and</strong>, unprepared to face such a violent <strong>and</strong> total loss of control over their property, directly<br />

<strong>in</strong>itiate legal proceed<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>in</strong> order to evict the occupants. Wait<strong>in</strong>g for the trial, the tensions became high between<br />

the Instituto Anchieta Grajaú, which is responsible for provid<strong>in</strong>g education to the region’s children - <strong>and</strong><br />

the occupants, who have become more numerous <strong>and</strong> organized themselves as the Anchieta Grajaú movement.<br />

After changes of coord<strong>in</strong>ation on both sides, a dialogue is f<strong>in</strong>ally established between the two groups. Hence, from negotiations<br />

<strong>and</strong> collaboration an agreement was reached: the Institute allowed the population present on site to live on their while<br />

the community respect the rules set by the Institute <strong>in</strong> terms of environmental protection <strong>and</strong> necessary spatial changes.<br />

S<strong>in</strong>ce this agreement, both side have already proved their implication <strong>in</strong> the respect of their engagements. At the<br />

beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g of 2017, the Institute formed a research group composed of various professionals <strong>in</strong> order to develop an<br />

<strong>in</strong>-depth analysis <strong>and</strong> a project proposal <strong>in</strong> collaboration with the community. On the other h<strong>and</strong>, the community has<br />

already moved dozens of houses to release the marg<strong>in</strong>s <strong>and</strong> protect the water source pass<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the centre of the l<strong>and</strong>.<br />

Nowadays, the community that lived s<strong>in</strong>ce the <strong>in</strong>vasion <strong>in</strong>to a conflict<strong>in</strong>g relationship with its natural environment<br />

is <strong>in</strong>itiat<strong>in</strong>g a phase of gradual transformation <strong>in</strong> order to reconsider its natural context as valuable resources<br />

for development. Realiz<strong>in</strong>g a considerable shift, from their ma<strong>in</strong> threat to a catalysator for their survival.<br />

Based on the present strength, the project research method is based on “learn<strong>in</strong>g” processes that <strong>in</strong>tervene <strong>in</strong><br />

all levels of the realized work. From the study method <strong>in</strong> the on-site observ<strong>in</strong>g process – learn<strong>in</strong>g from <strong>and</strong> with<br />

them – it quickly became evident that our shared local & external knowledge would become the solid base to<br />

develop the strategies <strong>and</strong> the goal of the proposed <strong>in</strong>terventions. This “learn<strong>in</strong>g” goal aims to support the complete<br />

community to be empowered by giv<strong>in</strong>g them access to proper spaces <strong>and</strong> external networks to develop their<br />

skills & knowledge capital. The local know-how is their greatest <strong>in</strong>strument for social mobility. Unfortunately nowadays<br />

it is hard for them to develop it, as they first have to deal everyday with their socio-economical struggles.<br />

At this stage, the proposal rema<strong>in</strong>s an open w<strong>in</strong>dow on the possibilities that the place has to offer <strong>and</strong> to give a<br />

chance to the most concerned actors to set the improvement mechanism off. Aware of the big probability of<br />

spontaneous <strong>and</strong> uncontrollable evolution, the project voluntary keeps a certa<strong>in</strong> degree of un-def<strong>in</strong>ition, to give<br />

the necessary liberty for both people <strong>and</strong> nature liv<strong>in</strong>g on site to appropriate it <strong>and</strong> make advantages out of it.


186 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Incremental occupation<br />

(pre) occupy<strong>in</strong>g the forest<br />

Settl<strong>in</strong>g with water<br />

Emergent dwell<strong>in</strong>g environments<br />

Carol<strong>in</strong>e Cust<strong>in</strong>e, Alice Larsimont, Lucas Lerchs


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 187<br />

DESIGN VISION AND STRATEGIES<br />

The Grajaú district is truly marked by uneven topography, patterned by a dense network of micro valleys <strong>and</strong> streams.<br />

The no-man’s l<strong>and</strong>s where the precarious favelas settlements have to face a double geomorphological aspect: they<br />

are the <strong>in</strong>-betweeness of the city, where the residual territory comes from undef<strong>in</strong>ed spaces to <strong>in</strong>cremental consolidation<br />

development, <strong>and</strong> they are the steady terra<strong>in</strong>s, where extreme slopes <strong>and</strong> water flows have made the l<strong>and</strong>s<br />

undesirable for constructors.<br />

In Anchieta, the poor soil structure is even more weakened by the lack of proper dra<strong>in</strong>age network: the actual <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

streets of the community became open-air canals. Grooves appear all along the roads, carry<strong>in</strong>g the water from top to<br />

down to the m<strong>in</strong>e dug deeper when carry<strong>in</strong>g water, waste <strong>and</strong> expos<strong>in</strong>g the population to health issues.<br />

In the region, water is an uncerta<strong>in</strong> resource. Dur<strong>in</strong>g wet seasons, it can turn <strong>in</strong>to danger when it generates impressive<br />

floods, which sludge flows can be deadly. Dur<strong>in</strong>g dry seasons, it can become a commodity so rare that communities<br />

like Anchieta are sometimes deprived of it for several days mak<strong>in</strong>g extreme heat unbearable.<br />

DAILY WATER SYSTEM | First of all, long trenches will be dug follow<strong>in</strong>g the topography, form<strong>in</strong>g long trenches runn<strong>in</strong>g<br />

along the hillsides. These coils will be used to collect ra<strong>in</strong>water every day. Collect<strong>in</strong>g these waters <strong>and</strong> slow<strong>in</strong>g<br />

down their flow by mak<strong>in</strong>g them follow the topography, avoids soil erosion <strong>and</strong> allows the <strong>in</strong>habitants to make use of<br />

these waters by deviat<strong>in</strong>g the common channel to water their crops or to use the water to other household needs.<br />

The <strong>in</strong>habitants who built terraces there to <strong>in</strong>stall dwell<strong>in</strong>gs have transformed the l<strong>and</strong>’s morphology. Once former<br />

houses would be demolished, these man made terraces could be used as a support for the water harvest<strong>in</strong>g system<br />

or to help its canalization.<br />

EXCEPTIONAL WATER SYSTEM | At the end of its run, this daily water management network would pour <strong>in</strong>to a<br />

second type of <strong>in</strong>tervention, designed to receive more water: the exceptional water system. This exceptional water<br />

system consists <strong>in</strong> an important digg<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> re<strong>in</strong>forcement of the ground where the waters naturally meet. The<br />

purpose of this <strong>in</strong>tervention is to be able to create a corridor to direct the important waterfalls, more rare but more<br />

devastat<strong>in</strong>g. These exceptional water corridors make it possible to protect the area of greater risk of erosion as well as<br />

to collect these waters <strong>in</strong> bas<strong>in</strong>s situated at their end. These bas<strong>in</strong>s, which are also useful for filter<strong>in</strong>g the water from<br />

the waste it could have carried on, allow the <strong>in</strong>habitants to temporarily use this water stock as a precious resource. A<br />

surplus allows the water to over flow <strong>and</strong> f<strong>in</strong>ishes its course <strong>in</strong> the bottom of the valley, <strong>in</strong> the creek that crosses the<br />

community.<br />

VEGETATION | This diversity of environment makes it possible to generate various vegetal systems whose <strong>in</strong>teraction<br />

improves simultaneously the quality of life of the <strong>in</strong>habitants <strong>and</strong> contribute to the rebirth of this precious flora. The<br />

first <strong>in</strong>tervention is to implement an “exceptional water system” with native vegetation whose root<strong>in</strong>g would help to<br />

solidify these soils. This <strong>in</strong>tervention would also help regenerate corridors of the Mata Atlantica – national protected<br />

vegetation – <strong>and</strong> locally regenerate this resource that needs to be re-established <strong>in</strong> the all region. In addition, these<br />

vegetation corridors would allow the regeneration of an absorbent <strong>and</strong> adapted green mass <strong>in</strong> order to take advantage<br />

of these large quantities of water that will be redirected <strong>in</strong> this corridor. These important <strong>in</strong>terventions also make<br />

possible to take advantage of these facilities to add pedestrian traffic to these steepest areas of the community <strong>and</strong><br />

that would create natural sub-divisions between future hous<strong>in</strong>g groups.<br />

The central zone of the community conta<strong>in</strong>s the native vegetation to conserve <strong>and</strong> to replant throughout the territory<br />

of this nature reserve. In order to protect this vegetal resource, a transition zone will be established on one the edges<br />

of the natural area. This entire surface, composed of many terraces formerly <strong>in</strong>habited, will accommodate food production<br />

areas as well as areas of reforestation of native vegetation. This production surface also allows ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g a<br />

distance between the implementation of human activities <strong>and</strong> construction, <strong>and</strong> the native vegetation reserve.


188 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Phas<strong>in</strong>g of development<br />

Learn<strong>in</strong>g & collective poles<br />

PRODUCTIVE POLE<br />

CULTURAL POLE<br />

EDUCATIVE POLE<br />

PHASE 1<br />

Collect<strong>in</strong>g & protect<strong>in</strong>g the flows<br />

1<br />

1<br />

2<br />

2<br />

3<br />

CULTIVATION ZONE<br />

GREEN CORRIDOR<br />

PEDESTRIAN<br />

3<br />

PATH<br />

Slow<strong>in</strong>g down water<br />

PHASE 2<br />

EXCPETIONAL<br />

WATER SYSTEM<br />

PHASE 3<br />

A project from, with & for the community<br />

DAILY WATER SYSTEM<br />

PHASE 4<br />

Carol<strong>in</strong>e Cust<strong>in</strong>e, Alice Larsimont, Lucas Lerchs<br />

co-liv<strong>in</strong>g with the flora


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 189<br />

In the case of Grajaú, we are deal<strong>in</strong>g with an area disputed by complex forces. The more visible are essentially socio-spatial<br />

features but there is also a layer of <strong>in</strong>fluence embedded <strong>in</strong> politics, policies <strong>and</strong> actor’s governance. Situated<br />

at the periphery of the periphery – <strong>in</strong> local perspective, where the city beg<strong>in</strong>s - this population is exposed to all<br />

lack of basic needs <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>frastructures. Nevertheless, their adaptations to survive <strong>in</strong> these unclaimed territories made<br />

visible the consequences of unplanned urbanization. This key aspect of the situation can raise potential governmental<br />

funds <strong>and</strong> supports but it can also trigger conflict of <strong>in</strong>terests. The daily struggles from local population are <strong>in</strong> need of<br />

actors’ collaboration to answer urban contemporary challenges <strong>and</strong> should alarm plann<strong>in</strong>g authorities. For <strong>in</strong>stance,<br />

through the lack of formal systems of garbage collection <strong>and</strong> sewage network, the settlement simply can’t evacuate its<br />

daily waste. Black <strong>and</strong> grey waters, organic waste, non-biodegradable <strong>and</strong>, residual materials from build<strong>in</strong>g activities<br />

all end down <strong>in</strong> the creek. This generates health issues, pollution, <strong>in</strong>security, stigmatization <strong>and</strong> isolation population.<br />

