Dwelling in an ecological substrate: landscape based strategies for flood adaptation i

Abstract

The Sabana de Bogotá is facing a continuously increasing conflict between urban development and a saturated water management system. The research investigates how current contested relations between lowincome housing and environmental stress can be converted into a constructive interplay. The unquestionable necessity of building new social housing can be seen as a major threat for sustainable water management but also as a unique opportunity to propose strategic spatial interventions. This paper present design investigations in two sections that cut across the Bogotá River and are undergoing development pressure. In each site the design proposes a water structure that solve qualitative and quantitative water issues while delivers a framework for new housing fabrics. The thesis has three objectives. First, to develop a critical approach to current development trends and to envision alternative development schemes for the region. Second, to challenge the current planning models based on the distinction of “urban” and “rural” areas and the abandonment of environmental conservation in the urban sphere. Finally, to develop new urban typologies that integrate sustainable water management. By designing the water system, public and private investment can be oriented towards a sustainable and resilience public structure in the long term.