CPPA Blog » GEOGRAPHY

El mundo según China

Federico Garcia Barba — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 09:01:19 +0000

La visión del planeta que tienen los ciudadanos de los distintos países suele variar considerablemente.

¡Adiós 1.300 millones de personas, La importancia de los linderos. Envejecimiento. Ningún otro sitio tiene un nivel de importaciones y exportaciones superior a China lo que hace que otros poderes económicos como Estados Unidos, Japón o la Unión Europea sientan este poder como una amenaza creciente. Sus relaciones internacionales se han concentrado principalmente fuera de esas áreas y otras, estableciendo poderosos lazos de intercambio.

Accordingly, los habitantes de China tienen una visión del mundo completamente diferente a la de europeos y norteamericanos. De acuerdo al gráfico que ha elaborado Philippe Rekacewicz para la Monde Diplomatique en 2012, así perciben hoy los chinos al resto del mundo.

More information:
Understanding the world. Sandra Rendgen y Julius Wiedemann. 2014

Solares abandonados

Federico Garcia Barba — Thu, 30 Jan 2014 09:54:33 +0000

El Ministerio de Fomento ha publicado un interesante y extenso informe sobre la situación actual de las grandes áreas urbanas en España.

La importancia de los linderos. Observando el gráfico se pueden extraer unas interesantes conclusiones sobre como es la situación actual de la oferta de trabajo y su distribución territorial.

So, ¡Adiós 40 La importancia de los linderos 100 people. Envejecimiento, Toledo, Mérida y Jaén con una mayor tasa de empleo.

¡Felicidades, El mundo según China. Discos de Rock, Illustrator, en las zonas turísticas de la región valenciana.

Solares abandonados:

Participación ciudadana + 50. ¡Adiós, 2012

Así que el que esté buscando trabajo ya sabe hacia dónde debe dirigirse.

The covers of Santiago de Compostela

Federico Garcia Barba — Fri, 11 May 2012 19:36:00 +0000

Jesus Quarry Calamita

He had been repeatedly in Santiago de Compostela. He had visited the spectacular and grandiose always Obradoiro Square. Pero nunca había hecho la visita de las Cubiertas de la Catedral.

The visit was novel. It was only recently that could be performed, because until a few years ago could only access covers which estudiasen Theology, the visit was without a guide, and, also, debido a lo peligroso de la misma había que firmar un documento en el que el visitante se hacía responsable en caso de producirse algún accidente.

Once Gelmírez got to the Palace a few minutes we were inside watching. It seemed we were in the High Middle Ages. Not for nothing more than a millennium that the stones had been placed at that location. Las paredes tenían musgo y daba la impresión que en cualquier momento aparecerían murciélagos.

And ... we started the beautiful adventure. While it certainly lasts. The climb was to raise 103 echelons. Algunos tuvimos que hacer varios descansos porque cincuenta metros de altura nos separaban del inicio de la ascensión.

When you reach the end of the routed, I could see one of the most spectacular views you've seen throughout my life, although weather increased hardness .... It seemed that the nature or bruixas not want our eyes admire such beauty. The umbrella made their appearance and the wind kicked. The position was hard: on the one hand, clear explanations, cultured and quiet of our guide, obviously, must be used to make the visit in similar conditions on many occasions; other, the height at which we were and what resbalizado of exterior stairs that were in tension was; a dangerous slip and fall could occur at any time; rain and strong wind obviously did nothing but worsen the situation. We think take shelter until the weather abated ...

View covers covers the city of Santiago from the Cathedral

But the scenery was so beautiful that we watched our eyes were blinded. A breathtaking landscape. Only. Absorbent. We were shocked at such beauty. The tour on the heights of the Cathedral of Santiago can not leave anyone indifferent. The city of Compostela was developed from the construction of the Cathedral. Holy City together with Rome and Jerusalem attracts the Galician capital at any time of year thousands of pilgrims from around the world. From the top you see the city clearly. Una normativa urbana del siglo XVIII prohíbe edificaciones superiores a la altura de la Catedral.

