“The city is not a problem, it’s a solution; it’s not only a solution for a country but it’s a solution

for the
problem of climate change”

Eco-City Concept: Curitiba, Brazil

What is an Eco-city?

- An ecologically healthy city

- A city that lives within the means of its environment
- Its goal is to reduce the city’s impact on the environment

We need Ecocities because

- The current city model is outdated

- It is a solution of sufficient power to preserve and restore the health of the planet

History of Curitiba

- Found by the Portuguese in 1693 and officially became a town in 1812

- Started development in the beginning of the 19 th century thanks to cattle trade Yerba mate
- Entered industrialization after WW2, this involved population growth which increased demand
for improved services, housing and transportation
- The city hired French architect Alfred Agache to produce the first city plan
- By 1950, the city experienced a rapid increase in population, reaching 430,000 inhabitants.

Urban Planning

- In 1960, Mayor Ivo Arzua issued a call for uban design proposals
- Its focus: strict control of urban sprawl, reduction of traffic in downtown area, preservation of
Curitiba’s Historic Sector and a convenient and affordable public transit system
- 1963, the Institute of Urban Research and Planning Curitiba (IPPUC) was created to make a
master plan to assist the city
- 3 years later, the “Curitiba Master Plan” was created and put into practice in 1971
o Featured new road design, closed streets to vehicles, created many parks to mitigate
flogs, and adapted a new system of public transportation
- Curitiba has implemented several innovative systems to create jobs, improve public
transportation accessibility, promote housing development, and improve waste management.
- Later on, Curitiba kept a track record of successfully managing urban change.

Curitiba Today

- The United Nation’s Sustainable Development platforms consider the city to have a sustainable
urban planning
o 1996 “The most innovative city in the country”
o 2007 third on the list of the 15 Green Cities in the World
o 2010 Curitiba won both the Globe Sustainable City Award and the Sustainable Transport
Award
o 2011 Leadership in Transport Award
- More than 51 sqm (554 sqft) green space per inhabitant
o 70% of waste is recycled,
o 70% of workers use the bus
o 99% of the inhabitants want to live there

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)

 - The shift from the use of cars towards buses began in 1969
- Cars are banned for 49 blocks in the city center
- Buses transport about 72% of the population everyday
- Express lanes throughout the city ensure efficiency
- Curitiba sues about 30% less fuel per capita than other Brazilian cities
- Curtibanos spend only about 10% of their income on travel

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

- The city recycles two thirds of its refuse – 70% of paper waster and 60% of everything else; over
70% of its residents participate in recycling programs
- Money raised via sale of recyclables support the city’s social programs

2 for 1

- For every one tree cut down in Curitiba, two more must be planted
- Volunteers planted 1.5 million trees
- No trees can be cut without a permit
- Has one of the lowest levels of air pollution in the world with over 300,000 trees planted

Flood Control

- City’s parks double as naturalized, decentralized stormwater management facility

- Massive Iguacu river’s course is preserved
o River backs up during heavy rains and spreads out into low-lying area if the parks to
form temporary lakes and mimicking a natural floodplain

Environmental Policies

- Plan of Urban Afforestation: Tree Policy

o Process of establishing a forest on land, especially land previously without forests
- Natural Policy for the Environment
o Environmental Education Policy

Energy & Green Initiatives

The Green Line – “Inter-neighborhood line”

Green Exchange Employment

o “Garbage that’s not garbage” program

o “My house, my life” program
o “From river, to river” initiative

Economics

- 8th largest city in Brazil, has the fourth-largest GDP

- In 2010, 66% of its GDP was produced by the commerce and services sector
- The city’s 30-year economic growth rate in Curitiba is 7.1% (compared with a national average of
4.2%), and per capita income is 66% higher than the Brazilian average
- Seven massive shopping malls are found in Curitiba, with no cars around the center
- Curitiba is above the national average in expenditures such as food, housing, and clothing.
Turtle – “Living and working together”