Abstract
In 2004, Medellín, Colombia's second largest city, implemented the world’s first modern urban aerial cable-car public transport system. The impetus and subsequent history of this initiative are marked, on the one hand, by a commitment to social urbanism and spatial justice, and on the other hand, by neo-liberal elements related to making the city more nationally, regionally and globally more competitive. As a relatively cheap, clean and highly visible response to urban transport problems, it has attracted widespread attention from city authorities throughout Latin America, Europe and Asia. It was followed by major participatory neighbourhood upgrading process, comprising new social housing, schools and other social infrastructure, as well as support to micro-enterprises. The combination of these interventions has helped upgrade some parts of the city's fabric marked for years by severe poverty and violence. These interventions sought to address the huge spatial inequalities between these neighbourhoods and the rest of the formal city, but have they made Medellín a more resilient and environmentally just city? Through an examination of three principles of social justice—redistribution, reciprocal recognition and political participation—this chapter explores the relationship between resilience and environmental justice as a result of the institutional, socio-economic and political factors implicated in the planning process and impact of the aerial cable-car and related interventions under the rubrique of social urbanism in Medellín.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
References
Allen, A. (2014) ‘Peri-Urbanization and the Political Ecology of Differential Sustainability’ in Susan Parnell and Sophie Oldfield (eds.) A Routledge Handbook on Cities of the Global South (London: Routledge), pp. 522–38.
Allen, A. and Frediani, A. (2013) ‘Farmers, not Gardeners: The Making of Environmentally Just Spaces in Accra’, City 17: 365–81.
Angulo, R. (2014) Desigualdad en las ciudades de Colombia: Cómo vamos? Razón Pública, http://www.razonpublica.com/index.php/econom-y-sociedad-temas-29/7564-desigualdad-en-las-ciudades-de-colombia-, accessed 20 June 2015.
Baeten, G. (2000) ‘The Tragedy of the Highway: Empowerment, Disempowerment and the Politics of Sustainability Discourses and Practices’, European Planning Studies 8(1): 69–86.
Booth, C. and Richardson, T. (2001) ‘Placing the Public in Integrated Transport Planning, Transport Policy 8: 141−9.
Brand, P. and Dávila, J.D. (2011) ‘Mobility Innovation at the Urban Margins’, City 15(6): 647–61.
Brand, P. and Dávila, J.D. (2013) ‘Metrocables and “Social Urbanism”: Two Complementary Strategies’ in Dávila (ed.) Urban Mobility and Poverty: Lessons from Medellín and Soacha, Colombia (London: DPU-UCL and Universidad Nacional de Colombia), pp. 46–54.
Cabannes, Y. (2004) ‘Participatory budgeting: A significant contribution to participatory democracy’, Environment and Urbanisation 16(1): 27–46.
Calderón, C. (2012) ‘Integrated and Participatory Urban Upgrading in Medellín, Colombia’ in R. Lawrence, H. Yildiz and P. Kellett (eds.) Requalifying the Built Environment: Challenges and Responses (Gottingen: Hogrefe Publishing), pp. 179–98.
Carvajal, Y. (2009) ‘Participación ciudadana y buen gobierno: El presupuesto participativo como aporte a la democratización de la ciudad de Medellín’, Foro 68: 105–14.
Colombian Government (2015) Constitución Política de Colombia 1991 (Political Constitution of Colombia 1991), procuraduria.gov.co, accessed 20 June 2015.
Coupé, F. (2013) ‘The Metrocables: Risk, Poverty, and Inclusion’ in Dávila (ed.) Urban Mobility and Poverty: Lessons from Medellín and Soacha, Colombia (London: DPU-UCL and Universidad Nacional de Colombia), pp. 66–80.
Coupé, F. and Cardona, J.G. (2013) ‘Impact of the Metrocables on the Local Economy’ in Dávila (ed.) Urban Mobility and Poverty: Lessons from Medellín and Soacha, Colombia (London: DPU-UCL and Universidad Nacional de Colombia): pp. 89–103.
Coupé, F., Brand, P. and Dávila, J.D. (2013) ‘Medellín: Institutional Context and Urban Paradigm Change’ in Dávila (ed.) Urban Mobility and Poverty: Lessons from Medellín and Soacha, Colombia (London: DPU-UCL and Universidad Nacional de Colombia), pp. 55–67.
Dávila, J.D. (2009) ‘Being a Mayor: The View from Four Colombian Cities’, Environment and Urbanization 21(1): 37–57.
Dávila, J.D. (ed.) (2013) Urban Mobility and Poverty: Lessons from Medellín and Soacha, Colombia (London: DPU–UCL and Universidad Nacional de Colombia).
Dávila, J.D. (2014) ‘Urban Fragmentation, “Good Governance” and the Competitive City’, in S. Parnell and S. Oldfield (eds.) A Routledge Handbook on Cities of the Global South (London: Routledge), pp. 474–86.
Ernste, H., Martens, K. and Schapendonk, J. (2012) ‘The Design, Experience and Justice of Mobility’, Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie 103(5): 509–15.
Essebo, M. and Baeten, G. (2012) ‘Contradictions of “Sustainable Mobility”—the Illogic of Growth and the Logic of Myth’, Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie 103(5): 555–65.