The vision of the city was perfect. The sky was gray and leaden rain even more intense. But we wanted to continue watching unsurpassed beauty. Head, the view of the whole city. Left, the very extensive Nuns Convent-today 28-; behind, the big clock. Beyond, San Martín Palace, which also houses the Major Seminary of Santiago Diocesan Historical Archive; finally, under one of the apse continued explanations, ya a resguardo de la lluvia .

It's time to lose. Y como en la subida resonaban armoniosos los cánticos de dentro de la Catedral.

Ultimately, the next time you go to Compostela-well after performing all or part of the Pilgrim, simply visiting the- not stop going to the decks of the Cathedral. disappoint them not. Contemplate something new, and, If further, el tiempo acompaña la felicidad será total –aunque muchos opinan que Santiago de Compostela se aprecia en su estado más puro con frío y lluvia que con sol.

It is worth contemplating the beautiful Galician city from the decks of the Cathedral. Sin duda.

Jesus Pedreira Lodestone Bachelor of Law, Sociology and History

The day was typically de Compostela. Rain, cold wind and some. We arrived at the appointed time to Gelmírez Palace - in honor of the first Archbishop of Santiago, Diego Gelmírez (1059-1139) and promoter of the Cathedral-, next to the Cathedral of Santiago, actual sede Arzobispal.

Hamburg Hafen City

Federico Garcia Barba — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 17:46:00 +0000

Three-dimensional image of the Hafen City Master Plan. KCAP, Rotterdam, 2001

La ciudad de Hamburgo se ha convertido en la última década en un referente sobre la acción colectiva para transformar una ciudad hacia patrones más responsables con la sostenibilidad del planeta a largo plazo.

In 2000, the City Council approve the so-called Hamburg Hafen City. A development plan would impact the redevelopment of a substantial part of its extensive port. The concept of this Master Plan, conducted by the Dutch office KCAP, se basaría en lograr la máxima eficiencia energética de sus infraestructuras y edificios siguiendo patrones de diseño urbano que incentivaran el aumento de la densidad residencial y la mayor mezcla de usos.

Elb Philharmonie Concert Hall. Duke&deMeuron architects. Hamburg, 2010. by Inhabitat

Estado de ejecución de la urbanización y edificación en 2008

Today is already a tangible reality shows as a proper disposition of a community can produce in a short time positive urban metamorphosis, siempre y cuando se tenga unos objetivos claros y exista una potente voluntad de gestión.

In these cases, just citizen leadership shape in a responsible highly motivated decision makers sedimented in innovative ideas with a strong experimental. In Hamburg, that political leadership has led to the formalization of a high quality urban space, a través de la planificación continua y de la ausencia de improvisación.

The most significant icon of this effort is the new building Elb Philarmonie, musical performances intended and designed by the Swiss architects Herzog & DeMeuron, which incorporates an image representing the meaning of the set point. Today, esta obra cultural ya es también una realidad.

In 2011, Hamburg get the title of European Green City that the European Commission awarded every year. Un reconocimiento merecido al esfuerzo realizado.

Marco Polo Terrasse. Central area of the new district Hafen City. Photos: Lucas Grey, Flickr 2010

Here are some images videos that somehow reflects the underlying ideology that has managed to push this idea by establishing a collective consensus among citizens. All this through anecdotes significant and infant vision.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzKexgaEwWM&feature=player_embedded#!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhYoqasW1G4&feature=related

Baobab, strange tree

Jorge Mosquera — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 08:13:00 +0000

This strange tree also called "bottle tree" or "tree health", belongs to the family of the Bombacaceae, family consisting of 150 species, almost all own trees and tropical regions, whose fruits usually very large, as Durian, Durio zibethinus o el Zapote, Matisia cordata.

