Chapters authored
Mexico City after September 2017: Are We Building the Right City?
Due to its destructive effect, a disaster always raises questions about its causes. In the case of the earthquake that occurred in Mexico City on September 19, 2017, one of the most surprising and astonishing situations was buildings that were damaged or collapsed by the earthquake, but which had been recently constructed. These had been built 9 months up to 12 years before, and others were still not inhabited. On the other hand, as in 1985, public spaces have been playing a key role both in the emergency phase and in the reconstruction phase. However, the new public spaces that accompany the most recent housing projects have lost much of their quality. What factors have influenced these urban processes? What are the stakeholders that produce both the new urban forms and the new public spaces? Are there ways to measure the quality of these new public spaces? We depart from the hypothesis that the recomposition of territories of opportunity in Mexico City has been based on the adoption of trends supported by the economy, rather than in the needs of the population, resulting in exclusionary and uninhabitable public spaces in case of disaster.
Part of the book: Risk Assessment