Previous project
Inclusive Gastronomic Neighborhood. Ñuñoa Square

Next project
Challenge Yourself! Action Classrooms

Zapatea Santa Anita: Active Public Spaces

A multi-stakeholder platform that uses dance as an ally to mobilize the community towards the transformation of public spaces and social cohesion.

Municipality

PE
Lima, Lima,

Category / Sub-Category / Topic

Urban Development and Habitat, Public space

Type of investment needed

Grant

Associated SDGs

The challenge

Santa Anita, a young and dynamic district of Lima, has an extensive network of parks. However, its population distrusts those who share the same spaces, which limits their interaction and increases the perception of insecurity. The initiative seeks to create and consolidate a new vision of Public Spaces from the strengthening of the social fabric, awareness and collaborative action in the public sphere.

The project

The initiative will promote a space for citizen participation or Collaborative Platform, integrating the municipality, local businesses, community, academia, youth and cultural organizations. Under a shared leadership and a sustainable work plan, the platform will be the epicenter to materialize the co-creation of a district vision of free, sustainable, inclusive and safe public spaces, prioritizing the issue in the district agenda. As a catalyst, a Festival of Dance and Public Spaces will be established, conceived to raise awareness and mobilize the community, strengthening identity, social fabric and appropriation of public spaces. In addition, these actions will make it possible to map, characterize and intervene the district's public spaces.


This model of co-participation and co-execution, involving various sectors, has an expansive potential, with the possibility of being replicated in the remaining 42 districts of Lima. It could even be scaled up by the Peruvian Ministry of Housing as an integral program of Public Spaces and Citizenship.

The 3 main axes are:

  • Collaborative Platform: for the first time this space for citizen participation, meeting, reflection and multi-stakeholder action will be created to centrally address the problem of Public Spaces in the district under a constructive, horizontal, collaborative and people-centered approach. As first actions, a breakfast will be organized with local companies so that they empathize and understand the value of living with quality public spaces and commit themselves to financing interventions and improvements in their neighborhoods. This would strengthen the local investment model and harmony between citizens, municipalities and local industries. Public spaces will also be mapped and categorized, co-producing the necessary information to identify the district's living actors such as cultural, social, youth and neighborhood organizations.
  • Dance and Public Spaces Festival: as dance is the catalyst, the Festival will be held to enhance the value of this characteristic activity of Santa Anita, strengthen identity and community relations and mobilize the community around its public spaces. The festival will be carried out in an itinerant way in the five sectors of the district, allowing direct observation of the social dynamics and shortcomings of the current public space. It is hoped that these actions will later diversify among the district's multiple cultural expressions.
  • Citizen interventions: public spaces in the districts highlighted during the festival will be improved. To this end, Public Space intervention kits will be delivered, which will include materials, tools and furniture co-built collectively and financed by local companies, as well as workshops and technical support throughout the planning and intervention to ensure its success and sustainability.

Know more...

Santa Anita is the smallest district of Lima, the capital of Peru. It was created 34 years ago product of accelerated unplanned urban growth and migration, mainly from the central ande, currently has a density of 18354.91 hab/km2 (INEI, 2017). It is an urban and industrial district, 30% of its land is occupied by factories, it has 290 companies and is home to two of the largest markets in the capital. However, among the five sectors that comprise it, there is still a sense of distrust and socioeconomic differentiation, coupled with a tax deficit that affects municipal revenue collection. In a survey conducted by the Asociación Ciudad Viva, 68% reported having suffered a criminal act (56 Encuestas, CV, June 2023). And between January and March 2023, 824 complaints have been registered (INEI, 2023), most of them for theft in transit. 

In addition, the district has 134 parks and is crossed by the Surco River canal; however, many of them lack adequate maintenance and infrastructure that can accommodate the diversity of citizens. Sixty percent of those surveyed in June by Ciudad Viva considered the quality of public spaces to be fair, while 32% considered it to be bad or very bad. 

On the other hand, the district does not have a defined identity that could facilitate social cohesion.b Looking at its streets, squares, parks and, in conversations with the population, it is easy to corroborate that it is a dancing district. On weekends and evenings its public spaces are used to rehearse and demonstrate through typical dances. All of these situations reveal that there is a need to strengthen the social fabric and sense of belonging in the district.

Finally, there are efforts in the district to improve public spaces: 1) The municipality has signed the Pact for Public Spaces, which is a guiding and accompanying document to create resilient public spaces. 2) The municipality is preparing a Public Spaces Ordinance by 2024. 3) A multi-stakeholder collaboration between local business, municipality, community and NGOs has been promoted to intervene and improve a park. The path to make this intervention a reality has left several lessons to be learned in the initiative and, in turn, has demonstrated the need to create and facilitate spaces for dialogue between the living actors of the district.