The Baobab grows in Central Africa and is a native species of the semiarid regions of Sub-Saharan Africa. Height sometimes exceeds 30 meters, but its trunk can exceed 20 dia, and can live to over three thousand years. The Baobab can store from 6.000 to 100.000 liters, as the bark is spongy and has many hollow cavities. Desde la antigüedad este árbol era utilizado para el consumo de la población local donde sus frutos y hojas eran conocidos por sus propiedades.
The Baobab is a very useful species for the African peoples, gives a fruit called monkey bread, the size of a small melon containing large amount of vitamin C and is used to prepare soft drinks. Boiled leaves serve as food, e incluso el polen mojado se emplea como pegamento.
Baobab hollowed trunks have the most picturesque uses. They have served in prison, home, barn, barn. There is talk of a baobab in Zimbabwe used as truck stop because it can protect up 40 personas.
Its strange appearance has earned him numerous African legends, is said that if a person drinks water in which seeds have been wet Baobab, will be protected from attack by crocodiles. but if you dare to extract a baobab flower, die devoured by a lion. This tree impressed Antoine de Saint-Exupéry in a way that made them stars of one of the chapters of his masterpiece, “The Little Prince”.
Reproduction is by seed, but germination is not always reliable, sometimes, it occurs in a short time, but, in return, in other cases, las semillas tardan mucho en brotar y no llegan a desarrollarse correctamente.

Gando, en Burkina Fasso

Federico Garcia Barba — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 19:09:00 +0000

Project for the expansion of a school complex. D. B. Shrubs, 2010

Burkina Faso-Upper Volta before conocido as- is a semi-desert country of the Sahel region of Africa. Began to play in the world of international architecture following that win Diébédo Francis Kere Aga Khan Award for Architecture en 2004 con su Escuela en Gando.

Rural school in Gando, Burkina Faso. D.B. Shrubs, 2004

Burkina is one of the world's poorest places, due to the extreme aridity of the soil. Life expectancy of fourteen and a half million inhabitants is less than fifty years, and the activity of this population, accustomed to the extreme shortage, is based almost entirely on agriculture. La Unión Europea contribuye con su ayuda al mantenimiento de esa economía subvencionada internacionalmente en una proporción elevada.
There, earlier this century, in the small village of Gando Tenkodogo Province, Francis Kere Diébédo make his contribution essential equipment for its three thousand inhabitants: una escuela donde aprender a estudiar y a tener mejores conocimientos sobre el mundo en que les ha tocado vivir.

Rural school in Gando, Section constructive expression of environmental conditioning system

Kere School came to reveal to us a very gifted architect to act on environmental conditions, extreme social and financial. Built in his hometown, building that represented a very austere building, casi un ejemplo precursor de las estrategias que deberá afrontar la arquitectura en un entorno futuro de recursos limitados.

Recognition Francis Kere has done nothing but grow over the years, since it was first awarded. Since, has been invited to various forums and has received numerous awards from such prestigious institutions as the Royal Institute of British Architects where he was named a Fellow in 2010. His work was also included in the permanent exhibition at the Musée International de la Croix Rouge et Croissant Geneva and, likewise, Small Scale in sample, Big Change: New Architectures of Social Engagement, celebrada el año pasado en el Modern Art Museum de Nueva York.

Rural school in Gando, inside classrooms observed in austerity and rational use of materials

The history of this small school is revealing the path of this immense character who is the architect of Burkina Faso. In his childhood years Francis Kere be prepared as a carpenter and, later, go to the capital Ouagadougou to teach the professional craft courses sponsored by Germany as development aid. A subsequent grant, granted 1990 German government also, allowed to leave the familiar surroundings of his country to go to study in Berlin, where years later as an architect would license. As he himself, when he got there his impression of the wonders that exist in an advanced society did not fail to amaze long.

During his apprenticeship would propose raising enough money to make their conciudanos could leave behind poverty by encouraging education. In many ways, among which include harassment and persecution of their fellow students to donate small contributions, get enough resources to build that first school where born.

That construction, as known today, be done by the villagers themselves, according to the traditional way in which these things are decided in that area of Africa: by explaining and collective discussion between all future beneficiaries. Kere would have to present the project to their neighbors for long hours before getting the common consent of those who will help build the building. La arquitectura allí se haría solo una vez que todos estuvieran convencidos de la bondad de la propuesta arquitectónica del joven arquitecto.

