Problem Statement

The residents of the informal settlement of Barrio Padre Rodolfo Ricciardelli in Buenos Aires, Argentina live in harsh conditions. These communities are neglected by the government of the formal city of Buenos Aires and are on their own. The population density has exponentially grown over the past decade, and thereby more and more space is occupied, which has resulted in narrow streets, houses with no daylight and ventilation, and public space that is shrinking each day. The idea of being neglected also had an influence on the social environment in which these people reside. It has become a free-for-all in which public space is occupied by private functions and the unsafety on the streets has increased. These reasons, among others, have mostly had an effect on the way the residents live with each other. They live more detached from each other. On a social spectrum, this contributed to the fact that social cohesion is currently lacking.