In order to meet this essential dem<strong>and</strong>, the project develops three poles whose objective is to simultaneously physically<br />

<strong>and</strong> socially reconnect Anchieta with its close context while provid<strong>in</strong>g places of learn<strong>in</strong>g where the exchange<br />

of knowledge can take place. The development of its poles will serve as a motor for meet<strong>in</strong>g actors, for transmitt<strong>in</strong>g<br />

knowledge & skills <strong>and</strong> - f<strong>in</strong>ally for generat<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>come for the community’s <strong>in</strong>habitants. These poles have the ambition<br />

to answer the urgent need of gather<strong>in</strong>g places has consequences on the whole community <strong>and</strong> sub-community life <strong>in</strong><br />

Anchieta. Lastly, the poles can become the <strong>in</strong>itiation of diverse complementary productive activities, micro-economies<br />

that emerged from the new skills or knowledge acquired.<br />

First a ‘productive pole’ redevelops plant resources <strong>in</strong> this natural reserve. This place is designed as a production<br />

center ma<strong>in</strong>ly of seeds <strong>and</strong> young shoots, which can then be, planted <strong>in</strong> the vegetal production & regeneration green<br />

areas of the whole community.<br />

Secondly, a ‘cultural pole’ meets a critical need for activities for young people. The culture, used as a form of creative<br />

resistance <strong>in</strong> the whole region, is strongly absent <strong>in</strong> the community. The <strong>in</strong>genuities to develop it are however already<br />

present but are lack<strong>in</strong>g of basic f<strong>in</strong>ancial support <strong>and</strong> adapted <strong>in</strong>frastructure. The objective of this pole is to also be an<br />

open place to the public outside the community to establish a two-ways <strong>in</strong>clusion: the people from the community are<br />

more <strong>in</strong> contact with their surround<strong>in</strong>gs but also to welcome the people of the surround<strong>in</strong>gs to come <strong>and</strong> participate<br />

<strong>in</strong> the development of the project.<br />

F<strong>in</strong>ally the ‘educational pole’ is located at another boundary of the community. This location is strategically located at<br />

most socially precarious part of the community. This pole consists of two build<strong>in</strong>gs: the first one be<strong>in</strong>g a workshop <strong>and</strong><br />

classroom build<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>and</strong> the second one consist<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> a waste recycl<strong>in</strong>g station <strong>and</strong> sales premises for the recycled materials.<br />

Inspired by small-scale local <strong>in</strong>itiatives, these functions could become part of wider network already gradually<br />

regenerat<strong>in</strong>g socio-economic conditions <strong>in</strong> the region.<br />

HOUSING | Sao Paulo has become a city of two faces. Separated between the city center, where most advantaged<br />

populations live <strong>and</strong> the surround<strong>in</strong>gs of it, where vulnerable populations keep on establish<strong>in</strong>g themselves. The last<br />

challenge of the project is provid<strong>in</strong>g an appropriate hous<strong>in</strong>g that could contribute towards social <strong>in</strong>clusion. Consider<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the city <strong>in</strong> its current state, <strong>in</strong> its larger scale <strong>and</strong> with all the potential it has to offer, this <strong>in</strong>clusion will not occur<br />

only by <strong>in</strong>tegrat<strong>in</strong>g the peripheries <strong>in</strong>to the formal system but by consider<strong>in</strong>g these surround<strong>in</strong>g communities as part<br />

of a whole. Anchieta then cannot be just seen as another peripheral community that needs to be regularized <strong>and</strong><br />

consolidated <strong>in</strong> order to become one day likewise the centre, but as another part of the city to take <strong>in</strong>to account while<br />

imag<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g the evolution of Sao Paulo.<br />

The project proposes to only provide the essential solid wood structure be<strong>in</strong>g thought as a basis for a development<br />

<strong>and</strong> a more personalized subdivision for each family. Dwell<strong>in</strong>gs with a built area of 54.5m2 can be enlarged <strong>and</strong> developed<br />

up to 84m2. The <strong>in</strong>habitants are themselves responsible for the ma<strong>in</strong>tenance <strong>and</strong> development of their own<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g. They own the elements they add but the ownership of the soil as well as the construction rema<strong>in</strong>s to the<br />

Instituto Anchieta Grajaú, the legal owners of the l<strong>and</strong>. The implementation of hous<strong>in</strong>g clusters make possible to<br />

generate collective micro-spaces that exist<strong>in</strong>g sub-communities can easily take over while provid<strong>in</strong>g more resilience<br />

to the entire community.<br />

Nowadays the official status of the area still under “ecological protected area”. The government while negat<strong>in</strong>g the human<br />

occupation generates a fragile protection concern<strong>in</strong>g eviction but also doesn’t enable the population to benefit<br />

from all social support. Nevertheless, by us<strong>in</strong>g creatively this hybrid status, the project has the potential to negotiate<br />

alternative structures towards social <strong>in</strong>clusion.


190 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

City <strong>in</strong> the Mak<strong>in</strong>g<br />

AA24<br />

Platforms CITY IN THE to MAKING an endur<strong>in</strong>g Resilient<br />

Platforms to an endur<strong>in</strong>g resilient development<br />

Development<br />

LEUVEN, BELGIUM & SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL<br />

MATTHIAS LAMBERTS, KEN VERVAET, LUÍZA CIRILLO, JEROEN STEVENS (MENTOR)<br />

KU LEUVEN<br />

SUSTAINABLE RESILIENCE<br />

São Paulo is subject <strong>and</strong> the endlessly provisional product of a plethora of occupations carried out by a multitude of<br />

miscellaneous movements. By squatt<strong>in</strong>g open <strong>in</strong>terstitial <strong>and</strong> residual spaces <strong>in</strong> the rapidly dispers<strong>in</strong>g metropolitan area,<br />

these movements provide shelter for those excluded from formal hous<strong>in</strong>g. By mobiliz<strong>in</strong>g, organiz<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> support<strong>in</strong>g<br />

settlements on the one h<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> by <strong>in</strong>itiat<strong>in</strong>g waves of occupations on the other, these movements enforce peculiar<br />

urbanization processes. One neglected terra<strong>in</strong> after another is seized <strong>and</strong> remodelled for accommodat<strong>in</strong>g sem-tetos.<br />

In its first stages, the young occupation rema<strong>in</strong>s prudent towards its surround<strong>in</strong>gs, fear<strong>in</strong>g eviction <strong>and</strong> rival groups<br />

compet<strong>in</strong>g over the l<strong>and</strong>. The provisional campsite, generally walled off from its surround<strong>in</strong>gs, is strategically located<br />

at the edges of the city, often resid<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> between high-rise condom<strong>in</strong>iums, non-residential build<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> alongside<br />

<strong>in</strong>frastructures or waterbodies. Only slowly, the occupation opens up towards the urban tissue, feed<strong>in</strong>g on its<br />

commerce, services <strong>and</strong> jobs <strong>and</strong> look<strong>in</strong>g to lure <strong>in</strong> commercial potential.<br />

Meanwhile, the movements proudly display their banners, openly criticiz<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> revers<strong>in</strong>g the lamentable quantity<br />

<strong>and</strong> quality of social hous<strong>in</strong>g. The occupations are made visible, as strongholds to fight aga<strong>in</strong>st hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>equality,<br />

marg<strong>in</strong>alization <strong>and</strong> eviction, at the vanguard combat<strong>in</strong>g for a susta<strong>in</strong>able development, such as amongst others<br />

stated by the UN’s susta<strong>in</strong>able development agenda.<br />

Marked by <strong>in</strong>security of stay<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> uncerta<strong>in</strong>ty of long-last<strong>in</strong>g legal frameworks, the dwell<strong>in</strong>g environment takes<br />

the form of an ever chang<strong>in</strong>g, perpetually reconstructed build<strong>in</strong>g site. The nomadic-like lifestyle of the squatters<br />

propagates an architecture of constellations that is perpetually under (re)construction. The nomadic architecture is a<br />

bricolage of easily demountable materials like timbre <strong>and</strong> wooden or corrugated fibre plates, piecemeal consolidat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong> more durable materials. Almost simultaneous to the sprawl of units, access to services <strong>and</strong> public goods is laid out.<br />

While <strong>in</strong>dividuals <strong>and</strong> families come <strong>and</strong> go, the volatile settlement consolidates <strong>in</strong>to an urbanity-<strong>in</strong>-the-mak<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

In short...<br />

Like a liv<strong>in</strong>g organism, the occupations react to their surround<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>ner-fluxes <strong>in</strong> the most flexible way, balanc<strong>in</strong>g<br />

temporality <strong>and</strong> permanence, <strong>in</strong>clusiveness <strong>and</strong> exclusiveness, forecast<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> stag<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong>visibility <strong>and</strong> exposure,<br />

marg<strong>in</strong>ality <strong>and</strong> centrality. Their resilience is their ma<strong>in</strong> strength. If one gets evicted, ten others will appear. However,<br />

despite an evident social agenda <strong>and</strong> autonomous self-organisation, these occupied spaces rema<strong>in</strong> subject to<br />

precarious <strong>and</strong> often hazardous liv<strong>in</strong>g circumstances, social <strong>and</strong> economic segregation, limited spatial plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

destruction of green space.<br />

This proposal will illustrate how urban design can offer the framework to offer a more susta<strong>in</strong>able development, while<br />

safeguard<strong>in</strong>g its <strong>in</strong>dispensable resilient character. The l<strong>and</strong>scape will act as a platform conciliat<strong>in</strong>g urbanity-<strong>in</strong>-themak<strong>in</strong>g<br />

with nature <strong>and</strong> different stakeholders <strong>in</strong>volved. Do<strong>in</strong>g so, this proposal offers an alternative <strong>and</strong> critique to<br />

the common approaches of expulsion, common tabula rasa, or laissez-faire politics.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 191<br />

FOMMAESP -- Forum de de Moradia Moradia e e<br />

Meio Ambiente do Estado Estado de São de Paulo São<br />

Paulo<br />

Rua Ana Aslan, Capão Redondo,<br />

Rua Zona Ana Sul Aslan, Capão Redondo,<br />

Zona 700 familias Sul<br />

700 Families<br />

44 530 m²<br />

44 530m²<br />

Campo Belo<br />

FIT IMAGE(S) HERE<br />

FIT IMAGE(S) HERE<br />

PUBLIC SHELTER<br />

ls<br />

e<br />

COMMERCE<br />

BARS AND RESTAURANTS<br />

PRIVATE SERVICES<br />

PUBLIC SERVICES<br />

BA<br />

HS<br />

BZ<br />

FU<br />

PL<br />

OI<br />

SM<br />

BAR<br />

SELLING FROM HOME<br />

BAZAR<br />

SECOND HAND FURNITURE<br />

PLANTS<br />

OLD IRON<br />

SUPERMARKET<br />

GR<br />

BS<br />

HD<br />

SCH<br />

CH<br />

UBS<br />

GROCERY STORE<br />

BODY SHOP<br />

HAIR DRESSER<br />

SCHOOL<br />

CHURCH<br />

BASIC HEALTH UNIT<br />

Fiche Olga Bernário: a dense occupation on the verge to become part of the city.<br />

