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Living Together: A Capability Approach to Spatially Segregated Areas of Bogota


Type

Thesis

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Authors

Bucheli Guevara, Juan Fernando   ORCID logo  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9815-8601

Abstract

The rapid and ongoing process of urbanisation in Bogota has brought about significant socio-spatial segregation between city-dwellers. Such segregation is becoming increasingly complex as patterns of fragmentation are evolving towards a more ‘cellular’ differentiation between rich and poor –urban segregation which changes in terms of scale: from macro (neighbourhoods) to micro scales (blocks, streets). Urban segregation has been associated as a barrier for disadvantaged communities, especially when it becomes an intensifier of inequalities. Unequal access to services, availability of local employment, urban facilities, opportunities and supportive social relationships are examples of how segregation affects the distribution of quality of life, undermines attempts for social inclusion and, ultimately, creates unjust geographies. Alongside this context, public policy and measurements of quality of life have frequently overlooked spatial contexts of inequalities since a utility-based definition of well-being is often taken for granted. With the city of Bogota as a testing ground, this thesis analyses how and to what extent new patterns of urban segregation affect the distribution of capabilities and quality of life among young adults. Based on a capability place-based approach to well-being, this research will attempt to conceptualise urban quality of life, look at how patterns of urban segregation affect urban functionings, and quantify to what extent microsegregation explains differentials in capability achievement of quality of life among young adults in Bogota.

Description

Date

2018-11-28

Advisors

Comim, Flavio
Abreu, Maria

Keywords

Capability approach, neighbourhood effects, spatial justice, young adults, urban fragmentation, Bogota

Qualification

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Awarding Institution

University of Cambridge