Yasaman's Summary

Some thoughts:

As a result of the termination of the coal industry, the government of Lota is interested in tourism as an industry to potentially revitalize the economy. However the rapid growth of tourism on large scale in some countries in the region has been a significant agent of these, not all very welcome, changes. As in most developing countries of the world, tourism in many Asian countries is also conceived as a powerful means of attracting the coveted foreign exchange and an easy means of boosting the national economy. It brings investment, creates jobs, and promotes sales of crafts and local artifacts, etc. Accordingly the cultural heritage sites, performing arts, crafts and natural resources have all been exploited in attracting tourists. This approach has the danger of reducing cultural heritage and the environmental assets to an economic commodity, minimizing or sometimes completely ignoring their socio-cultural values.

The large number of tourists with different backgrounds have contributed to historic monuments and the location of tourist facilities within cultural heritage sites have too often resulted in alteration of the original features in all kinds of pollution damaging or even destroying the very fabric of the heritage.

Tourism, viewed from another perspective, however, effects attitudes, alters popular beliefs, changes mentalities and spreads new concepts relating to work, money, and human relationships. It brings people of different cultures together,provides a direct contact between them offering an opportunity for friendly and peaceful dialogue leading to better understanding between people and nations.

My focus:

I am interested in tourism and practices in sustainable tourism for the town of Lota. Sustainable tourism is not “Eco- Tourism” and although it will consider environmental equity, it will focus on the cultural sustainability. I would like to consider this fact and further develop ideas about sustainable tourism and whether it will work. I am interested in a type of tourism that is not simply for economic development, but rather focuses on cultural sustainability.

Sustainable tourism practices should take in to account that locals know best and should promote an upscale methodology where the management of tourist locations is by locals and more concisely, the community. In this way, the citizens have more power as to what they would like in their culture to be presented, and what to incorporate as activities with the tourists. I am interested in the connection of the sites and the way in which people in the city, not only tourists per ce, move about to get from one destination to the next. Currently I will write about tourism and research this area knowing that going to Lota I will be a tourist myself and perhaps make this in to a dialogue.

Last words:

Although I was thinking about tourism, once I received the groups that IWB had created, I became interested more in the idea of “place”. This is very interesting to me, where people go, how they move about the city, which areas of the city are the hubs, the architecture of the city and how it incorporates this transportation and movement.

Having said this, I am also interested in how people communicate with one another, the technologies they use, the locations they perform such tasks and how they move about the city in order to communicate.

Phase 1: Rachel's Summary

Going to Lota, Chile will be a necessary step to discovering the needs, wants, and desires of the Lotinas. Understanding the Lotina’s lives will be a crucial part for the recovery process to be a success. The design that is eventually conceived must come from the Lotina’s point of view, not that of an outsider. While there I plan to be open to any opportunity that may present it self. I will immerse myself in the Lota culture, and try to look at their situation in as many perspectives as possible.

I do not want to go in to Lota with any preconceived ideas, but it is important to have a reference frame, to view the situation. For this reason I will be keeping the idea of local art in mind while collecting research. I am interested in the current art scene, and the future desires of the local artist. Do the artists want a gallery? A market? A public space? Or nothing at all? I seek to have these questions answered during the research visit. During my visit to Lota I will talk to local artists such as, Eduardo Cartes Cardenas, a sculpture who uses coal as his medium. I am also interested in looking at plausible spaces that could be used as a point of interest for interaction between potential tourist and the artists.

Rahim's Summary

Disaster Relief:

While considering the complexity of earthquake relief/disaster relief, my hopes are to design a product that will aid the town of Lota and prepare the city in the case of a future natural disaster. Such a product, which may have the potential to aid a city such as Lota during devastating times, may also be able to aid other nations, should they also experience future devastating natural disasters. During my trip to the town of Lota, I hope to analyze how individuals are currently living as a result of being severely impacted by the earthquake. Understanding current living conditions as well as the specific needs of the population of Lota, will enable me to design a product that will not only meet those specific needs, but will also enable the population to be better prepared in the case that a disaster might strike again. I also hope to visit the current temporary shelters and evaluate the living conditions there as well, in order to look at basic hygiene and sanitary needs. In the case that I am not able to come up with such a product, I hope to focus on the area of disaster preparedness, which is the education that is provided in order to strengthen and prepare individuals in the case of a future disaster.

