Central and South America

Are billboards visual pollution, or valuable information source? Sao Paolo, Brazil banned billboards in the city in 2007 and is an interesting case study.

Officials in the Dominican Republic have approved the creation of cities made of home built out of shipping containers -- part of efforts to aid earthquake-rattled Haiti.

This piece from Shareable looks at the urban work of Enrique Penalosa and how it emphasizes the importance of happiness in cities.

Chile's 8.5 earthquake resulted in a significantly lower death toll than the recent quake in Haiti. Partly it was the location of the epicenter, but strict building codes played a part as well.

This article from The Prospect looks at slums and squatter cities. Author Stewart Brand, editor of the Whole Earth Catalog, calls them "unexpectedly green".

A small city outside of Bogota, Colombia, has been overrun by stray dogs. With more than 30,000 strays on the streets, the city's mayor is calling for them to be killed.

The abandoned infrastructure for an inner-city rail project in Lima, Peru, has been adapted into a playful amusement park.

Due to its pounding beat and often sexual themes, funk music has been banned from Carnival by the mayor of a small Brazilian town.

The Brazilian government has approved a new hydroelectric dam in the Amazon. Many locals and environmentalists are fuming.

Haiti's official seismologist predicted the earthquake, and says the capital is in a high-risk zone for future quakes. With funds coming in to rebuild, the decision is pressing.

Architect and urban designer Hector Fernando Burga looks at Haiti through the lens of a Haitian enclave in Miami and wonders what role designers can play in the devastated country's revival.

More than a million Haitians have fled the capital city of Port-au-Prince, and government officials are advising them to stay out of the city. But many question if these provincial cities will be able to provide jobs and economic opportunities.

This piece from Utne Reader looks at the role of architecture in the public works projects of Medellin, Colombia, a city that has struggled with severe crime.

With the devastation in Haiti fresh in mind, Good's Alissa Walker takes a look at the growing practice of sharing design ideas.

Every day since the earthquake that shattered Haiti earlier this month, a group of 50 planners, architects and developers have met to brainstorm and strategize the rebuilding of their country.

Raymond Joseph, Haitian ambassador to the U.S., sees the opportunity to build a smaller, better city from the ruins.

Haitians are moving back out into the countryside after the Capital city of Port-au-Prince suffered devastation from a series of earthquakes this month. Some argue the move back to the country may be a good thing for Haiti.

This episode of DnA wonders whether design and architecture will be able to help Haiti revive itself.

With Haiti's capital city in ruins, and emergency response still underway, rebuilding efforts are a ways off. But the rebuilding following recent disasters may provide guidance, writes Mark MacKinnon.

In this paper, Gustavo Rivera Jr. (Ph. D. candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Chicago) evaluates the economic and sociocultural impact of recently developed public housing estates within the favelas of Belo Horizonte.