Bogota city towards urban sustainability : perspectives and challenges in Latin America and the Caribbean region

Cities around the world are considered dynamic elements in the exploration of sustainability condition making them more accessible and efficient for its inhabitants. The city of Bogota, home of around 8 million citizens inside of the metropolitan area, has been experienced positive changes during the last decades. However, like in the other Latin American metropolis, the city is facing new challenges that slows down the pathway to the sustainability state including urban sprawl, poverty and inequality, vulnerability, environmental degradation, disaster management, lack of provision of basic services, urban violence and lack of application of land-use norms. Using GIS and statistical tools the dynamics of Bogota city and its Urban Land Use Plan (In Spanish – “Plan de Ordenamiento Territorial POT”) are evaluated in order to understand how the city is facing these challenges. Additionally, the perspectives in the Latin American and the Caribbean region are analyzed in terms of sustainability components (economic, social, environmental and political) to define the sustainability trends in different cities and to underline successful cases inside of the region. Finally, Bogota city is assessed in diverse categories along with other Latin American metropolis in order to find its strengths and weaknesses regarding urban sustainability.