RES<br />

SB<br />

CL<br />

CM<br />

FF<br />

GS<br />

RESTAURANT<br />

LANCHONETE OR SNACKBAR<br />

CLOTHING STORE<br />

CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS<br />

PHOTOGRAPHY AND FILM<br />

GAS STORE


192 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

% of population growth/<br />

decrease <strong>in</strong> 1991-2000 % of empty dwell<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>in</strong> 2000<br />

-5%- -2%<br />


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 193<br />

Picture: the dwell<strong>in</strong>gs excavate themselves <strong>in</strong> the steep hillside along the Engenho creek<br />

OLGA BERNÁRIO - AN OCCUPATION ENTERING THE CITY<br />

The occupation Olga Bernário, sitt<strong>in</strong>g on a hillside along the Engenho creek, stretches over a vast site of 45.000 sq.<br />

meters <strong>in</strong> the Southern district of São Paulo. The terra<strong>in</strong> got occupied by a h<strong>and</strong>ful of families <strong>in</strong> April 2014, under the<br />

banner of FLM, Frontl<strong>in</strong>e <strong>in</strong> the Fight for Hous<strong>in</strong>g. The terra<strong>in</strong> got drastically repurposed once aga<strong>in</strong> after serv<strong>in</strong>g at<br />

best as a large dump for outlived automobiles, a bus st<strong>and</strong>, even host<strong>in</strong>g an occupation settlement five years before -<br />

from the same movement admittedly. The occupation evolved rapidly to a dense settlement, hous<strong>in</strong>g more than 700<br />

families only three years later.<br />

The provisional campsite is at its turn<strong>in</strong>g po<strong>in</strong>t to become a more permanent built environment. However, fear from<br />

eviction still prevails <strong>and</strong> the nomadic architecture lasts, thus suffer<strong>in</strong>g putrefaction, mould <strong>and</strong> st<strong>in</strong>k due to moist,<br />

water <strong>in</strong>filtration <strong>and</strong> little ventilation, lack of direct sunlight or artificial light<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>and</strong> as good as no acoustic or thermal<br />

<strong>in</strong>sulation. The <strong>in</strong>adequate liv<strong>in</strong>g circumstances attract verm<strong>in</strong> like mice, rats <strong>and</strong> cockroaches <strong>and</strong> are cause to little<br />

hygienic comfort <strong>and</strong> numerous diseases.<br />

Meanwhile, even though the occupation rema<strong>in</strong>s distant from the formal market, it has become a breed<strong>in</strong>g ground<br />

for small <strong>in</strong>itiatives, <strong>in</strong>dispensable for many households to ga<strong>in</strong> a small <strong>in</strong>come. Initiatives sprout vastly but volatile.<br />

Moreover, the occupation is <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly dependent on the surround<strong>in</strong>gs for its job market, social <strong>in</strong>frastructures,<br />

commerce et cetera, despite poor accessibility to formal services <strong>and</strong> jobs. Likewise, the accumulated budget <strong>and</strong><br />

workforce generate opportunities for the surround<strong>in</strong>gs as well.<br />

The temporal character at the <strong>in</strong>itial phases of the occupation has resulted <strong>in</strong> little spatial structure such as open<br />

space, let alone qualitative public spaces. Newly built dwell<strong>in</strong>gs cont<strong>in</strong>uously plug <strong>in</strong> on the exist<strong>in</strong>g tissue, further<br />

narrow<strong>in</strong>g alleys <strong>and</strong> open spaces. Rema<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g green spaces are further deforested <strong>and</strong> surfaces are <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly<br />

hardened, result<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> accumulated water speed <strong>and</strong> erosion, critical overloads of the creek, <strong>and</strong> flood<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> -<strong>in</strong><br />

exceptional cases- wash<strong>in</strong>g away of dwell<strong>in</strong>gs.<br />

In short…<br />

The movement, although committed to ecology <strong>and</strong> social engagement, has difficulties <strong>in</strong> comb<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g the residential<br />

with the non-residential <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> safeguard<strong>in</strong>g nature. Instead of provid<strong>in</strong>g open spaces <strong>and</strong> facilities, ecological <strong>and</strong><br />

social well be<strong>in</strong>g are ignored <strong>and</strong> even opposed. This was illustrated dur<strong>in</strong>g a biannual occupation wave <strong>in</strong> 2016, where<br />

the occupation exp<strong>and</strong>ed towards the neighbour<strong>in</strong>g terra<strong>in</strong>s. The exp<strong>and</strong>ed occupation was evicted aga<strong>in</strong> only few<br />

months later, but the green hillsides suffered huge damage from cutted trees <strong>and</strong> dug platforms for dwell<strong>in</strong>gs.<br />

At its turn<strong>in</strong>g po<strong>in</strong>t to consolidate, it is clear the occupation offers refuge to the poor, who have no other option than<br />

to claim their own piece of l<strong>and</strong>. Meanwhile, it also necessitates a strong framework to guide its further development.<br />

Design, we believe, can offer such a framework, work<strong>in</strong>g together with the movement’s agenda for susta<strong>in</strong>able<br />

development <strong>and</strong> facilitat<strong>in</strong>g security of tenure.


194 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

A MOSAIC OF MICRO-CRACKS<br />

As the dwell<strong>in</strong>gs excavate themselves <strong>in</strong>to the slop<strong>in</strong>g<br />

l<strong>and</strong>scape, a mosaic of micro-cracks <strong>and</strong> related hardened<br />

platforms disturb the natural water flow.<br />

Little absorption of water <strong>and</strong> no<br />

restriction <strong>in</strong> its flow lead to erosion,<br />

flood<strong>in</strong>g of dwell<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> critical<br />

overloads of the creek.<br />

Deforestation<br />

of steep hills<br />

enhances erosion.<br />

The forest on the western<br />

hillside got heavily scarred<br />

<strong>in</strong> the aftermath of Outubro<br />

Vermelho.<br />

GUIDING THE WATER<br />

Stabiliz<strong>in</strong>g the cracks by retention walls to dra<strong>in</strong> the<br />

dwell<strong>in</strong>gs form the pretext to temper the waterflows.<br />

Where considered necessary, dwell<strong>in</strong>gs are relocated to<br />

underscore a cont<strong>in</strong>uous retention wall.<br />

forest<strong>in</strong>g hillsides <strong>in</strong>creases water<br />

absorption <strong>and</strong> stabilization of the<br />

soil.<br />

the lower valley keeps<br />

its straight flow. this<br />

area rema<strong>in</strong>s unbuilt.<br />

A maze of reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls bends<br />

the water flows. The reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls<br />

plug <strong>in</strong> on the exist<strong>in</strong>g micro cracks,<br />

dra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g the dwell<strong>in</strong>gs.<br />

a small watershed collects<br />

the water run<strong>in</strong>g down rua<br />

ana aslan before it enters<br />

the creek<br />

Stabiliz<strong>in</strong>g the cracks by retention walls.<br />

Cracks left untouched<br />

A SUBSTRATE FOR INITIATIVES<br />

Reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls stabiliz<strong>in</strong>g the microcracks both consolidate the exist<strong>in</strong>g<br />

dwell<strong>in</strong>gs as offer the substrate to implement new hous<strong>in</strong>g or social<br />

facilities. At the same time, they shape the composition of squares of<br />

dist<strong>in</strong>ct sizes.<br />

Eucalyptus trees <strong>and</strong> mosquito<br />

oust<strong>in</strong>g trees <strong>in</strong> general counteract<br />

deceases like malaria, zika <strong>and</strong><br />

dengue.<br />

The higher reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls allow for<br />

the construction of dwell<strong>in</strong>gs, be it<br />

self-constructed or a social hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

project. They compensate for the<br />

removed units <strong>in</strong> risk areas.<br />

Reedbeds filter the sewage from<br />

the occupation <strong>in</strong> awaitance to<br />

connection to the formal network.<br />

Reforestation of hillsides<br />

<strong>in</strong>creases water absorption<br />

<strong>and</strong> stabalization of the soil.<br />

The open spaces are kept<br />

ma<strong>in</strong>ly soft to keep water<br />

<strong>in</strong>filtration as high as possible.<br />

Stop stones compliment the<br />

concrete plteaus.<br />

Trenches reta<strong>in</strong> water for<br />

agroforestry.<br />

A small watershed collects<br />

the water runn<strong>in</strong>g down rua<br />

Ana Aslan before it enters the<br />

creek.<br />

An open, polyvalent<br />

box provides space for<br />

manufactur<strong>in</strong>g, markets,<br />

garbage collection, sports et<br />

cetera.<br />

A community centre provides<br />

classrooms for the schools,<br />

collective space for assemblies<br />

of both the occupation <strong>and</strong> the<br />

neighbourhood.<br />

Multipurposed platforms: 3 steps towards improv<strong>in</strong>g hous<strong>in</strong>g conditions while safeguard<strong>in</strong>g the occupation’s resilient character.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 195<br />

PATCHWORK OF PLATFORMS ALTERING THE LANDSCAPE<br />

As the squatters construct their liv<strong>in</strong>g environment, each dwell<strong>in</strong>g excavates itself <strong>in</strong> the gently slop<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>and</strong>scape. As<br />

such a patchwork of micro-reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls <strong>and</strong> hardened horizontal platforms comes about along with the occupation’s<br />

gradual densification. Alter<strong>in</strong>g this topographical patchwork can steer further urbanization processes <strong>and</strong> provide<br />

an underlayer for a more susta<strong>in</strong>able development. The l<strong>and</strong>scape serves as a common ground on which both the<br />

environmental as the urban get conciliated.<br />

Firstly, stabiliz<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> consolidat<strong>in</strong>g the reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls <strong>and</strong> horizontal platforms redeem the dwell<strong>in</strong>gs from rot <strong>and</strong><br />

flood<strong>in</strong>g, thus restra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g verm<strong>in</strong> <strong>and</strong> disease. The platforms literally form the footpr<strong>in</strong>t for dwell<strong>in</strong>gs to be constructed<br />

or to be consolidated. Strategically (re)position<strong>in</strong>g the reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls forms the pretext to structure the consolidat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

tissue; relocat<strong>in</strong>g dwell<strong>in</strong>gs from risk areas along the stream, densify<strong>in</strong>g where deemed favourable <strong>and</strong> vacat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

to create more open space <strong>and</strong> wider alleys. They both p<strong>in</strong> down the exist<strong>in</strong>g dwell<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> offer the substrate to<br />

implement new hous<strong>in</strong>g, be it self-constructed or a social hous<strong>in</strong>g project. As such, by remov<strong>in</strong>g on the one h<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />

densify<strong>in</strong>g on the other, houses <strong>in</strong> unfavourable locations can f<strong>in</strong>d new ground somewhere else with<strong>in</strong> the occupation.<br />

