URBE. Arquitectura, Ciudad y Territorio

Formulation of tools for the co-design of urban spaces to strengthen citizen participation: The new Alameda-Providencia as a lost opportunity to involve young people

Sergio Salazar Álvarez — 2025-06-30

The Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) defines a citizen as a person considered an active member of a state, entitled to political rights and subject to its laws. Although the definition has not changed over time, the actors who fall within its definition have. It would be wrong to think that citizenship and its participation in society have not changed. Guillén et al. (2009):

Currently, the term "participation" is used to explain the impact of individuals and social groups on the different stages in which matters of public interest are resolved, that is, in consultation, discussions, proposals, and all types of activities in which the state and citizens interact for the progress of the community (p. 179).

Reconciling Memory: A Study on Heritage Interpretation at Memory Sites in Concepción, Chile

Daniela Matus Cuevas — 2025-06-30

In the context of post-dictatorship and symbolic reconciliation, heritage protection has driven the recognition of memory sites, reflecting memorialization policies in Chile. In Gran Concepción, the country’s second-largest urban conglomerate, there are multiple spaces where human rights violations were committed, now converted into memory sites. Initially promoted by collectives and later institutionalized, memorials emerge that, despite having strong symbolic value, may go unnoticed. This raises key questions: Do they transmit the memory of the dictatorship? Do they foster reflection? Do they receive adequate maintenance? The process of establishment involves valorization and recognition, so the interpretation of these spaces must be evaluated based on their capacity to communicate the past through all their characteristics, both physical and symbolic.
This research analyzes the architectural and urban strategies employed in memory sites in Gran Concepción, as well as their visibility and recognition by passersby. A qualitative approach is used based on three analyses: 1) documentary, 2) fieldwork, and 3) perception. The hypothesis suggests that interpretation in these sites is deficient due to weaknesses in their architec-tural and urban design. The study reveals that, although these sites are part of the urban heritage, they are not formally integrated into the city, generating deficiencies in valorization and cultural interpretation. Three design strategies were analyzed: 1) configured spaces, 2) commemorative plaques, and 3) symbolic objects. The perception of these spaces varies according to prior knowledge and generation, underscoring the need to improve their design and discourse.

Riverside Carpentry as Heritage in Resistance: Architectural and Urban Dimension in Caracolitos, Calbuco

Luisa Ríos Hernández — 2025-06-30

This research examines riverside carpentry in Caracolitos, Calbuco, as an exemplary case of the interrelation between intangible cultural heritage and its spatial conditions. The central hypothesis argues that the precariousness of architectural and urban spaces threatens the continuity of the craft, while the persistence of the carpenters represents an act of cultural resistance. The study analyzes how these spatial conditions affect the sustainability, transmission, and reproduction of ancestral knowledge, adopting a comprehensive perspective. The qualitative-phenomenological methodological approach included interviews, participant observation, photographic documentation, planimetric surveys, and territorial analysis. The findings demonstrate the existence of a normative and material gap between the heritage recognition of the craft and the actual development conditions, positioning the Caracolitos shipyard in a vulnerable scenario that requires a transdisciplinary approach.

Informal urban sprawl and sustainability in Latin America: a review of recent literature

Karenli Ríos Valencia — 2025-06-30

Informal urban expansion in Latin America is driven by socioeconomic inequalities, lack of land regulation, and limited access to formal housing. This phenomenon has intensified territorial fragmentation, infrastructure deficits, and socio-environmental vulnerability. This study conducts a systematic review of 25 research articles to analyze the growth patterns of informal settlements, their impacts, and the strategies implemented for their management.

A search was conducted in Scopus, Google Scholar, and SCIELO, applying inclusion criteria that prioritized studies with empirical evidence and verified methodologies. Theoretical works without quantifiable data were excluded. Case studies, predictive models, and geospatial tools were analyzed to assess trends and future scenarios.

