A Line in the Andes

A Line in the Andes -- a one year investigation developed at the Harvard Graduate school of design -- examines the transformative role of the first underground metro line currently being implemented in the city of Quito (Ecuador). Through archival material, original drawings, and text, this publication frames the metro project within the city's historic and current urban form, visualizing the urban potential of this contemporary valley-city. In doing so, the material documented in this book sets the stage for well-informed design deliberations regarding an urban future Quito deserves. The book also includes a collection of essays by Rahul Mehotra, Quito Mayor Augusto Barrera, Edgar Jacome, Pablo Perez Ramos, Martin Cobas, Graciela Silvestri, and Ana Maria Duran Calisto. The writings expand on a series of themes related to Quito and frame the city within a broader geographic and disciplinary context.

Felipe Correa is an architect and urbanist based in New York City (USA) and Quio (Ecuador). He is Associate Professor and Director of the Urban Design Program at the Harvard Graduate School of Design where he leads the South America Project research initiative. Correa is also co-founder of Somatic Collaborative, a research based design-practice, which focuses on a speculative approach to architecture and urbanism, and engages a wide host of material geographies and design procedures.

Ramiro Almeida is a Visiting Scholar at MIT Media Lab focusing his work at the intersection of cities + innovation + technology. He is a former Harvard University Loeb Fellow at the Graduate School of Design. He leads a wide variety of social entrepreneurship and innovation activities to improve the quality of life in cities. Almeida is also President and Founder of QUITOLAB, the first Urban Innovation Laboratory in Latin America, in collaboration with MIT Media Lab.