Secondly, alter<strong>in</strong>g topography <strong>and</strong> waterflow can serve as the ma<strong>in</strong> design <strong>in</strong>struments for a conciliation between<br />

the ecological <strong>and</strong> the urban. These alterations are comb<strong>in</strong>ed with reforestation of the ambient hillsides, creat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

new grounds for opportunity of use <strong>and</strong> worthy open space. A maze of the reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls bends the water flows<br />

<strong>and</strong> slows it down on its way to the creek. They offer the composition of pathways <strong>and</strong> squares of dist<strong>in</strong>ct sizes,<br />

serv<strong>in</strong>g from small communities to the entire occupation. The open spaces <strong>in</strong> the occupation are ma<strong>in</strong>ly of soft <strong>in</strong>fill to<br />

allow for water <strong>in</strong>filtration, embedded with step stones to complement the concrete platforms of the hous<strong>in</strong>g units.<br />

Reforested <strong>and</strong> soft surfaces mitigate erosion <strong>and</strong> enhance <strong>in</strong>filtration. The trees are strategically chosen accord<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

soil type, their ability to provide shadow to open squares, <strong>and</strong> other attributes. Mosquito oust<strong>in</strong>g trees are applied to<br />

counteract diseases like malaria, zika <strong>and</strong> dengue.<br />

F<strong>in</strong>ally, the platforms <strong>and</strong> reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls of dist<strong>in</strong>ct sizes could serve multifunctional purposes depend<strong>in</strong>g on the<br />

current needs, but crucial to combat poverty <strong>and</strong> marg<strong>in</strong>alisation. The terraces could be used for commercial activities,<br />

green<strong>in</strong>g or leisure – why not a basketball area or a podium for dance <strong>and</strong> theatre? Along the creek, terraces mitigate<br />

the steepness <strong>and</strong> give place to reedbeds filter<strong>in</strong>g the occupation’s grey water - a provisionary solution until it can be<br />

locked to the formal sewerage system.<br />

In the forests surround<strong>in</strong>g the occupation, macro-platforms <strong>and</strong> -reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls embed social facilities. The urban<br />

facilities with a broader scope than the occupation safeguard the green by provid<strong>in</strong>g a cont<strong>in</strong>uous use to the forest.<br />

Where natural topographical cracks used to be areas of impeded accessibility, the new social facilities become<br />

places of <strong>in</strong>terchange between the settlement <strong>and</strong> the forests <strong>and</strong> with the entire neighbourhood. Aga<strong>in</strong>, similar<br />

to the approach with<strong>in</strong> the settlement, the platforms allow for low-cost light structures to host programs that can<br />

easily adapt to the current need. Programs can <strong>in</strong>clude a community centre, a market connected to the productive<br />

hillside, garbage collection <strong>and</strong> car- manufactur<strong>in</strong>g workshops. All can be partially used by the adjacent school, by the<br />

movement, by neighbour<strong>in</strong>g committees or <strong>in</strong>dividuals. The transformation from vacated terra<strong>in</strong>s to a park structure<br />

host<strong>in</strong>g social facilities contributes easily to the government’s masterplan of green<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> socializ<strong>in</strong>g the Engenho<br />

creek. The design scenario gives an answer to the ma<strong>in</strong> ambitions of this masterplan: dem<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g for public equipment<br />

<strong>and</strong> qualitative open public space, improv<strong>in</strong>g water management <strong>and</strong> address<strong>in</strong>g the poor hous<strong>in</strong>g conditions.<br />

To ensure the project’s feasibility, actors from as well the public, private <strong>and</strong> popular doma<strong>in</strong> will have to be addressed.<br />

Rather than one all-compris<strong>in</strong>g undertak<strong>in</strong>g, a variety of complementary policies, programs <strong>and</strong> fund<strong>in</strong>g will support<br />

a phased urban transformation process.<br />

By apply<strong>in</strong>g likewise strategies over the Engenho valley, the occupation gets <strong>in</strong>scribed with<strong>in</strong> a bigger, longitud<strong>in</strong>al<br />

entity along the valley. By creat<strong>in</strong>g a l<strong>and</strong>scape that gathers different stakeholders <strong>and</strong> that comb<strong>in</strong>es urban renewal<br />

with ecological restoration, the design proposal <strong>in</strong>tegrates the occupation <strong>in</strong> the city <strong>and</strong> gradually prepares it for<br />

regularisation of tenure.


196 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

By apply<strong>in</strong>g likewise strategies over the Engenho valley, the occupation gets <strong>in</strong>scribed with<strong>in</strong> a bigger, longitud<strong>in</strong>al entity along the valley.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 197<br />

The federal law of Compensação<br />

Ambiental or Environmental<br />

Compensation obliges developers<br />

to replant every tree they chop<br />

elsewhere. Usually this happens<br />

<strong>in</strong> unfortunate ways without<br />

concerns for ecological systems<br />

<strong>and</strong> public space. Aract<strong>in</strong>g<br />

developers to plant trees on the<br />

site makes the creation of<br />

well-designed urban green<br />

feasible.<br />

Federal<br />

Government<br />

M<strong>in</strong>ha Casa M<strong>in</strong>ha Vida<br />

The implementation of new<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g that compensates<br />

for the replacement of<br />

vulnerable units can be<br />

either spontaneous<br />

self-construction or social<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g. In the laer case,<br />

the federal social hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

programme M<strong>in</strong>ha Casa<br />

M<strong>in</strong>ha Vida can be<br />

addressed.<br />

Private<br />

developper<br />

Infrastructures as reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g walls <strong>and</strong><br />

sewage systems can be f<strong>in</strong>anced<br />

through private micro-f<strong>in</strong>anc<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>in</strong>itiatives. This model already existis<br />

for the refurbishments of s<strong>in</strong>gle<br />

units. Developers sell affordable<br />

packages of services, oen paid<br />

spread over time <strong>and</strong> with beer<br />

conditions than <strong>in</strong> regular banks. The<br />

movement can collect the needed<br />

money amongst the occupation’s<br />

<strong>in</strong>habitants.<br />

The Cota de Solidariedade or<br />

Solidarity Quote stimulates<br />

private developers to construct<br />

social hous<strong>in</strong>g on ZEIS-area,<br />

reward<strong>in</strong>g them with more<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g rights <strong>in</strong> other projects.<br />

For this, the project site could be<br />

a potential target for developers.<br />

environmental compensation<br />

micro-credit <strong>in</strong>itiatives<br />

Cota de Solidariedade<br />

Municipality of<br />

São Paulo<br />

Regularization of tenure<br />

IPTU-progressivo<br />

ZEIS-2*<br />

Mutirão<br />

Terra<strong>in</strong> owner<br />

Assesória<br />

Técnica<br />

Social movement<br />

FLM<br />

The social facilities can be<br />

conceived as very light <strong>and</strong><br />

simple structures, as such<br />

they can be built by the<br />

occupants through a system<br />

of collective self-construction,<br />

commonly known as<br />

mutirão. Such mutirões<br />

usually get supported by<br />

technical assistance offices<br />

or assessorias técnicas.<br />

* MASTERPLANS<br />

Plano Diretor, further specified <strong>in</strong> the<br />

Plano Regional de Campo Limpo<br />

The regional masterplan of the<br />

subprefecture def<strong>in</strong>es an action<br />

perimeter based on the area’s water<br />

body. As such, the occupied terra<strong>in</strong> is<br />

<strong>in</strong>cluded <strong>in</strong> the zone marked along the<br />

Engenho creek. In this masterplan, the<br />

site <strong>and</strong> the ambient terra<strong>in</strong>s are<br />

def<strong>in</strong>ed as Special Zones of Social<br />

Interest (ZEIS), def<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g their social<br />

function to be pursued as social<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g - be it realized by the<br />

government or the private market.<br />

If a property is not fulfill<strong>in</strong>g its<br />

social function - <strong>in</strong> this case<br />

hous<strong>in</strong>g, s<strong>in</strong>ce the terra<strong>in</strong> is<br />

def<strong>in</strong>ed as ZEIS - the<br />

IPTU-progressivo procedure can<br />

be started. If the owner does<br />

not make sure the terra<strong>in</strong><br />

complies to its social function<br />

with<strong>in</strong> two years, taxes on the<br />

terra<strong>in</strong> will gradually be<br />

<strong>in</strong>creased over the next five<br />

years, f<strong>in</strong>ally lead<strong>in</strong>g to<br />

disappropriation. The terra<strong>in</strong><br />

then becomes public property<br />

<strong>and</strong> the city authorities can do<br />

a project.<br />

Policy or program<br />

Stakeholder<br />

Conciliat<strong>in</strong>g the deadlock: Br<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g together stakeholders, policies <strong>and</strong> programs


198 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Matthias Lamberts<br />

Ken Vervaet<br />

Luiza Cirillo<br />

Jeroen Stevens (mentor)<br />

CITY IN THE MAKING<br />

AA24<br />

OLGA BERNARIO<br />

FOMMAESP - Forum de Moradia e Meio Ambiente do Estado de São Paulo<br />

Rua Ana Aslan, Capão Redondo, Zona Sul<br />

700 familias<br />

44 530 m²<br />

Campo Belo<br />

Olga Bernario, aka ‘Ocupação Engenho’, is located <strong>in</strong> defence, but the military’s tear gas bombs <strong>and</strong> batons<br />

São Paulo’s Southern district of Capão Redondo, along <br />

the Rua Ana Aslan. The vast site of 45.000 square meters <br />

underwent a remarkably turbulent history. The large After the violent st<strong>and</strong>off, 570 families are brought back<br />

terra<strong>in</strong>, sitt<strong>in</strong>g on a hillside along the Engenho creek, is to square one, homeless, <strong>and</strong> as a last resort they squat<br />

dest<strong>in</strong>ed for receiv<strong>in</strong>g a social hous<strong>in</strong>g project already the street <strong>in</strong> front with impromptu plastic cover<strong>in</strong>gs<br />

<strong>in</strong> 1987, approved <strong>and</strong> all by the Federal Economic Bank for the follow<strong>in</strong>g weeks. The complete occupation<br />