The results show that informal urbanization mainly affects populations in peripheral areas. This exacerbates inequality in access to basic services and increases exposure to natural disasters. Strategies such as land regularization, participatory planning, and the integration of geospatial technologies have achieved progress in some contexts. However, they face challenges regarding long-term sustainability.

In conclusion, mitigating informal expansion and strengthening sustainable urban development requires improving governance. Additionally, it is essential to optimize equitable land access and consolidate resilient strategies that integrate technological tools and community participation.

Collaborative digitization of Lota's mining industrial heritage from an experience of public engagement focused on preventive conservation

Sebastián Ganchala Chavarría — 2025-06-30

The research was developed within the framework of a collaborative project of public engagement, whose objective was focused on the preventive conservation and dissemination of the industrial mining heritage of Lota — a Chilean city and commune located in the Province of Concepción, Biobío Region— through an online digital collec-tion. This study addressed a collaborative workflow based on photogrammetry used to digitally replicate the geometry and texture of heritage elements. In collaboration with a territorial organization with more than thirty years of work in the region. The methodological process included field trips with students from different careers, who applied technical knowledge to generate three-dimensional models of the elements using infrared scanner and aerial photography. This phase allowed the development of disciplinary practices and advanced technical skills in real contexts. The digital collection included elements representative of the miner’s working conditions, material testimony of the coal exploitation in Lota during the 19th and 20th centuries. The main findings point to the creation of a digital collection that indirectly contributes to the examination and preventive conservation of Lota's industrial mining heritage. In addition, the study highlights the importance of interdisciplinary colla-boration, evi-dencing the integration of different disciplinary areas and actors in the field of safeguarding cultural heritage.

Intervention Criteria of the Modern Heritage of the University of Concepción Campus

Daniel Maceiras Bravo — 2025-06-30

This article examines the intervention criteria applied to the modern architectural heritage of the University of Concepción campus, focusing on buildings constructed between 1930 and 1970. The main objective is to evaluate, based on previous experiences, how these interventions have respected or compromised the architectural and urban values of the campus. Since the 1970s, the university's accelerated growth has led to various modifications of its original infrastructure, some of which have been questioned for not adequately considering their heritage value. The designation of part of the campus as a Historic Monument in 2016 has encouraged the application of heritage rehabilitation principles in recent interventions. This research, with a qualitative and interpretative approach, analyzes cases that occurred between 1970 and 2024, including extensions, additions, and the most recent interventions carried out under conservation criteria. A categorization of interventions is proposed, based on their impact on architectural conservation and their coherence with the original architectural language of the buildings. The results show that it is possible to intervene in modern heritage without compromising its historical value, as long as criteria aimed at heritage rehabilitation are applied. The need to strengthen these practices is highlighted in order to ensure the long-term protection of modern heritage and its transmission to future generations.

Chilean Muralism in Stone (1956-1981)

Jose Luis Elenes Miranda — 2025-06-30

This research identifies Chilean Muralism in Stone through the study of the plastic work of Marie Martner García, focusing on her intervention in the Escuela México de Talcahuano, particularly in the mural Fraternidad de dos pueblos. The text analyzes the development of this avant-garde movement, highlighting its emergence as a response to the search for a cultural identity in Latin America. The methodology is based on a theoretical review, technical analysis and historiographic study, which includes the artist's personal collection and a specialized bibliographic review. The results highlight the fusion of plastic art with architecture, marked by the use of natural stone as a local resource, Martner's technical reinterpretation of the mosaic in “pastelones” and the collective work as key elements in the process of plastic reintegration of muralism with modern architecture of the mid-twentieth century in Chile.

Memories, sabers, and territorial resistance

Rosa Maria Guerrero — 2025-06-30

Architecture and urban planning not only construct physical spaces but also articulate memories, knowledge, and disputes surrounding territory. In this twentieth edition of URBE. Architecture, City, and Territory, we bring together research that addresses, from different scales and perspectives, the way in which built space and the urban environment reflect historical, social, and cultural phenomena, revealing tensions and connections between heritage, participation, sustainability, and memory.