Phase 1: Sam's Summary

In response to the need for an economic refocus, and the existing opportunity to generate local tourism, I hope to concentrate my research on existing public spaces, tourist destinations, and the art community.
Lota has the potential to attract Chilean vacationers and, cultural and adventure travellers from around the world alike. This provides an excellent opportunity for the local artisans and crafts people to market their works and thereby, stimulate the local economy.
It also presents the opportunity for a beautifying of the urban landscape. This could be achieved through a new design for the local street furniture or a community art project. While in Lota, I hope to find inspiration in the culture and the underground community of graffiti artists and the ever-changing nature of their medium.
Visiting Lota also provides an opportunity to conduct research and speak with the locals to understand the existing perception is of the city, what the users’ needs are, and what the Lotinos imagine or hope their city could become.
This information can be gathered by a number of different methodologies, including; behaviour observation captured through photographs, video, and annotated diagrams; Physical trace observations to explore how the existing public spaces are used and perceived; And structured interviews and diaries to understand more about the user group and their daily life.

Phase 1: Alëna's Summary

Lota has the means to be an ideal destination for cultural and adventure travellers. It has a number of existing attractions that hold historical importance, such as the “Chiflón del Diablo” (Wind of the Devil) which is one of the deepest coalmines in the world and the Chivilingo Hydroelectric Plant which is Chile’s oldest hydroelectric power station and was designed and built by Thomas Edison in 1897. Although Lota is home to a number of interesting tourist destinations and features a long stretch of beach front, there seems to be a disconnect between what the city has to offer and travellers’ perception of the city. I hope to explore this issue through a possible way finding system. Visual anthropology, artefacts, physical trace observations and hierarchical task analysis.

Phase 1: Jane's Summary

I’m personally interested in the public gathering areas of the town. During the trip I’m looking forward to observing people in the markets, public squares and walkways. I would like to investigate how a tourist would navigate the town, and see the monuments and attractions the locals deem intrinsic to their culture and identity. I have to do further research on current tourism statistics for the area such as the age range, distance travelled, and how long they expect to stay in the town on average.

One piece of information we’ve gotten from IwB is the main plaza is beautiful but empty. I’m curious about this under utilization of space, and would like to see if there are design opportunities that would invite people to spend time in the plaza. This could be through some sort of interactive feature, different street furniture, or possibly something that would be family friendly and encourage families to make the plaza a destination for fun. The plaza is a historical marker for the town, and would be of interest to tourists as well as locals interested in learning about the heritage of the area.

Through the research I did for our group report I’ve gained a greater understanding of the network of attractions required to hold the interest of a tourist. Navigation between the sites must be considered just as much as the sites themselves.

Phase 1: Group Summary

Lota is in the initial stages of refocusing their economy from an industrial economy, reliant on coal mining, to a service and tourism-based economy. This presents opportunity for industrial design to assist the town in this goal by giving the local stakeholders tools that will facilitate sustainable tourist development in the area.  Additional opportunities can be found in developing products that will assist the community rebuild after a natural disaster has occurred, such as the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that happened in February 2010.

The group is keen to get to Chile and explore the town and get a clear sense of the culture and heritage. By acknowledging that the group will be outsiders during the trip, some members have chosen to focus on the public spaces that will be of interest to tourists. Other members are keeping with the theme of tourism, but interested in investigating the role art plays in the community. Another opportunity has been identified in response to the issue of natural disaster, and hopes to deal with the basic needs of the citizens.

The research done leading up to the trip will enable each member of the group to see and identify their own design opportunity, as well as collect any relevant data in the brief time available. However, since the time is so limited, as much preparation as possible will be done before arrival in Lota. This includes making any materials required for data collection and analysis, such as creating journals, collage materials, and getting materials translated to Spanish.