<strong>in</strong> Brasilia. The transport company Campo Belo that is meanwhile eradicated, <strong>and</strong> soon turns aga<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> a<br />

owns the terra<strong>in</strong> however reta<strong>in</strong>s from sell<strong>in</strong>g the site, dumpsite.<br />

despite vast debts with the World Bank. The terra<strong>in</strong> In April 2014, FOMMAESP reoccupies the terra<strong>in</strong>,<br />

rema<strong>in</strong>s ab<strong>and</strong>oned, serv<strong>in</strong>g at best as a large dump partly with families that were expelled from the place 5<br />

for outlived automobiles. But on the 26th of August, years before. Two years later, the terra<strong>in</strong> is completely<br />

2007, some 30 families of FOMMAESP (Forum de occupied aga<strong>in</strong>, with more than 700 families <strong>in</strong>habit<strong>in</strong>g<br />

Moradia e Meio Ambiente do Estado de São Paulo), the site. The dense dwell<strong>in</strong>g environment becomes<br />

one of the found<strong>in</strong>g members of the Frente de Luta a breed<strong>in</strong>g ground for small <strong>in</strong>itiatives, <strong>and</strong> local<br />

por Moradia, occupy the terra<strong>in</strong>. A communal barrack bus<strong>in</strong>esses allow more <strong>and</strong> more households to ga<strong>in</strong><br />

is constructed out of wooden beams <strong>and</strong> plastic sheets, a small <strong>in</strong>come, while tenure rema<strong>in</strong>s highly <strong>in</strong>secure.<br />

<strong>and</strong> the large junkyard is cleaned out. In October 2008, Dur<strong>in</strong>g Outobro Vermelho <strong>in</strong> 2016, the occupation<br />

Campo Belo dem<strong>and</strong>s an eviction. At that time, already exp<strong>and</strong>s towards the neighbour<strong>in</strong>g terra<strong>in</strong>, where the<br />

400 households have established themselves a liv<strong>in</strong>g on state’s social hous<strong>in</strong>g company has been promis<strong>in</strong>g a<br />

Olga Bernario. The movement manages to withhold hous<strong>in</strong>g project. Movement members start to clear the<br />

<br />

a wall along the Rua Ana Aslan for shield<strong>in</strong>g off the <strong>in</strong> June 2017, the hous<strong>in</strong>g company evicts the families.<br />

occupation. Still, on the 26th of August, 2009, at 4:30 The major occupation aside rema<strong>in</strong>s untouched, <strong>and</strong><br />

am, the street is barricaded by military shock troops. <strong>in</strong>habitants await cautiously for negotiations to br<strong>in</strong>g<br />

The occupants throw up their own barricades for self-<br />

hope for more permanent hous<strong>in</strong>g options.<br />

A LONG STRUGGLE<br />

OWNER DISAPPEARED<br />

HOPE FOR SOCIAL<br />

HOUSING PROJECT<br />

SINCE 1987<br />

OCCUPY!<br />

FORCED OUT<br />

SHOCK TROOPS VIOLENTLY<br />

EVICT TERRAIN<br />

BOLSA ALUGUEL<br />

FOR ALL!<br />

570 FAMILIES<br />

REMAIN IN<br />

TENTS NEXT<br />

TO ROAD<br />

BACK FROM<br />

SCRATCH!<br />

OUTOBRO<br />

VERMELHO<br />

EXPAND!<br />

1987 2007 2009 2014 2016<br />

2017<br />

PARTIALLY<br />

EVICTED BY<br />

CDHU


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 199<br />

SPROUTING CITYNESS<br />

The non-residential is <strong>in</strong>separably connected to the develop<strong>in</strong>g dwell<strong>in</strong>g environment. Initiatives,<br />

both by the squatters as through collaboration between the movement <strong>and</strong> cooperatives, sprout<br />

vastly but volatile. On the ‘waste areas’ that host the occupations, an <strong>in</strong>formal, ‘self-made’ urbanity<br />

is formed. Although these activities are mostly <strong>in</strong>trovert, the <strong>in</strong>habitants stay dependent on the rest<br />

of the city, among others for the formal job market, commerce <strong>and</strong> services, thus tighten<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g the ties with the city.


200 AA25<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

REFLECTING <strong>INFORMALITY</strong> ON RE-<br />

NEWAL STRATEGY<br />

USING AND DEVELOPING EXISTING KNOWLEDGE<br />

Reflect<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity on<br />

Renewal Strategy<br />

Us<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g exist<strong>in</strong>g knowledge<br />

ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA<br />

LELISSA ERKISSA KASIM, BOJA MULUNEH MERDASA<br />

EIABC<br />

REFLECTING <strong>INFORMALITY</strong><br />

The issue of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements <strong>in</strong>volves a wide range of subjects <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g social, economic, spatial, legal <strong>and</strong><br />

political aspects. These aspects <strong>in</strong> relation to a given context create phenomena that are very complex. The unique<br />

social context also provides a wide range of possibilities <strong>in</strong> the def<strong>in</strong>ition of urban life, mak<strong>in</strong>g it a real challenge for<br />

architects to take positions. Sett<strong>in</strong>g the boundary of a research project of a complex subject with little locally based<br />

background material is challeng<strong>in</strong>g. It is, however, necessary to def<strong>in</strong>e a boundary <strong>in</strong> order to cope with the limited<br />

time available.<br />

The overall objectives of our project are to assess the opportunities <strong>and</strong> challenges of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements <strong>and</strong> identify<strong>in</strong>g<br />

a new approach to tackle the challenges.<br />

The majority of the <strong>in</strong>ner-city dwellers are tenants. Further <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>ner-city due to the attractiveness <strong>and</strong> importance<br />

of space there is relatively greater “friction of space”. Based on this contextual rationale the ma<strong>in</strong> question is raised:<br />

How to improve the liv<strong>in</strong>g condition of slum dwellers <strong>in</strong> a way that respect<strong>in</strong>g the tradition <strong>and</strong> identity of slum dwellers’<br />

normal day, work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> social life <strong>and</strong> enhance the essential parts of the exist<strong>in</strong>g slum hous<strong>in</strong>g?<br />

Shouldn’t we be try<strong>in</strong>g to accept slums as permanent (not the quality of their physical states, but their location <strong>and</strong><br />

their strong socio-economic pattern)? Don’t the slums need more fixed solutions that can help them improve their<br />

chances of permanence rather than accommodat<strong>in</strong>g the transitory nature of slum clearance policies?<br />

The purpose of this project is to give a proposal of how an <strong>in</strong>formal settlement can be improved with respect for local<br />

traditions <strong>and</strong> culture that will strengthen the community. But this proposal has to be adaptable <strong>in</strong> order to fit to<br />

the new redevelopment program. This project is a reth<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g of the current approach <strong>and</strong> aims at br<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g people’s<br />

attention to the importance of respect<strong>in</strong>g exist<strong>in</strong>g settlement <strong>and</strong> on-go<strong>in</strong>g activities of local residents <strong>and</strong> offers an<br />

alternative approach that improv<strong>in</strong>g liv<strong>in</strong>g condition of urban poor without disrupt<strong>in</strong>g their daily rhythms.<br />

Fac<strong>in</strong>g the grow<strong>in</strong>g problem of slum formation <strong>and</strong> deterioration, many develop<strong>in</strong>g countries choose to take strong<br />

top down strategy which usually <strong>in</strong>volves clearance of <strong>in</strong>formal settlement <strong>and</strong> relocation of slum dwellers.<br />

The objective for our project be<strong>in</strong>g identify<strong>in</strong>g the essential parts of exist<strong>in</strong>g slum hous<strong>in</strong>g that are <strong>in</strong>separable from<br />

life of the urban poor, spott<strong>in</strong>g multi-discipl<strong>in</strong>ary approaches <strong>in</strong> slum improvement process <strong>and</strong> giv<strong>in</strong>g a proposal of<br />

how to improve the slums with respect for local traditions <strong>and</strong> culture.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 201<br />

New Hous<strong>in</strong>g : The newly designed hous<strong>in</strong>g us<strong>in</strong>g the new Iddir system that <strong>in</strong>tegrates extension <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>tegration dem<strong>and</strong>.


202 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Mola Maru Context : Top- activities on site, Middle- open space on the site that h<strong>and</strong>dles the all activities <strong>and</strong> Bottom- condom<strong>in</strong>ium system


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 203<br />

RENEWAL IN MOLA MARU, ADDIS ABABA<br />

Ethiopia is now suffer<strong>in</strong>g from press<strong>in</strong>g hous<strong>in</strong>g issues resulted from the urban sprawl <strong>and</strong> rural-urban migration<br />

trend, which offers a great example to study the balance between density <strong>and</strong> quality <strong>in</strong> social dwell<strong>in</strong>g. Currently, it<br />

is estimated that 80% of the population of Addis Ababa is liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> “slums”.<br />

One of the most crucial problems <strong>in</strong> Addis is the unmet dem<strong>and</strong>s for affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g. An up-to-95% humanity<br />

<strong>in</strong>crease led to the rapid urbanization or even over-urbanization, which br<strong>in</strong>g the city to poverty <strong>and</strong> unemployment.<br />

Meanwhile, due to the rare supply of hous<strong>in</strong>g by the government, the hous<strong>in</strong>g shortage directly resulted <strong>in</strong> the selfbuilt<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal settlements – slums.<br />

In Mola Maru area, which is located at Merkato, the total number of houses (along households that live <strong>in</strong> the houses)<br />

discovered is 726. The majority of these households are headed by male (357 or 65 %), which followed by Female<br />

(192 or 35 %). The houses are owned by private (148 or 20.4 %), kebele (507 or 70 %), governmental or municipal (11<br />

or 1.5 %) <strong>and</strong> 60 houses (8.3 %) have unknown hous<strong>in</strong>g ownership status. After analyz<strong>in</strong>g this case area the follow<strong>in</strong>g<br />

ideas were concluded.<br />

Courtyard is an essential space which derives from the local way of liv<strong>in</strong>g. But <strong>in</strong> many cases, the space of the courtyard<br />

is not enough to carry the activities it supposed to.<br />

The streets carry almost all the public activities <strong>and</strong> even some private activities, caus<strong>in</strong>g a great deal of stress to the<br />

space <strong>and</strong> sanitation of street.<br />

Instead of relocation <strong>and</strong> site-clear<strong>in</strong>g, there should be an alternative approach that allows people rema<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> place <strong>and</strong><br />

upgrad<strong>in</strong>g the slum area <strong>in</strong>crementally.<br />

The prom<strong>in</strong>ent current approach adopted by Ethiopian government to deal with the sub-st<strong>and</strong>ard slum hous<strong>in</strong>g is the<br />

Integrated Hous<strong>in</strong>g Development Program (IHDP). With<strong>in</strong> the IHDP, slum areas are cleared <strong>and</strong> residents are relocated<br />

<strong>and</strong> then new multi-story <strong>and</strong> high-rise condom<strong>in</strong>iums are built.<br />

The current governments’ solution has good approach on build<strong>in</strong>g a st<strong>and</strong>ard hous<strong>in</strong>g for less cost when compared<br />

to other similar build<strong>in</strong>g costs. But the system does not consider the affordability of the sav<strong>in</strong>g system. The system<br />

accepts a 10% or 20% or 40% (accord<strong>in</strong>g to their ability) typology cost as advanced first payment <strong>in</strong> order to be a part<br />

of the lottery system for the houses. Most people start the system but then, they withdraw from the system due to<br />

unable to pay the money.<br />

This large-scale top down approach <strong>in</strong>deed has had some success, however, there were also problems created.<br />

Firstly, <strong>in</strong> many cases, relocat<strong>in</strong>g to other area made people detached from their lives, no matter daily life, work<strong>in</strong>g<br />

life or social life.<br />

Secondly, people have to adapt to new high-rise lifestyle. They lost their close connection with ground, so many domestic<br />

<strong>and</strong> productive activities such as <strong>in</strong>come generation means are difficult to cont<strong>in</strong>ue.