Fraser N. (1996) ‘Social Justice in the Age of Identity Politics: Redistribution, Recognition, and Participation’, The Tanner Lectures on Human Values, Stanford University April 30–May 2, http://tannerlectures.utah.edu/lectures/documents/Fraser98.pdf], accessed 30 May 2013.
Fraser, N. (1998a) ‘From Redistribution to Recognition? Dilemmas of Justice in a “Post-socialist” Age’ in C. Willet (ed.) Theorising Multiculturalism: A Guide to the Current Debate (Malden and Oxford: Blackwell), pp. 19–49.
Fraser, N. (1998b) ‘A Rejoinder to Iris Young’ in C. Willet (ed.) Theorising Multiculturalism: A Guide to the Current Debate (Malden and Oxford: Blackwell), pp. 68–72.
Hylton, F. (2007) ‘Medellin’s Makeover’, New Left Review 44: 71–89.
Jones, P. and Lucas, K. (2012) ‘The Social Consequences of Transport Decision-Making: Clarifying Concepts, Synthesising Knowledge and Assessing Implications’, Journal of Transport Geography 21: 4–16.
Leinbach, T.R. (2000) ‘Mobility in Development Context: Changing Perspectives, New Interpretations and the Real Issues’, Journal of Transport Geography 8(1): 1 − 9.
Levy, C. (2013a) ‘Travel Choice Reframed: “Deep Distribution” and Gender in Urban Transport’, Environment and Urbanization 25(1): 47–63.
Levy, C. (2013b) ‘Transport, Diversity and the Socially Just City: The Significance of Gender Relations’ in J.D. Dávila (ed.) Urban Mobility and Poverty: Lessons from Medellín and Soacha, Colombia (London: DPU-UCL and Universidad Nacional de Colombia), pp. 23–9.
Levy, C. (2015) ‘Routes to the Just City: Towards Gender Equality in Transport Planning’ in Moser C. (ed.) Gender, Asset Accumulation and Just Cities: Pathways to Just Cities (London: Routledge) (forthcoming).
Lucas, K. (2006) ‘Providing transport for social inclusion within a framework for environmental justice in the UK’‚ Transportation Research Part A (40): 801–809.
Lucas, K. (2012) ‘Transport and Social Exclusion: Where are We Now?’ Transport Policy 20: 105–13.
Medellín and IDB (2008) Medellín: Transformación de una Ciudad (Medellín Municipality and Inter-American Development Bank, Medellín: Mayor’s Office).
Parnell, S. and Pieterse, E. (2010) ‘The Right to the City: Institutional Imperatives of the Development State’, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 34(1): 146−62.
Pelling, M. (2011) Adaptation to Climate Change: From Resilience to Transformation (London and New York: Routledge).
Sarmiento, I.O., Córdoba, J.M., Mejía, Á.G. and Laura Agudelo, L.V. (2013) ‘Metrocables and Travel Patterns in Medellín: Inclusion of Latent Variables in Transport Models’ in Julio D. Dávila (ed.) Urban Mobility and Poverty: Lessons from Medellín and Soacha, Colombia (London: DPU-UCL and Universidad Nacional de Colombia), pp. 81–88.
Sotomayor, L. (2013) ‘Medellín’s Integral Urban Projects: What is the Potential for Encouraging Socio-Spatial Justice?’ Paper presented at the Joint AESOP–ACSP Conference, ‘Planning for Resilient Cities and Regions’, University College, Dublin, 15–19 July.
Stanley, J. and Vella-Brodrick, D. (2009) ‘The Usefulness of Social Exclusion to Inform Social Policy in Transport’, Transport Policy 16: 90−6.
Stienen, A. (2009) ‘Urban Technology, Conflict Education, and Disputed Space’, Journal of Urban Technology 16(2–3): 109–42.
UKDT (UK Government Department for Transport) (2014) Transport Resilience Review: a Review of the Resilience of the Transport Network to Extreme Weather Events (London: Department for Transport).
Vasconcellos, E. (2001) Urban Transport: Environment and Equity: The Case for Developing Countries (London and Sterling: Earthscan).
Wall Street Journal (2013) ‘“City of the Year”, Advertisement Sponsored by Citi’, WSJ Magazine, http://online.wsj.com/ad/cityoftheyear, accessed 20 April 2013.
Young, I.M. (1990) Justice and the Politics of Difference (Princeton, New Jersey and Chichester, West Sussex: Princeton University Press).
Young, I.M. (1998) ‘Unruly Categories: A Critique of Nancy Fraser’s Dual Systems Theory’ in C. Willet (ed.) Theorising Multiculturalism: A Guide to the Current Debate (Malden and Oxford: Blackwell), pp. 50–67.
Zapata Córdoba, D., Stanley, J. and Stanley, J. (2014) ‘Reducing Social Exclusion in Highly Disadvantaged Districts in Medellín, Colombia, Through the Provision of a Cable-Car’, Social Inclusion 2(4): 1–13.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2017 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Levy, C., Dávila, J.D. (2017). Planning for Mobility and Socio-Environmental Justice: The Case of Medellín, Colombia. In: Allen, A., Griffin, L., Johnson, C. (eds) Environmental Justice and Urban Resilience in the Global South. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-47354-7_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-47354-7_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York
Print ISBN: 978-1-137-47353-0
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-47354-7
eBook Packages: Political Science and International StudiesPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)