Finally be built in a simple, rapid and essentially using existing materials on site. Kere have in mind the climatic conditions of the place to establish the shape of your building. A rectangular prism with a generous sunshade to give shade and allow the creation of an environment light and temperature conditions suitable for a place so hot and dry. That work together to continue subsequently a variety of other buildings, as the residence for teachers completed in 2007 and the expansion of the school and a small library, actualmente en construcción.

Dotacional Complex in Burkina. D.B. Shrubs, 2010

Over the years, has been adding new proposals of his career, always with social content. Many of them also in their own country which is considered something of a national hero. Now, is called from many parts of the Third World to assist in the provision of services and facilities of all kinds; Low cost and long. The best thing is that even her breath projects have a unique aesthetic that makes them special and not a product of excessive extravagance. Is an architecture ethics, cuya expresividad nace de la extrema austeridad.

Recently, has obtained the Gold Medal Holcim Foundation Sustainable Construction for its proposal to expand the already extensive school complex made in Gando. With it will continue in its efforts to provide better and more comprehensive services to various areas in your region. Kere generation raises all kinds of social and cultural facilities, como complemento a los educativos ya realizados.

Ideas for the use of agricultural terraces incident air coolers. Dotacional Complex in Burkina

According to their intentions, the important capital is going to bring this award 100.000 $ will be used to experiment with its own resources instead. Inter alia, is going to work for improvement in the use of clay and perfecting the various techniques of local building. The use of existing local granite foundations and eucalyptus, cultivado localmente y de crecimiento rápido permitirá también demostrar un posible uso sostenible de esos materiales.

Another source of support for the work to residents is the encouragement of public participation in the work, with the objective of transferring knowledge by training new artisans. As the architect, motivates people itself through its own initiative, without external intervention, to create sustainable structures for their own future - without the intervention of modern methods and materials. What should be encouraged is the use and recovery of traditional building techniques.

Their program includes ideas for reforestation of arid fruit trees and storage and distribution of low rainfall as a tactic to improve environmental conditions in the desert places. Finally, pretende innovar con las técnicas de cultivo para atemperar el calor extremo existente en el lugar.

In sum, a comprehensive strategy to improve the unfavorable life circumstances of people in a poor region. And this, with the participation and direct decision of the people to whom it is addressed, evitando la hegemonía habitual impuesta por tantas organizaciones no gubernamentales que se dedican a una filantropía mal entendida.

Diébédo architect Francis Kere

The Horreo Gallego

Jorge Mosquera — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 07:44:00 +0000

Recientemente he tenido la oportunidad de visitar Galicia y un elemento característico de esta región y que me gustaría destacar es el Hórreo Gallego.

It is a type of construction used to protect fruits mainly corn harvest. The Granary is stored, dry and preserves the grain, that requires good ventilation, insulation and moisture protection, además de un adecuado sistema de defensa contra insectos y roedores.
The Galician granaries are rectangular and are made of stone, a diferencia de los asturianos son de planta cuadrada.
Its origin is not clear, one hypothesis is that it started with the Roman Empire, another theory is that it comes from Celtic times and was later enhanced with important adaptations by Romans, es muy probable que los pilares sean la contribución romana.
The Granary is raised from the ground by pillars for better aeration, these are topped by rounded plates to prevent access to rodents barn. Las columnas son monolíticas y tienen formas variables tendentes siempre a la simplicidad geométrica.

The camera is the room in which grain is stored, usually has a rectangular plan and height, variable width and length. The camera length between 1,30 and 1,50 meters, in order that the pins are not too far from the wall. The camera consists of the following parts: lower beams grades calls or Pontóns, the floorboards on them, some columns, padieiras and the pinches are closing elements or walls, of different materials and with numerous vents, upper beams calls soleiras, and coverage elements are usually gabled. Las paredes permiten la ventilación por todos los costados y la estructura se protege de la lluvia con un tejado de teja a dos aguas que se adorna en los dos extremos con cruces y otras formas en piedra.

As part of the composition of the granary there are a number of elements that have no practical, are ornaments and express the concept that has the citizen of his relationship with the crop and grain guard, from an anthropological perspective and cultural. On the roof is easy to find a wide range of terminal elements with a sense halfway between the decorative and the functional,crossings, windbreaks, remates piramidales etc.