204 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The New System : Top- Master Plan for gradual renewal of Mola Maru, Bottom- The new system of Iddir for affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 205<br />

USING AND DEVELOPING EXISTING KNOWLEDGE<br />

The objective for our project be<strong>in</strong>g identify<strong>in</strong>g the essential parts of exist<strong>in</strong>g slum hous<strong>in</strong>g that are <strong>in</strong>separable from<br />

life of the urban poor, spott<strong>in</strong>g multi-discipl<strong>in</strong>ary approaches <strong>in</strong> slum improvement process <strong>and</strong> giv<strong>in</strong>g a proposal of<br />

how to improve the slums with respect for local traditions <strong>and</strong> culture.<br />

So, the strategy is Focus<strong>in</strong>g on the exist<strong>in</strong>g: us<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g exist<strong>in</strong>g knowledge. For susta<strong>in</strong>able development,<br />

<strong>in</strong>formal <strong>in</strong>stitutions, especially at local level, are important for mobiliz<strong>in</strong>g resources <strong>and</strong> regulat<strong>in</strong>g their use with a<br />

view <strong>in</strong> ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g a long-term base for productive activity.<br />

Emphasiz<strong>in</strong>g traditions <strong>and</strong> culture strengthens the identity <strong>and</strong> gives courage to value the qualities <strong>in</strong> the community.<br />

For example, the tradition of cooperatives, women groups <strong>and</strong> entrepreneurship, gives development projects local<br />

management <strong>and</strong> f<strong>in</strong>ance possibility. So that the already exist<strong>in</strong>g networks <strong>in</strong> Mola Maru of different organizations <strong>and</strong><br />

groups could manage the process of projects <strong>and</strong> programs.<br />

The other idea is to facilitate opportunities for <strong>in</strong>formal activities. <strong>Informal</strong> bus<strong>in</strong>esses are where most people <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

settlements work, <strong>and</strong> where they get their service <strong>and</strong> commodities. The <strong>in</strong>formal economy is adapted to the<br />

liv<strong>in</strong>g patterns <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>formal settlements.<br />

As deeply analyz<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> study<strong>in</strong>g the situation, we fetched one of Ethiopia’s famous <strong>in</strong>formal f<strong>in</strong>ancial <strong>in</strong>stitution “Iddir”<br />

as an answer for those problems, a traditional sav<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> credit <strong>in</strong>stitution with a rotat<strong>in</strong>g fund. System of sav<strong>in</strong>g<br />

where by people form groups <strong>and</strong> pay periodically a fixed amount of money, which will be collected <strong>in</strong> a common pool,<br />

so that, <strong>in</strong> rotation, each member of the group can receive one large sum, the sum of money paid by all <strong>in</strong> one period.<br />

In practice “Iddir” is sort of <strong>in</strong>surance program run by a community or a group to meet emergencies.<br />

This way of bus<strong>in</strong>ess oriented strategy can achieve affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> economic development. Mak<strong>in</strong>g some<br />

adjustments to the system like <strong>in</strong>stead of sav<strong>in</strong>g only money we <strong>in</strong>cluded build<strong>in</strong>g material <strong>and</strong> their skill <strong>in</strong>to the<br />

sav<strong>in</strong>g system, so that they can gradually save little amount of build<strong>in</strong>g material <strong>and</strong> get one large sum enough for<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g a house, also exchange their skill with employment money. This system also works for public build<strong>in</strong>gs like<br />

school <strong>and</strong> cl<strong>in</strong>ics by just add<strong>in</strong>g the members <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>stead of one person as a member; it will be group of peoples as<br />

a one member.<br />

The new system <strong>in</strong>tegrates the current governments’ condom<strong>in</strong>ium system (10/90 %, 20/80% or 40/60%). But <strong>in</strong>stead<br />

of pay<strong>in</strong>g the first advanced payment (10% or 20% or 40% of the total typology cost), which is very unaffordable to<br />

many of the peoples, the new system offers a monthly homemade mudbrick sav<strong>in</strong>g (which covers more than half of<br />

the entire build<strong>in</strong>g cost) along with their monthly Iddir fee under the management of community Iddir with the local<br />

authorities. The local authority (wereda) adds the rema<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g build<strong>in</strong>g cost <strong>and</strong> constructs the houses on the exist<strong>in</strong>g<br />

site phase by phase. After be<strong>in</strong>g a home owner the <strong>in</strong>habitants starts to pay the rema<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g cost to the local authority<br />

from the upper floor rent <strong>in</strong>come.


206 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Community service center : Top- Arial view of proposed master plan, Bottom- View of the courtyard from the community service center


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 207<br />

IMPLEMENTATION OF ThE MASTER PLAN<br />

The master plan is designed by preserv<strong>in</strong>g the most important spaces of the exist<strong>in</strong>g fabric such as the streets, paths,<br />

courtyards, open spaces, junction plazas <strong>and</strong> social services. These spaces are where the strong social ties <strong>and</strong> activities<br />

are happened <strong>and</strong> the new master plan acknowledges this. The design <strong>in</strong>cludes a middle-rise <strong>and</strong> high-rise hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

with the low rise hous<strong>in</strong>g units. The community service center, that has “Iddir” service program <strong>in</strong> it, is located at<br />

the heart of the site along with central pedestrian Commercial Street.<br />

The design proposes a central pedestrian street (by upgrad<strong>in</strong>g the exist<strong>in</strong>g road) that creates an opportunity for commercial<br />

<strong>and</strong> production activities like street vend<strong>in</strong>g, shoe sh<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> production of artifacts. The proposed hous<strong>in</strong>gs<br />

that will be implemented through the new “Iddir” hous<strong>in</strong>g system will be constructed along on the edge of this proposed<br />

pedestrian street. On the periphery of the site, which is adjacent to the ma<strong>in</strong> streets are high-rise build<strong>in</strong>gs for<br />

private commercial development. The master plan is go<strong>in</strong>g to be implemented phase by phase.<br />

The first phase will be: Upgrad<strong>in</strong>g the central pedestrian streets <strong>and</strong> strengthens the social services by <strong>in</strong>tegrat<strong>in</strong>g with<br />

local authorities (wereda) <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>itiates the new “Iddir” hous<strong>in</strong>g system. The next phase is to: construct the temporary<br />

houses at the tribune field to settle the first displaced on the site. On the new space, the houses are constructed <strong>and</strong><br />

resettle with additional occupants from nearby areas. After this, the third phase: on the spaces ga<strong>in</strong>ed, construction<br />

of houses cont<strong>in</strong>ues until all the houses are done for the members <strong>and</strong> others. The f<strong>in</strong>al phase: f<strong>in</strong>ally the private<br />

development build<strong>in</strong>gs will be constructed.<br />

The hous<strong>in</strong>g block is specially designed for Mola-Maru residents <strong>in</strong> which it can h<strong>and</strong>le <strong>and</strong> adapt their unique <strong>in</strong>tegrated<br />

(production + liv<strong>in</strong>g) k<strong>in</strong>d of liv<strong>in</strong>g condition. By creat<strong>in</strong>g a flexible <strong>and</strong> most stable modular unit that can<br />

achieve the high dem<strong>and</strong> for extension <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>tegration k<strong>in</strong>d of spatial arrangement, their way of liv<strong>in</strong>g can be improved.<br />

This <strong>in</strong>tegrated hous<strong>in</strong>g block can be constructed by the community itself with local construction skill <strong>and</strong><br />

materials. The ground floor is framed with precast concrete column <strong>and</strong> beam, which is supplied by local authority<br />

(wereda) which is go<strong>in</strong>g to be manufactured by the community’s women <strong>and</strong> youths manufactur<strong>in</strong>g company. The<br />

upper floor for extension is constructed with simple A-frame eucalyptus or bamboo trusses <strong>and</strong> the owner can f<strong>in</strong>ish<br />

it by his choice of available <strong>and</strong> appropriate material. This precast system of the design makes the house construction<br />

time <strong>and</strong> money consum<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

The new hous<strong>in</strong>g design considers all the <strong>in</strong>come generation means by provid<strong>in</strong>g a flexible <strong>and</strong> exp<strong>and</strong>able structural<br />

system that allows additional space for street vend<strong>in</strong>g. It is a flexible plan that allows for dwell<strong>in</strong>g production <strong>and</strong><br />

bus<strong>in</strong>ess with a commercial w<strong>in</strong>dow <strong>and</strong> a storage at the roof structure.<br />

This “Iddir system is not only limited for affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g system. It has a strong potential for connect<strong>in</strong>g communities<br />

which has a major significant role on social <strong>in</strong>clusion. S<strong>in</strong>ce “Iddir” is practiced by all k<strong>in</strong>d of people <strong>and</strong> communities<br />

<strong>in</strong> Addis Ababa (regardless of <strong>in</strong>come, gender, religion…), it will create a good opportunity for connect<strong>in</strong>g people<br />

<strong>and</strong> communities under one system with a mutual benefit. For example, this “Iddir” system could be used for connect<strong>in</strong>g<br />

low <strong>in</strong>come <strong>in</strong>formal communities with their high <strong>in</strong>come formal neighbor communities by simply exchang<strong>in</strong>g social<br />

services from low <strong>in</strong>come communities with service payment from high <strong>in</strong>come communities through this system.


