The (Un)Sustainable Public Housing Policies of Brazil and Venezuela

Abstract

Economic viability and social justice through state intervention and resource delimitation are aspects commonly associated with the sustainability of public housing policies in Latin America. Presently, due to climate changes, the prioritization of these aspects over the resultant environmental impact is inadmissible sustainability-wise, demanding reorientation towards an environmental dimension, translated to the field of public housing policies as an openness to a counter-hegemonic, regenerative view, focused on energy management and human integration with nature. This article promotes a critical analysis of the recent public housing policies of Brazil and Venezuela, about their interactions with sustainable strategies in the Anthropocene, based upon the following methodological procedures: theoretical research; referential research on case study; and a reflective analysis between theory and gathered references. Results suggest that the normative conceptualization of the public housing policies studied doesn’t meet current major regenerative requirements, essential to achieve established goals meant to tackle climate change.