Our newest area of research explores the dynamics of urban development, urban resilience, and Aedes-borne diseases in Colombia.
Today’s world is urbanizing at an unprecedented rate, with approximately 70% of the global population predicted to reside in cities by 2050. Urban development patterns are increasingly spatially complex and non-linear. Variation in the composition of an urban environment, its spatial configuration, and inter- and intra-urban connectivity are hypothesized to affect the patterns of Aedes-borne disease. However there remain critical gaps in our understanding of how these components interact, and at what spatial scale (i.e., household, neighborhood, or city). For this research we are collecting qualitative and quantitative data to characterize the composition, configuration, and connectivity within and between neighborhoods in Ibagué, Colombia. Additionally we will conduct land use change analyses and qualitative research to understand the development history and trajectory of the city from 1990 to 2030. With this information, we aim to simulate transmission dynamics under multiple urban development scenarios.
LAB MEMBER: Pallavi Kache
COLLABORATORS: Mauricio Santos-Vega (Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia); Secretaría de Salud de Ibagué (Ibagué, Colombia).