AA29<br />

208 A FRAMEWORK FOR EMPOWERMENT<br />

Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Empower<strong>in</strong>g the community to self-build affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>and</strong> cultural urban l<strong>and</strong>scapes <strong>in</strong> the shanty town of ‘Villa 31’<br />

A framework for<br />

empowerment<br />

Empower<strong>in</strong>g the community to self-build<br />

affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> cultural urban<br />

l<strong>and</strong>scapes <strong>in</strong> the shanty town of ‘Villa 31’<br />

BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA<br />

PRAVEEN RAJ<br />

CONTEXT AND PROJECT STATEMENT<br />

UC BERKELEY, COLLEGE OF ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN<br />

The Site Context<br />

La Villa 31 is a shanty town located <strong>in</strong> the City of Buenos Aires, more precisely <strong>in</strong> the neighborhood of Retiro. The<br />

settlement emerged <strong>in</strong> 1932 with the name “Villa Idleness” <strong>and</strong> generally grew to a significant size of 40,000 <strong>in</strong>habitants.<br />

Today, Villa 31 is a bustl<strong>in</strong>g immigrant settlement with an undocumented immigrant population of 51%, hail<strong>in</strong>g<br />

from the neighbor<strong>in</strong>g countries of Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay <strong>and</strong> Peru. While it is not the largest <strong>in</strong>formal settlement<br />

of Buenos Aires, it is emblematic because of its strategic location <strong>in</strong> the heart of the city. The Villa 31 is the only type<br />

of settlement affordable <strong>and</strong> accessible to the poor <strong>in</strong> the urban core of Buenos Aires, where competition for l<strong>and</strong><br />

<strong>and</strong> profits is <strong>in</strong>tense. The settlement consist of small houses or shacks made of t<strong>in</strong>, wood <strong>and</strong> other scrap material<br />

<strong>and</strong> they lack basic service <strong>in</strong>frastructure. The immigrant settlement has resisted several ‘eradication drives’ for over<br />

seven decades <strong>and</strong> the public adm<strong>in</strong>istrations have negotiated to augment <strong>and</strong> urbanize the settlement from 2009.<br />

The <strong>in</strong>itiative is called “Tre<strong>in</strong>ta y Todos” <strong>and</strong> makes reference to the adm<strong>in</strong>istration’s <strong>in</strong>tention to provide the villa’s<br />

residents with access to the same public services as the rest of the city’s population. On the other h<strong>and</strong>, the Villas of<br />

Buenos Aires are particularly known for their considerable population of the “Cartoneros” (urban scavengers), who<br />

comb through city’s 4500 tons of garbage every night. The Cartoneros liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the villas recycle plastic, glass, wood,<br />

cardboard, metal, debris etc. <strong>and</strong> help <strong>in</strong> reduc<strong>in</strong>g the city’s energy expenditure on waste management considerably.<br />

The Project Statement<br />

The project, “A Framework for Empowerment” not only works <strong>in</strong> parallel with public adm<strong>in</strong>istration’s urbanization<br />

vision but also strives to augment the vision to create self-susta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g communities. Further, the design project critically<br />

<strong>in</strong>vestigates the ‘Top Down’ urban design schemes generated through the urbanization plan <strong>and</strong> tangentially proposes<br />

an ‘Urban Repair’ framework that is poised between the city driven ‘Top-Down’ <strong>and</strong> community driven ‘Bottom-Up’<br />

design approaches. Consequently, the framework empowers the <strong>in</strong>habitants to self-build their hous<strong>in</strong>g; their cultural<br />

urban l<strong>and</strong>scapes; their workspaces <strong>and</strong> markets.<br />

The proposed design framework also aims at capitaliz<strong>in</strong>g the ‘Urban scaveng<strong>in</strong>g’ <strong>and</strong> recycl<strong>in</strong>g practice of the ‘Cartoneros’<br />

as an impetus to drive the revitalization of the settlement. This would <strong>in</strong>clude the production of build<strong>in</strong>g<br />

materials from wastes for construction of hous<strong>in</strong>g, urban l<strong>and</strong>scapes <strong>and</strong> community <strong>in</strong>frastructures. The proposal<br />

will formalize <strong>and</strong> upscale the waste recycl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>dustry as an economic generator to aid <strong>in</strong> the social development of<br />

the people <strong>in</strong> the settlement.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 209<br />

Top: Illustration of a typical Manzana (Urban Block) <strong>in</strong> Villa 31; Bottom: Site Location <strong>and</strong> Physicality


210 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

The proposed Framework has 3 major design goals - Rehabilitate, Re<strong>in</strong>force & Reconnect. The framework also upscales the practice of recycl<strong>in</strong>g by the Cartoneros’s as an impetus to drive the goals<br />

Top: Flow chart of the proposed Framework; Bottom: The proposed Cartonero Pattern book of recycled products <strong>and</strong> solutions


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 211<br />

THE URBAN DESIGN FRAMEWORK<br />

Critical Evaluation of the ‘Top-Down’ urbanization plan “Barrio 31” Draft<br />

The ‘Barrio 31’ draft is a conscious urban design proposal that responds to the imperative dem<strong>and</strong>s for revitalization of<br />

Villa 31. The urbanization <strong>in</strong>itiative ‘Tre<strong>in</strong>ta y Todos 2009’ to be carried out by the ‘Secretaría de Integración Social y Urbana’<br />

has imbibed most part of the ‘Barrio 31’ draft. Although, the draft has been formulated with scrupulous attention<br />

to issues at micro <strong>and</strong> macro levels, the draft is still a top down notion of how people should live. It is also legitimate that<br />

the ‘Barrio 31’ draft has overlooked the latest <strong>in</strong>itiation by the government to re-route the Illia highway.<br />

The Improvised/Proposed Framework - ‘Top-Down’+’Bottom-Up’<br />

Tak<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>to consideration, the shortcom<strong>in</strong>gs of the “Barrio 31” draft <strong>and</strong> all the prelim<strong>in</strong>ary research data, the urban<br />

design project undertaken proposes the framework, “A Framework for Empowerment”. The proposed urban design<br />

framework will not only work <strong>in</strong> parallel with the urbanization <strong>in</strong>itiative’s vision but also strives to augment the vision to<br />

create self-susta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g communities. The framework’s primary objective is to engender a collaborative platform which is<br />

a partnership between the city driven ‘Top-Down’ <strong>and</strong> the community driven ‘Bottom-Up’ approaches, <strong>in</strong> build<strong>in</strong>g up<br />

Villa 31 <strong>and</strong> thus empower<strong>in</strong>g the community. Empower<strong>in</strong>g the community gets them more <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>and</strong> motivated<br />

towards the build<strong>in</strong>g-up process by implant<strong>in</strong>g a sense of owness.<br />

Upscal<strong>in</strong>g of the Recycl<strong>in</strong>g Practice of Cartoneros<br />

The <strong>in</strong>formal practice of urban scaveng<strong>in</strong>g by Cartoneros save up-to 25% of city’s energy expenditure on waste management.<br />

The demographic data identifies 11% of the people <strong>in</strong> Villa 31 as Cartoneros along with 43% un employed <strong>in</strong><br />

Villa 31. There lies a compell<strong>in</strong>g opportunity to upscale the urban scaveng<strong>in</strong>g practice of Cartoneros <strong>in</strong> Villa 31 <strong>in</strong>to a<br />

formal recycl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>dustry that would directly benefit the <strong>in</strong>habitants of the settlement.<br />

The Cartonero Pattern Book<br />

The proposed recycl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>dustry will aid <strong>in</strong> community development <strong>and</strong> serve as an ‘economic eng<strong>in</strong>e’ by creat<strong>in</strong>g<br />

job opportunities. The framework through the <strong>in</strong>dustry will develop the ‘Cartonero Pattern Book’. The patterns <strong>in</strong> the<br />

book are a set of recycled products, recycled build<strong>in</strong>g materials, design solutions <strong>and</strong> construction techniques. The<br />

patterns will not only assist the <strong>in</strong>habitants <strong>in</strong> self-build<strong>in</strong>g of their settlement but also will ga<strong>in</strong> a dem<strong>and</strong> outside the<br />

villa by the sett<strong>in</strong>g up of markets. The patterns generated out of the wastes are climate responsive, energy efficient,<br />

fire/water resistant, user-friendly <strong>and</strong> easy to <strong>in</strong>stall. The pattern generation is an <strong>in</strong>f<strong>in</strong>ite process <strong>and</strong> the framework<br />

anticipates that more user-def<strong>in</strong>ed patterns would evolve over the years.


212 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Top: The proposed Row-house typology after habitation; Bottom: A scenario of a cultural space <strong>in</strong> the middle of the proposed blocks


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 213<br />

THE MAJOR DESIGN STRATEGIES<br />

A. Rehabilitate: (self-build<strong>in</strong>g of affordable hous<strong>in</strong>g)<br />

The pr<strong>in</strong>cipal objective of this section is to provide the <strong>in</strong>habitants of the villa with access to st<strong>and</strong>ard hous<strong>in</strong>g; basic<br />

<strong>in</strong>frastructures like water, sanitation, electricity, health <strong>and</strong> the fundamentals for community liv<strong>in</strong>g. A participatory<br />

framework is engendered to build the hous<strong>in</strong>g that is transient, modular, <strong>in</strong>cremental <strong>and</strong> flexible.<br />

1. Removal of sub-st<strong>and</strong>ard hous<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> rehabilitat<strong>in</strong>g those <strong>in</strong>habitants <strong>in</strong> st<strong>and</strong>ard low-cost hous<strong>in</strong>g proposed <strong>in</strong> the<br />

adjacent site.<br />

2. Design solutions that aid the <strong>in</strong>habitants to augment the quality of exist<strong>in</strong>g hous<strong>in</strong>g.<br />

3. Develop an Incremental hous<strong>in</strong>g strategy through self-build techniques.<br />

4. Harvest construction techniques from recycled materials that are economically viable <strong>and</strong> user friendly.<br />

5. Enhance the micro-climate by design<strong>in</strong>g environmental friendly solutions us<strong>in</strong>g waste.<br />

‘Top-Down’ + ‘Bottom-Up’ House Build<strong>in</strong>g<br />

A design paradigm which is a partnership between the city driven ‘Top-Down’ <strong>and</strong> the community driven ‘Bottom-Up’<br />

approaches is proposed for the development <strong>in</strong> Villa 31. Follow<strong>in</strong>g the negotiations, the Hous<strong>in</strong>g Authority builds the<br />

Structural (RCC) framework, service shafts, common staircases <strong>and</strong> delivers it to the families that have qualified for<br />

the allocation. The families on habitation would complete the rema<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g house by build<strong>in</strong>g the walls, doors, w<strong>in</strong>dows,<br />

shad<strong>in</strong>gs devices, cab<strong>in</strong>ets, wall partitions, balconies <strong>and</strong> furnitures. This process of co-operative build<strong>in</strong>g established<br />

by the partnership between the Authority <strong>and</strong> the User enables for flexibility <strong>in</strong> design <strong>and</strong> usage. This process allows<br />

the owners to control their own social, family <strong>and</strong> cultural needs mak<strong>in</strong>g them more <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>and</strong> motivated towards<br />

the project. As expla<strong>in</strong>ed <strong>in</strong> the design framework, the recycled build<strong>in</strong>g materials <strong>and</strong> products from the proposed<br />

recycl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>dustry would be made available to the users at subsidized costs. To add to that, the design <strong>and</strong> construction<br />

techniques from the ‘Cartonero Pattern Book’ would aid the users for easy <strong>and</strong> climate-responsive construction.<br />