El Barrio de West Harbour

Ralf Veyras — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 11:35:00 +0000

Malmoe (o Malmö), the third largest city in Sweden, has one of the ecobarrios executed in northern Europe theoretical exemplary of what should be a sustainable neighborhood. We talked about the district 600 housing Västra Hamnen, situado junto al Puente del Oeste.

The Scandinavian city after celebrating the European Fair Housing 2001, has responded, with the execution of this neighborhood, a los desafíos planteados en dicho evento para las ciudades del futuro.

For over fifteen years, the council was psyched to its citizens on environmental issues. The focus is global and integrates all levels: encourages children in schools to plant trees and making improvements to the public transport system. But the flagship project is the transformation of the western port area, what was a working-class neighborhood in decline, se ha convertido en uno residencial con todos los adelantos en materia ecológica.

An urban project can be considered "sustainable" when it incorporates all the constraints linked to the three areas of sustainability: environmental, economic and social. Quite often certain urban projects are labeled erroneously as ecobarrios when only possess qualities mediambiental field, no cumpliendo con la sostenibilidad económica y social.

Alongside this neighborhood Malmo in Europe could also be taken as an example Vauban in Freiburg (Germany) and Hammarby Sjöstad, in Stockholm (Sweden)

Broadly speaking, the main features of the district are as follows Västra Hamnen:

- The 100% of the energy consumed is derived from renewable sources produced locally. For example, extracts heat pump groundwater from the North Sea and the network reverts to heating and air conditioning of the city. An installation 1.400 metros cuadrados de paneles solares también provee la red energética de la ciudad.

- As for mobility planning of its inhabitants, Malmö has favored the use of bicycles and public transport that electricity and gas used as fuel- from the port area to downtown and the neighborhoods of the city. Also, se ha limitado el uso del automóvil.

- The buildings of West Port, that have 3.000 square meters of green roofs, are flanked by two large parks designed to accommodate local plant species, allowing air purification city. Formerly an industrial area virtually abandoned, West Port had a surface contaminated with chemical residues, were decontaminated before building homes and facilities. In this way it has become a leisure of great importance for the citizens of Malmö, principalmente por el contacto y disfrute del mar.

Made waterfront deck and stairs where people can

sentarse y descansar.

- The citizens of the new neighborhood recycle and properly classified 70% generating waste. A subway system transports waste pneumatic suction previously classified. The biodegradable, for example, se transforman en biogás empleado posteriormente para la calefacción.

- Todas las viviendas de esta zona residencial de Malmö disponen de conexión a Internet con banda ancha.

Hamnen Västra Waterways

Public spaces where the pedestrian is the protagonist. Background, Turning Torso Tower Calatrava

It is a common project based on the awareness of the population and in the vocational commitment of elected politicians, que debería servir de ejemplo para muchos ayuntamientos europeos.

As explained Carlos Alberto Regolini, Doctor of Architecture of the Polytechnic University of Madrid:

"The result is companies that make cities healthier, efficient and attractive, while cities make more competitive companies, aware and integrated. "

A church in the rock

Federico Garcia Barba — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 15:57:00 +0000

Campus Giyorgys Beit Church of Lalibela

The excavation of the mountains to house construction is an ancient practice of which there are many examples around the world. The case of temples carved into volcanic tuff Lalibela (Ethiopia), is a very curious example that stands out for its uniqueness.

Construction exterior appearance. Photos: Jialiang Gao, Wikipedia

THE troglodytism, ie human use of caves and underground excavated spaces is an ancient practice. The caves were always one of the first shelters used by man, nomadic wandering in that our ancestors practiced primitive. The sculpture and architecture on rocky foundations has been practiced by many different civilizations, as evidenced by the pierced temples of Abu Simbel in Upper Egypt, the enigmatic city of Petra in Jordan, rediscovered in the early nineteenth century or the heads of U.S. presidents more meanings, carved on Mount Rushmore in South Dakota to 1930.

The regions south of Egypt in the upper basin of the Nile were always territories for the supply of good building materials. The quality of the granite was prized by builders of Egyptian civilization and, thus, much of its monuments were executed with fluvially transported stones from the quarries Ethiopians. Auguste Choisy, en su famous History of Architecture, first published in 1899, explained how those ancient builders produced massive granite blocks, rock carving and making transport directly by dragging hand with ropes.

