Santa Elena, Ecuador: A Water City

Santa Elena has been a center of settled agriculture and water management since the Valdivia culture around 4200 BCE. Traditional albarradas, rivers, groundwater, and mangrove ecosystems formed an integrated hydrological system that supported human settlement and agriculture. These practices reflect Buen Vivir (Sumak Kawsay), a philosophy that emphasizes harmonious communal life with nature through fishing, agriculture, and water management. In recent decades, shrimp aquaculture has destroyed mangrove ecosystems and disrupted traditional water systems, intensifying environmental problems and negatively affecting the lives of local residents. Through this project, we aim to restore the region’s hydrosocial landscape and promote a form of urbanization centered on urban agriculture and the sustainable relationship between water, nature, and community.