“No time to waste” in applying the lessons from Latin America’s 50 years of housing policies

Rojas, Eduardo

doi:10.1177/0956247818781499

Cited by 20 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated preexisting conditions of informality and inequality in LAC cities. Even before the pandemic, it is estimated that up to 30% of households lived precariously (i.e., in overcrowded homes, without basic services or proper title) ( Rojas, 2019 ). In addition, LAC cities are among the most unequal in the Global South ( OECD, 2018 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of COVID-19 on Venezuelan migrants’ access to health: A qualitative study in Colombian and Peruvian cities

Zambrano-Barragán¹,

Hernández²,

Freier³

et al. 2021

Journal of Migration and Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Highlights We present results from an ethnographic study on Venezuelan migrants’ access to healthcare in seven Latin American cities. COVID-19 has worsened conditions of informality and health inequities for Venezuelan migrants. The main obstacles to healthcare access are legal, financial, and relating to discrimination and information asymmetry. Migrants rely on alternative care, such as telemedicine, extralegal doctors, and pharmacies.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of COVID-19 on Venezuelan migrants’ access to health: A qualitative study in Colombian and Peruvian cities

Zambrano-Barragán¹,

Hernández²,

Freier³

et al. 2021

Journal of Migration and Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Informal settlements are defined according to contraventions of specific laws, rules, and regulations, whereas slums are usually defined on the basis of measures of housing quality, overcrowding, and the provision of urban services. The second source of information is city-level case studies that suggest that it is common for cities to have 30%-50% of their population in informal settlements, 7 although some have a higher proportion-for instance, 60% in Nairobi, 8,9 65% in Cairo, 10 and 70% in Dar es Salaam. 11 A study in Mumbai notes that ''over half of the city's population lives in informal settlements of varying infrastructure, income, economy, ethnicity and religion, squeezed into whatever space can be found from bridges and railways to pavements and shantytowns'' (p. 91).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Building Resilience to Climate Change in Informal Settlements

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Approximately 1 billion people currently live in informal settlements, primarily in urban areas in low-and middle-income countries. Informal settlements are defined by poor-quality houses or shacks built outside formal laws and regulations. Most informal settlements lack piped water or adequate provision for sanitation, drainage, and public services. Many are on dangerous sites because their inhabitants have a higher chance of avoiding eviction. This paper considers how to build resilience to the impacts of climate change in informal settlements. It focuses on informal settlements in cities in low-and middle-income countries and how these concentrate at-risk populations. This paper also reviews what is being done to address climate resilience in informal settlements. In particular, community-and city-government-led measures to upgrade settlements can enhance resilience to climate-change risks and serve vulnerable groups. It also discusses how the barriers to greater scale and effectiveness can be overcome, including with synergies with the Sustainable Development Goals. Rapid Urbanization and Growth of Informal SettlementsThe current urban population is approximately 4.4 billion people globally. About 3.4 billion people currently live in urban centers in what the United Nations (UN) terms ''less developed regions.'' 1 UN projections suggest that urban population growth in ''less developed regions'' will be over 2 billion people by 2050 and that close to 90% of this increase will be in Asia and Africa. This means that another 2 billion urban dwellers will require housing, basic services, and resilience to climate-change impacts. 1 At present, approximately 1 billion urban dwellers live in what are termed informal settlements in poor-quality houses or shacks. 2 Informal settlements fall outside formal laws and regulations on land ownership, land use, and buildings. Their illegality makes government agencies unable or unwilling to work with them. These are settlements to which city governments have not extended what the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) terms risk-reducing infrastructure (paved roads, storm and surface drainage, piped water, etc.) and services relevant to resilience (including healthcare, emergency services, and rules of law). 2 Many informal settlements are ill prepared for climate change and face particularly high risks of floods and landslides as a result of poor-quality buildings and a lack of infrastructure to prevent flooding, withstand heavy storms, and cope with heat waves. 2 In the absence of more effective policies, most of the world's growth in urban population will be accommodated in informal settlements. Given the projected rates and regions of urban population growth by 2050, there is an urgent need to build resilience to climate change in these settlements and to do so at scale. There is also an urgent need to vastly expand the supply and reduce the cost of ''formal'' (i.e., legal) housing that provides low-income groups with safer and more accessible alternatives to...

show abstract

“… 9. Rojas, E (2019), “No time to waste in applying the lessons from Latin America’s 50 years of housing policies”, Environment and Urbanization Vol 31, No 1, pages 177–192. …”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Incorporating a resilience lens into the social and urban transformation of informal settlements: the participatory upgrading process in Villa 20, Buenos Aires (2016–2020)

Almansi¹,

Motta²,

Hardoy³

2020

Environment and Urbanization

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Based on the experiences of the socio-urban integration of Villa 20, this article suggests that upgrading processes are inherently complex and challenge traditional public policy implementation practices. The case presented demonstrates that, when complex urban problems are addressed through citizen participation, they contribute to improving urban governance, providing comprehensive responses, and may ensure the long-term sustainability of the introduced changes. Incorporating a climate resilience lens into the upgrading processes of informal settlements has not been a priority in government-led programmes to date. However, when these processes have at their core a deep participatory and collaborative approach, they offer a window of opportunity not only to transform government practices and policies, but also to influence urban designs, bring technological innovation, support alternative construction practices, and adopt a more sustainable and inclusive urban development pathway.

show abstract

“No time to waste” in applying the lessons from Latin America’s 50 years of housing policies

Cited by 20 publications

References 22 publications

The impact of COVID-19 on Venezuelan migrants’ access to health: A qualitative study in Colombian and Peruvian cities

The impact of COVID-19 on Venezuelan migrants’ access to health: A qualitative study in Colombian and Peruvian cities

Building Resilience to Climate Change in Informal Settlements

Incorporating a resilience lens into the social and urban transformation of informal settlements: the participatory upgrading process in Villa 20, Buenos Aires (2016–2020)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About