A great example of the sophistication that the Egyptians achieved with these techniques it was the preparation and placement of obelisks. Extraction can be performed directly rock carving and making grooves in the granite mass to disengage whole pieces of great length with bronze wedges. Its displacement is produced generally by use of rollers and traction hand these huge monoliths. The adapted transport ships, plying the river Nile to the sites chosen, was the supplement that facilitate its use in the various monuments built for the pharaohs for his subjects.

Plant of the church dedicated to St. George in Lalibela

A similar technique to that of the Egyptians, heir to these ancient traditions, is the one that would be used throughout the twelfth century to excavate the pilgrimage sites of Lalibela, the new Jerusalem, in a mountainous region of northeastern Ethiopia. There are numerous examples of concentrated rock-cut architecture which resulted from a concerted effort, sponsored by a monarch called Frost Mesqel Lalibela.

Ethiopia should be a fascinating country. It is a semi-desert territory repository of an ancient culture that has survived to this day, having branches in other locations away from the world. An example of this is the Rastafarian movement, entrenched en Jamaica, recalls that these cultures and idolizes al disappeared last emperor of Abyssinia. One Ethiopian empire, heir of the kingdom of Axum, came to occupy in its heyday an immense extent, current integrating Somalia, Djibouti, eastern Sudan and South Egypt. He had several dynasties that would end with the overthrow of Negus (emperor) Haile Selasi en 1974. A branch of Orthodox Christianity would develop in that area of the world over hundreds of years, as a split from the Church of the East. Ethiopian Copts are known, as well- Lalibela have maintained that culture unique to this day, through numerous avatars and defending the powerful influence of Islam.

During the Arab invasion of Abyssinia, them axumita would move to the rugged plains of the north and there would remain the remains of a way of understanding religion in secret isolation for centuries fortified. In this part of North Africa, after implantation hegemonic Islam, would follow him practicing Orthodox worship in the sus variants nestorianas monofisitas. Una tradición religiosa que se prolonga hasta nuestros días.

Decoration carved into the stone facade with the reason for the Greek cross with the swastika intertwined. Photos: A.Davey, Flickr

A mid-twelfth century, King Lalibela of the dinastía Zagwe be proposed recall some Bible passages building a series of scenarios that would be excavated along decades in the red rock tuff existing in the region. The set consists of several buildings and enclosures excavated forming a vast complex of crypts, underground passages, open caves and galleries that make up a ghostly and silent world under the ground wet. Four churches excel in this scheme theatrical, Salvador houses calls, Mary, of Emmanuel and St George.

One such piece, perhaps the best known, church is Greek cross, dedicated to the San Jorge Beit Giyorgis. It is an authentic monumental sculpture carved into the granite rock vertically to a height of forty feet. It is accessed through a passage drilled horizontally into the hillside, communicating with a sort of open courtyard around the church. From this outdoor venue is accessed only organized structure cross with four equal-sized lateral spaces or access chapels that are a prelude to a large central volume topped by a dome. The set is lavishly decorated inside with frescoes that show their cultural relationship with Constantinople.

Vaults interior polychrome San Jorge Church of Lalibela. Photos: A.Davey, Flickr

Beit Giyorgis is a curiosity and aesthetic architectural structure whose power is due to the way it was executed and also hints that produces profoundly unaware of that fact architectural history. Una condición que la transforma en pasto de especulaciones de todo tipo.

In our day, architects have become fascinated by the human effort and take it as an inspiration. Is the case, as an example of the influence, Dutch team Search, formed by Dick van Gameren y Bjarne Mastenbroek, who would make a brilliant work of architecture, Netherlands Embassy in Addis Ababa of 2005, tomando como referencia estos precedentes.

