Bogotá, Cohesion by Polymorphism

Abstract

The current condition of urban fragmentation in Bogotá
is the result of a long and complex historical process that (due to both external pressures related to the urban planning paradigms of modernity, as well as internal pressures from the Colombian armed conflict) has ended up defining a certain stance in the city’s development, both towards its natural environment and towards the various social groups inhabiting it. On one hand, the constant imposition
of progress models has ended up disintegrating the relationship that
the urban fabric has with ecological structures, generating a city that occurs on the margins of landscape dynamics. On the other hand, within the city planning process, the extensive internal cultural diversity of Bogotá has not been taken into account, resulting from forced displacement generated by the armed conflict, which led during the second half of the 20th century to a growing concentration
of different communities (originating from different regions) of the country in the main cities.
This thesis contemplates a series of strategies, both participatory and urban renewal, aimed at the urban cohesion of Bogotá. Through the implementation of the theory of “Design for the Pluriverse”, social and ecological diversity is embraced as a potential for city planning. This thesis focuses on a historical and spatial analysis of the conditions that led to Bogotá’s current condition through
a literature review and the use of GIS tools, resulting in a two-part proposal. The first part is a Participatory framework (Bottom-Up) to promote community-led land management. The second part consists of an
Urban Design (Top-Down) aimed at rehabilitating the ecosystem in which these communities reside.