Understanding Illegal Housing and Autoconstruction in Medellin: A Story of Hope
Exploring the housing deficiency in Medellin and how low-income residents use autoconstruction as a material practice of hope to build their own homes. The struggle for dignified housing, roots of hope in the Medellin Miracle, and the role of state ambiguity are key themes discussed in the content.
Understanding Illegal Housing and Autoconstruction in Medellin: A Story of Hope
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Illegal Housing in Medelln Autoconstruction and the Materiality of Hope By Adam Moore, Fl vio Eir and Martijn Koster Felicia Nissen 16/10/2023 St. Gallen
Contents 1. Housing deficiency in Medell n 2. Autoconstruction as Material Practice of Hoping 3. Struggle for Vivienda Digna 4.1 Roots of Hope: The Medell n Miracle 4.2 Latin America s Silicon Valley 5. EL Oasis 6. Role of State Ambiguity 7. Questions 2
Housing deficiency in Medelln deficit of 32,733 households only 5% assigned to social housing New constructions in real estate market Consequence: Lowest income households break law : -> squatting or purchasing a plot of land -> build a house using their limited resources without the legal permission E.g. EL OASIS 794 15434 Evictions Demolitions/Fines commercial social 3
Autoconstruction as a Material Practice of Hoping Hope: expectation of a better future (especially for those whole live in uncertain conditions) Autoconstruction: Process that enables low-income urban residents to build their own houses according to their own needs, preferences, and available resources an expression of hope for the future Houses: Concrete embodiments and imaginary representations of people s relations to their conditions of existence Definition self-built House: symbolic vehicle of transformation toward different circumstances 4
Struggle for Vivienda Digna Right to dignified housing in Columbia s Constitution used by state officials and by lowest income households Hope for being granted a dignified living situation as this is a legal right shift in legitimacy: autoconstruction as an illegal activity in attempting to fulfill their on right to a legal product (dignified housing) use of same language: expression of desperate attempt to improve communication and relationship between autoconstructors and government 5
Roots of Hope: The Medell n Miracle Mid-2000s: Medellin declared as a Pioneer of Social Urbanism Hosted 7th UN HABITAT World Urban Forum Equity (April 2014) Prestigious awards: recognition of local government for distribution of benefits and urban development and innovation evenly across socioeconomic spectrum 6
Latin Americas Silicon Valley Shift in Economic Strategy: Light Manufacturing Services Requires: attraction of international capital: New infrastructure greening Housing favourable economic conditions for multinational companies Shift in economic strategies = shift in socioeconomic focus lower income class -> Upper-/Middle class 7
EL Oasis Moravia -> Garbage dump 2015 started autoconstruction Cambuches -> Ranches -> Casa May 2017: promise of access to public services +taxpaying => kept being delayed Gridding Aug 2017: fire due to short circuit on an electricity post 349 families lost homes First fire engine to arrive = empty water tanks Second = broken hose subsidies -> bureaucratical barriers owner-> possessor-> occupant ecological garden 8
Role of state ambiguity Legal Contradictions: Colombia s National Police Code => violation of local urban planning norms and regulations Columbia s Constitution => right to dignified housing compensation of worth of materials instead of social housing or rent subsidies => bureaucratical barriers Emotional Paradox of State to Residents: formalization + gridding = desperate attempt to pay taxes to be part of state perceived legalisation (illegality=temporary) Tax breaks to multinational companies Difference between income classes: construction without permission/ necessary documentation punished less then autoconstruction Hypocrisy: Tours for international visitors through autoconstructed parts while celebrating residents historical achievements of constructing homes against all odds Glorifying own protagonism: Emphasis on government doing the final crucial work of turning the places around State = Hope-Generation Machine vs Destruction of Hopes 9
My Questions 1) Would you define autoconstruction as legitimate? 2) The movement from manufacturing to service is genereally a desired economic goal. How do you think this could be done without hurting lowest income class? 3)The text slightly suggested that fires could have been related to state actions (some residents recall seeing inspection of electrical posts by ETM/ insufficiently fought). Do you in your personal opinion think this is a possibility? 10
Sources Paper BBC: https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20210713-moravia-colombias-unexpected-green-oasis Pictures: https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20210713-moravia-colombias-unexpected-green-oasis https://www.kriteria.co/design/voltahousing https://www.eltiempo.com/colombia/medellin/incendio-en-moravia-medellin-mas-de-100-familias- damnificadas-121430 https://revistapangea.wordpress.com/tag/incendio-en-el-oasis-moravia/ https://restofworld.org/2021/tech-hubs-medellin/ https://sdg.iisd.org/news/wuf-7-adopts-medellin-declaration-recommends-urban-sdg/ 11