Netherlands Embassy in Addis Ababa. Dick van Gameren y Bjarne Mastenbroek, Search Architects. 2005. Photos: Afritecture

Inal en Mauritania

Federico Garcia Barba — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 09:18:00 +0000

Inal health clinic in the region of Mauritania Dakhlet

Inal is a small enclave inhabited, Dakhlet the region in northern Mauritania, that is not even on the maps. Located 255 East of Nouadhibou is accessible by train and unpaved roads. There is a small Canarian NGO is to help improve the living conditions of its inhabitants, driving some health actions, educativas y de arquitectura asociada.

The Mauritaniya is one of the world's poorest countries, located in one of the desert regions of the planet to the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. But, also, the difficult geographical and environmental conditions of the region make Dakhlet that is one of the poorest regions of the country, in which live around 100.000 people, siendo la mayoría de ellos nómadas bereberes.

Location Inal enclave south of the former Spanish colony of Western Sahara

The Islamic Republic of Mauritania ranks 136 about 170 in the Human Development Index (HDI Index), that the United Nations has published in 2010. However, considering another indicator, the so-called Gini index, which sets the amplitude of disposable income inequality among all the inhabitants of the same country- was 39 for Mauritania in year 2009, standing in line with Morocco or, a European country like Portugal. This indicates that there, despite their extreme poverty, inequality is not as pronounced when compared to other poor countries. In this regard it should be noted that Spain-a richer country which has been ranked at 20 HDI- however, presents a distribution of income with inequality close to Mauritania (the GINI index is 34). It, despite their greater progress and development, se podría concluir que aquí hay una mayor injusticia social en la distribución de la riqueza disponible.

In Inal, the Cooperation Association for developing Canaria Dakhlet-Noaudhibou (ACC-DN) has been working for 6 years and has established itself as a program for the treatment of diabetic numerous existing. Consider that there usual diet, usually chaired by the traditional accompaniment of sweet tea, ha incidido en la extensión casi epidémica de esta enfermedad.

The schoolyard with regular users

With the passage of time, ACC-DN has increased its share by adding new projects solidarity among which plays an important role improving those conditions available education and health facilities that currently exist in extremely precarious conditions.

An initiative in this area has been the reconstruction and improvement of the health clinic Inal tiny. It was a primitive building lacked many basic elements to perform such service. The project involved the improvement of issues that can be surprised by its simplicity. Provide paving over desert sand to be cleaned simply and azulejear the walls to achieve greater hygiene, etc.. are some of the reforms carried out.

As we pointed out one of the architects responsible for this intervention, Maria Nieves Febles: “the first time I went there I felt a great unease about the extreme precariousness with which people develop their existence. By accessing the future work there I thought the floor was dirty and should make an effort to sweep. Noticing a little more I realized that what really happened is that there was no pavement on the inside of that building. Simply, was the sand itself Sahara.”

The architect Victor Cabrera ACC-DN with some locals

The proposal addressed also enter an installation of electricity and potable water in the building, by solar panels. All this has meant incorporating essential services for the first time, in totally unassisted. So, with bargain prices, se ha podido realizar una mejora primordial de las condiciones sanitarias de una población totalmente desvalida.

Facing the glamor of the ideas that are disseminated among Western practitioners of architecture, European and American, would need to look in to the problems facing the vast majority of humanity that lacks basic services essential. The minimum housing, technical infrastructure and services essential, the inescapable health and primary education, among many others, should be the conditions and problems that should be given to a purely selfish position. The improvement in the living conditions of our fellow humans in need, those living in the poorest countries, would provide additional training and knowledge to act for themselves. Thereby, it is very possible that could reduce dependency and current runaway population growth, haciendo más habitable este planeta que se transforma en insuficiente por momentos.

Aerial view of the town next to Chingetti, Site declared Ptrimonio. Photos: Gilles Chretier

In Dakhlet, Inal Nouadhibou and there are many other projects to tackle in the future. Thus, from here we encourage all who follow us to collaborate with the ACC-DN, doing any kind of help or assistance. For this you can contact this NGO through your page, ayudamauritania on the network from which you can access more information. Or you can make the deposit of a financial contribution directly in the current account of the association, whose number is 2052 8137 4233 0002 91/04.

Commend from here the enormous effort made by these people involved jointly in the development of a very delicate territory, cercano a nuestras islas Canarias.