B. Re<strong>in</strong>force: (self-build<strong>in</strong>g of cultural urban l<strong>and</strong>scapes)<br />

The pr<strong>in</strong>cipal objective of this section is to rejuvenate the public realm of the settlement <strong>and</strong> thus engender robust<br />

spaces for community <strong>in</strong>teraction, congregation, celebration <strong>and</strong> leisure.<br />

1. Enhance the social <strong>and</strong> community life.<br />

2. Design<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> re-imag<strong>in</strong>g the public <strong>in</strong>frastructures.<br />

3. Refurbish<strong>in</strong>g the community spaces for <strong>in</strong>tegration, awareness, education <strong>and</strong> celebrations.<br />

4. Explor<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>terventions of tactical urbanism to deal with transiency of spaces.<br />

Villa 31 is multi-ethnic <strong>in</strong> nature <strong>and</strong> most communities with<strong>in</strong> the villa do not <strong>in</strong>term<strong>in</strong>gle with the other communities<br />

or nationalities. These closed communities embrace their own cultural, social <strong>and</strong> religious congregations. The urban<br />

design framework <strong>in</strong>troduces semipublic spaces (open spaces <strong>in</strong> the center of the proposed blocks) that are conducive<br />

for cultural <strong>and</strong> social activities; spaces that are physically <strong>and</strong> visually safe for the children <strong>and</strong> senior citizens of the<br />

blocks. The design <strong>and</strong> the types of activity to go <strong>in</strong>to the space is collectively decided by the residents of the block<br />

through community unions. Thus, the framework empowers the community to design their own space <strong>and</strong> the design<br />

solutions, techniques <strong>and</strong> recycled build<strong>in</strong>g materials are made available to the users through the proposed ‘Cartonero<br />

Pattern Book’. The program of the semipublic space could be temporary <strong>and</strong> the space can be transformed aga<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong><br />

a few years or months, depend<strong>in</strong>g on the aspirations <strong>and</strong> the needs of the residents.


214 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Top: User-def<strong>in</strong>ed scenario of cultural space; Middle: Recycl<strong>in</strong>g the freeway structure for community amenities; Bottom: Pop-up scrap markets


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 215<br />

THE MAJOR DESIGN STRATEGIES<br />

C. Reconnect: (self-build<strong>in</strong>g of markets)<br />

The pr<strong>in</strong>cipal objective of this section is to <strong>in</strong>tegrate Villa 31 back to the formal city of Buenos Aires. The exist<strong>in</strong>g<br />

physical disconnect is caused by the <strong>in</strong>frastructural barriers that <strong>in</strong>clude railway l<strong>in</strong>es <strong>and</strong> the Illia highway. There also<br />

exists a social disconnect <strong>in</strong>duced by vast economic disparity. The framework not only strives to establish physical<br />

connections but also aims to nurture social <strong>and</strong> economic connections with the formal city.<br />

1. Removal of <strong>in</strong>frastructural barriers.<br />

2. Spatial connections through the proposed transformation of the freeway bridge <strong>in</strong>to a a l<strong>in</strong>ear pedestrian park.<br />

3. Social connection to the formal economy of the city through the proposed recycl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>dustry.<br />

4. Economic connections through proposed self-build ‘pop-up’ markets for recycled products.<br />

4.0 Conclusion<br />

The proposed approach not only bolsters the ‘Top-Down’ framework’s foot hold over the slum’s revitalization, but also<br />

empowers its <strong>in</strong>habitants by <strong>in</strong>duc<strong>in</strong>g user participation. The rehabilitated <strong>in</strong>habitants would add their cultural layer<br />

to the proposed built environment. The street scape will cont<strong>in</strong>ue to be a reflection of the community itself, its aspirations<br />

<strong>and</strong> cultural exuberance. Empower<strong>in</strong>g the community gets them more <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>and</strong> motivated towards the<br />

build<strong>in</strong>g-up process by implant<strong>in</strong>g a sense of owness. Thus, the framework illustrates how <strong>in</strong>volv<strong>in</strong>g the community<br />

<strong>in</strong> the revitalization process can pave way for a holistic, <strong>in</strong>digenous development. The proposed recycl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>dustry <strong>in</strong><br />

the villa would amplify the urban scaveng<strong>in</strong>g practice of the Cartoneros. Villa 31 will become an ‘Urban S<strong>in</strong>k’, where the<br />

trash generated by the formal city would be converted <strong>in</strong>to treasure. The large scale recycl<strong>in</strong>g of Villa 31 would drastically<br />

help the city cut down its expenditure on waste management. Hence, there is more so a press<strong>in</strong>g need for them<br />

to exist <strong>in</strong> the urban core of the city .<br />

Hawk<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> other economic opportunities along the proposed tourism sp<strong>in</strong>e through the settlement


216 Confront<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

AA36<br />

FORM(U/A)LIZING THE <strong>INFORMALITY</strong><br />

Straggle to Stack<br />

Form (U/A)liz<strong>in</strong>g the<br />

<strong>Informal</strong>ity<br />

Straggle to Stack<br />

NAVI MUMBAI, INDIA<br />

ALAN ALEXANDER, VINITA ANIL MHATRE<br />

ROTTERDAM SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, ERASMUS UNIVERSITY & KAMLA RAHEJA VIDYANIDHI INSTITUTE<br />

FOR ARCHITECTURE & ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES, MUMBAI UNIVERSITY<br />

THE APPROACH<br />

<strong>Informal</strong> settlements are an adaptive response to the constra<strong>in</strong>ts <strong>and</strong> opportunities <strong>in</strong> the city with m<strong>in</strong>imal<br />

resources be<strong>in</strong>g deployed <strong>in</strong>crementally by their residents. Often such settlements are native villages turn<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>to<br />

urban villages or settlements are located <strong>in</strong> unoccupied <strong>in</strong>terstices <strong>and</strong> marg<strong>in</strong>al l<strong>and</strong>s of the city seek<strong>in</strong>g a proximity to<br />

the place of employment <strong>and</strong> urban <strong>in</strong>frastructure to support their livelihoods. In the absence of collective <strong>in</strong>stitutions<br />

to manage their growth, the constra<strong>in</strong>ts of available l<strong>and</strong>, the uncerta<strong>in</strong>ty of ownership, comb<strong>in</strong>ed with poor access<br />

to the city utilities <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>frastructure their liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions. Hence, community-level organisations, ownership <strong>and</strong><br />

affordability are ma<strong>in</strong> factors that govern their prospects for improvement of liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions of <strong>in</strong>formal settlements.<br />

In the Indian context, development of villages <strong>in</strong> Navi Mumbai started with a transformation <strong>in</strong> the l<strong>and</strong>use<br />

of villages from agriculture which was the primary source of livelihood for natives to several other urban l<strong>and</strong><br />

uses. The agricultural l<strong>and</strong> was either sold or acquired by the government for urban expansion. Extensive <strong>in</strong>formal<br />

developments mushroomed <strong>in</strong> the peripheral areas of villages due to hous<strong>in</strong>g needs of the native <strong>and</strong> migrant<br />

population. The <strong>in</strong>formal growth of villages evolved spatially to provide more dwell<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>and</strong> vary functionally to make<br />

available space for chang<strong>in</strong>g dem<strong>and</strong>. This reflects the multiple needs <strong>and</strong> dem<strong>and</strong>s of folks that live <strong>and</strong> work there,<br />

<strong>and</strong> this created the formal urban context around villages. As a result, villages evolved predom<strong>in</strong>antly due to their<br />

disparate urban contexts, <strong>and</strong> this formed a heterogeneous expansion. The shift of urban fabric by the formal <strong>and</strong><br />

<strong>in</strong>formal peripheral growth also changed agricultural production to room rent<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> other socio-economic activities.<br />

The Bottom l<strong>in</strong>e, these villages not only get severed from their basic source of sustenance but also get surrounded with<br />

<strong>and</strong> engulfed by complex urban forces <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>fluences which resulted <strong>in</strong>to <strong>in</strong>formality <strong>and</strong> them <strong>in</strong>to urban villages.<br />

“Home” is just not simply a dwell<strong>in</strong>g unit. The idea of home is much larger than four walls, a roof,<br />

a bath, a kitchen, a television which public hous<strong>in</strong>g tries to address. It is an <strong>in</strong>stitution full of aspirations<br />

provid<strong>in</strong>g an opportunity to work, liberty to shape surround<strong>in</strong>g, possibility to <strong>in</strong>crement <strong>and</strong> improvement.<br />

The hous<strong>in</strong>g policies that are implemented by the government simply cluster settlements from horizontal<br />

confusion <strong>in</strong>to l<strong>in</strong>ear symmetry by remov<strong>in</strong>g dynamic nature of the space <strong>in</strong>to stacked cramped units.<br />

The study shows one approach of plann<strong>in</strong>g for already exist<strong>in</strong>g high density low <strong>in</strong>come settlements with<br />

range of options quite different from exist<strong>in</strong>g models of redevelopment schemes by state authority on one side <strong>and</strong> on<br />

other side the conservative surgery method to carry out bottom to up development by <strong>in</strong>troduc<strong>in</strong>g small <strong>in</strong>terventions<br />

of provid<strong>in</strong>g basic amenities with range of approaches of up-gradation, stage-wise improvement <strong>and</strong> readjustments.<br />

The approach is <strong>in</strong>spired by pr<strong>in</strong>ciples of development of Patrick Geddes (Scottish biologist, sociologist,<br />

geographer, philanthropist <strong>and</strong> pioneer<strong>in</strong>g town planner) works as well as urban patterns def<strong>in</strong>ed by of Christopher<br />

Alex<strong>and</strong>er. Geddes worked <strong>in</strong> India <strong>in</strong> a period when urban improvement trusts were staffed by military eng<strong>in</strong>eers,<br />

who were obsessed with slum clearances, sanitation, <strong>and</strong> racial segregation. Battl<strong>in</strong>g the eng<strong>in</strong>eers <strong>and</strong> their<br />

ideas, he developed the concept of “conservative surgery,” the approach that beg<strong>in</strong>s with the underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g of<br />

th<strong>in</strong>gs as they exist on the ground, recognis<strong>in</strong>g the potentials, the work<strong>in</strong>g order <strong>and</strong> life <strong>in</strong> the exist<strong>in</strong>g spaces.


TU Delft, 7 Jun 2018 217<br />

The great streets support the content around them. In the settlement like urban villages, streets are wher