25 · 11 · 2022

Vida Local Rio 2022

The Vida Local Rio project has been restarted in 2022 with a lot of willpower and so the ambitious mission lives on.

The project, which started in March 2020 but was interrupted by the global covid-19 pandemic, is a laboratory for gaining experience in sustainable urban development processes.

When resuming Vida Local Rio in 2022, we chose to work in a centrally located neighborhood in the urban context of Rio de Janeiro, which is also a relevant symbolic landmark of the city. However, the area is of little interest to large real estate investors.

The neighborhood is called ‘Praça da Bandeira’, which translates to Banner Square. It is an area that is limited by road and railroad structures, but the central part of the neighborhood is calm and low intensity and with an almost rural atmosphere, but without losing a lively feeling, which is evident in the quality and variety of the bars and restaurants in the area.

The project is a collaboration between Danish Cultural Institute (DCI), Vida Local, the Agente Muda Institute (IAM), the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism (FAU) of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro and UIA 2023 Copenhagen, and local associations. The aim is to establish a democratic center for urban design, housing processes and activities that involve citizens, where local community members can realize visions for their district with help from students and inspiration from Danish cultural and urban development.

The aim for the future of the project is a new democratic urban design center that will become home to a community and will bring social and cultural value to the city through various activities. Allowing locals to expand their skills and the reach of their voices, in order to make local sustainable and resilient ecosystems, while being integrated into the macro urban- and even global system.

During the first stage, the necessary connections were made, involving the various social actors, in a process that took approximately two months of pre-production, seeking to involve all participants and culminating in the four days of meetings held between September 19th and 22nd.

“For the next stage we are organizing, which will take place between December 5th and 9th, we intend to involve even more people. We want to show that it is possible to have an efficient and engaging self-management on a local scale, and the best way to show this, is by leading the way through action.” explains Guto Santos, project coordinator in Rio de Janeiro.