  • Collaborative Citizen Platform for Public Spaces: Installation and consolidation of a multi-stakeholder and multi-generational platform with monthly face-to-face meetings and extraordinary virtual meetings to follow up on agreements and actions. Space that promotes shared leadership, horizontal reflections and concrete actions for the improvement of public spaces in the district, has a structure, work plan and a guide of roles and functions with openness to constant improvement.
  • Crowdfunding Breakfast with local companies: Meeting to share the findings and results of the work carried out with the Change Network and to sensitize local companies to the problem of public spaces and articulate their action and commitment to the solution strategies. They will be asked to be part of the collaborative platform and to finance interventions to improve public spaces, either monetarily or in kind.
  • Mapping of Public Spaces: Together with the San Martin de Porres University, a public space characterization plan will be carried out and with the support of young university and district volunteers, a mapping will be carried out with a methodology that verifies uses, condition and needs. The mapping will be visible through Stew map, which is a free and accessible digital tool.
  • Mapping and strengthening of social, environmental, cultural and neighborhood organizations: A massive call will be made to register the various social and neighborhood organizations in the district. It will have two channels: a form on social networks and a physical station in the municipality for a week. After registration, meetings will be convened according to typologies to channel their main needs and a general workshop to strengthen their management and empowerment tools.
  • Dance Festival and Public Spaces "Zapatea Santa Anita": Through the neighborhood leaders, dance teams will be called from each neighborhood and sector of Santa Anita, multigenerational groups and those with innovative staging will be valued. The Festival will be held in an itinerant form in a location chosen by each sector of the district. In addition, each team must register a public space in their neighborhood that they wish to intervene and a proposal for collective improvement. Prior to the day of the Festival, a workshop will be held with the registered participants on cultural event organizations, to strengthen their leadership and organization. Also, on the day of the Festival, there will be an evaluation committee (made up of representatives of local organizations and businesses) who will evaluate the presentations and organization to recognize the outstanding teams.
  • Community interventions of prioritized Public Spaces: All outstanding participants will receive kits for the implementation of public spaces with physical components such as furniture, materials and tools, as well as technical support to promote collective implementation and ensure sustainability. During three months each intervention will be co-designed and co-executed and a guide for the use and maintenance of public spaces will be created according to the needs of each one.

Direct results:

  • 1 Collaborative Citizen Platform installed with a consensual role and function guide, along with a work plan in place. 5 companies make contributions between $5,000 to $10,000 (US dollars) or equivalent in kind by 2024. 30 cultural, environmental, sports and youth organizations mapped and 5 new neighborhood associations registered. 100% of Public Spaces in the district mapped and categorized according to location, uses, equipment and quality. 20 neighborhood organizations of Santa Anita participate in the dance and public spaces contest. 10 public spaces intervened cooperatively, one of them winning a large-scale transformation.
  • 1 Collaborative Citizen Platform installed with a consensual role and function guide, along with a work plan in place.
  • 5 companies make contributions between $5,000 to $10,000 (US dollars) or equivalent in kind by 2024.
  • 30 cultural, environmental, sports and youth organizations mapped and 5 new neighborhood associations registered.
  • 100% of Public Spaces in the district mapped and categorized according to location, uses, equipment and quality.
  • 20 neighborhood organizations of Santa Anita participate in the dance and public spaces contest.
  • 10 public spaces intervened cooperatively, one of them winning a large-scale transformation.

Expected impacts:

  • Strengthen the social cohesion of 60% of the population of Santa Anita in five years.
  • Reach 30% of sustainable contribution of the private sector to the improvement of public spaces in the district in five years.
  • Improve 100% of the public spaces in current conditions of deterioration or risk in the district in five years.
  • San Martin de Porres University
  • La Molina Agrarian University
  • Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú
  • Ministry of Housing
  • Ministry of Culture
  • PepsiCo
  • Química Suiza Lab
  • Softys
  • Fuerza Morenos Cultural Group
  • Luz Del Sur
  • Anna Zucchetti, President Ciudad Viva, anna@ciudadviva.pe
  • Elvis Pimentel, Deputy Manager of Private Works and Cadastre of MDSA, epimentel@munisantanita.gob.pe

Investment

(*): In kind/pro bonus

(**): Financing

Goods and inputs
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

1 Laptop y 1 proyector (*) (**)

u$s 500.00

u$s 500.00

u$s 0.00

Utiles de oficina para reuniones y talleres (*) (**)

u$s 375.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 375.00

Equipo de sonido (*) (**)

u$s 250.00

u$s 250.00

u$s 0.00

Bocaditos para compartir en reuniones y eventos (*) (**)

u$s 1390.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 1390.00

Toldos (*) (**)

u$s 500.00

u$s 500.00

u$s 0.00

20 kits de implementación de espacios públicos (**)

u$s 50000.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 50000.00

Services
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

Alquiler de salon para eventos (*) (**)

u$s 150.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 150.00

Impresiones para difusión comunitaria en A1 y A4 (200 unidades aprox) (*) (**)

u$s 70.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 70.00

Diseño de materiales gráficos (*) (**)

u$s 150.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 150.00

Human resources
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

Equipo técnico de acompañamiento en intervenciones (1 urbanista, 1 gestora social, 1 asistente) (**)

u$s 6000.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 6000.00

Facilitador/moderador de reuniones (*) (**)

u$s 1000.00

u$s 1000.00

u$s 0.00

Promotores sociales (*) (**)

u$s 2500.00

u$s 2500.00

u$s 0.00

Others
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

Pasajes y viáticos de equipo (equipo, promotores, equipo jurado y voluntarios) (**)

u$s 1410.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 1410.00

Pauta publicitaria en rrss (**)

u$s 50.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 50.00

TOTAL AMOUNTS:

u$s 64345.00

u$s 4750.00

u$s 59595.00

Spread the word about this project