Spatial Opportunities across Land Policies: Maps

2019

Authors:

Ignacio Cardona, Researcher

Advisors:

Anita Berrizbeitia, Diane Davis, Rahul Mehrotra

Institutions:

Harvard Graduate School of Design

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Developed as part of the doctoral research Spatial Opportunities for Self-Produced Environments, this study examines how spatial inequalities in Caracas have been constructed over time through the relationship between urban growth, land policies, and access to infrastructure. It understands inequality through three interconnected dimensions—social, spatial, and temporal—that shape unequal access to the city.

Through the analysis of twelve historical maps, the research traces access to networked urban infrastructure from the foundation of Caracas in 1578 to the present, overlapping these spatial transformations with government decisions on land policy. The study reveals how these decisions contributed to the expansion of self-produced settlements in territories characterized by limited urban services and high ecological fragility.