AbstractsGeography &GIS

The case of Valparaíso, is predominantly chosen because of its recent misfortune that has occurred in April 2014. Rapid urbanization has struck on the steep slopes around the centre of Valparaíso causing them to perch on precarious land. Due to its geography, landslides, earthquakes and wildfires are a common threat that might contribute to the disturbance of transforming an existing poor community into a safe and secure neighbourhood. On April 14th, wildfires have consumed more than 2,900 homes, leaving around 12,000 people homeless (UNDP, 2014; Quirk, 2014). A notable remark is that this was not the first disaster the people of Valparaíso needed to witness. In fact, there was a similar wildfire back in 2008 and in 2013 that occurred on these same hills (UTFSM, 2014). With the former residents already commencing to reconstruct their homes on these ashen hills, it is important to prevent entering in the same recurring cycle of a disaster prone area with vulnerable communities. In the first part of this graduation project, a strategic approach for in situ settlement upgrading has been formed based on the concept of evolutionary resilience. The object of this part of the paper is to test the strategic approach to the specific case of Valparaíso. This integrated response, addressing the importance of evolutionary resilience in a disaster prone vulnerable community, is ultimately reassessed seeking for possible replicable solutions for communities in similar situations elsewhere in the world.