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Center for Research in Architecture and Urbanism

Description

The Center for Research in Architecture and Urbanism (CIAU) develops scientific and applied research in architecture, urbanism, and territory, addressing the analysis of art, design, and urban processes in Bolivia and the region, with an emphasis on their evolution, impact, and contemporary relevance.

Research Areas
  • Architecture and Art: studies on the theory, history, and evolution of architecture, art, and design in local and regional contexts.

  • Habitat and Housing: research on social housing, informal settlements, housing policies, and habitat dynamics, with an emphasis on informal urban contexts.

  • Urbanism and Territory: analysis of urban processes, territorial planning, real estate markets, mobility, public space, and urban culture.

  • Climate Change and Environment: studies in urban water management, energy efficiency, environmental comfort, bioarchitecture, and sustainable architecture.

  • Paratransit and Urban Mobility: research on urban mobility and transportation, focusing on paratransit in Bolivia and comparative studies.

  • Planning Systems and Urban Policies: comparative studies of urban planning systems in Latin America and Europe.

  • Urban Big Data and Information Systems: applied research in urban data analysis, with an emphasis on mobility and transportation through crowdsourcing.

Institutional Focus

The CIAU articulates academic research, territorial analysis, and international cooperation to contribute to the understanding and improvement of contemporary urban and architectural environments.

Institutional Profile
  • Date of Creation: January 2010

  • Rectoral Resolution: UPB-RR-001/2010

Unit Director

Juan Edson Cabrera Quispe

Tenured Teacher

+

591 (4) 4268287- Int. 532

Awards
Plurinational Award for Sciences and Technology 2023 (La Paz, Bolivia - 2024)
Organizer/s:

Ministry of Education

Category:

Ancestral knowledge

Project:

Andean rituals in construction.

VI Version of the Plurinational Prize for Science and Technology (Tarija, Bolivia - September 2019)
Organizer/s:

Ministry of Education

Category:

Ancestral knowledge and local wisdom – Second Prize

Project:

Community management of water services in Cochabamba.

Projects
Urban transportation modeling in Cochabamba (U HAWK Gottingen)
Planning Systems in Latin America - Routledge (Stage 3)
LincGlobal CSIC VIBRA IS Ibero-American housing in the face of post-COVID challenges and adaptation to Global Change
Energy performance in Ibero-American architecture RED CYTED (Networking) (Year 1)
Urban informality, mobility, and multilocality (UPB - U. Vienna)
Water and common territories in Bolivia (2018) in agreement with the French Development Agency (AFD)
Gated communities in Cochabamba (2018)
Book: Towards Urban Metamorphosis: Latin American Notes for a City Policy (2018)
The city and property in Bolivia: A reading from Urban Law (2018 – 2019)
Implementation of a permanent real estate market observatory in Bolivia (2017)
Implementation of a virtual reality laboratory for architecture (2018 – 2019)
Strategies and mechanisms for self-financing urban development through water resource management in neighborhoods of the metropolitan area of Cochabamba (2016)
Historical institutional evolution of the urban process in Bolivia, from the perspective of urban law (2016)
Publications and Conferences
2024
2024
2023
2023
2022
2022
2021
2021
2020
2020
2019
2019
2018
2018
2017
2017
Principal Investigators

Denise Evelyn Canelas Santiesteban

Denise Evelyn Canelas Santiesteban

Lucas Andrés Méndez Arévalo

Lucas Andrés Méndez Arévalo

Bernardo Agustín Cabrerizo Barrientos

Bernardo Agustín Cabrerizo Barrientos

Maria Cecilia Chacón Rendón

Maria Cecilia Chacón Rendón

Stephanie Weiss Müller

Stephanie Weiss Müller

Ericka Jhoselin Gutierrez Ayala

Ericka Jhoselin Gutierrez Ayala

Laura Micaela Ugarte Yaffar

Laura Micaela Ugarte Yaffar

Andrés Leonardo Escobar Juárez

Andrés Leonardo Escobar Juárez

Collaborators

Lucia Téllez Villagomez

Lucia Téllez Villagomez

Marcelo Pérez Mercado

Marcelo Pérez Mercado

Daniela Garcés

Daniela Garcés

the private university
#1 in Bolivia

They certify:

THE BEST SCHOOL OF

BUSINESS

IN BOLIVIA

THE BEST UNIVERSITY

PRIVATE IN BOLIVIA

QS Latin America University Rankings | 2023

THE ONLY UNIVERSITY

WITH 4 STARS IN

BOLIVIA

the private university
#1 in Bolivia

They certify:

THE BEST SCHOOL OF

BUSINESS

IN BOLIVIA

THE BEST UNIVERSITY

PRIVATE IN BOLIVIA

QS Latin America University Rankings | 2023

THE ONLY UNIVERSITY

WITH 4 STARS IN

BOLIVIA

the private university
#1 in Bolivia

They certify:

THE BEST SCHOOL OF

BUSINESS

IN BOLIVIA

THE BEST UNIVERSITY

PRIVATE IN BOLIVIA

QS Latin America University Rankings | 2023

THE ONLY UNIVERSITY

WITH 4 STARS IN

BOLIVIA

JULIO LEÓN PRADO CAMPUS - JLP
COCHABAMBA

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 (4)4178100 - +591 (4)4268287

Undergraduate Admissions

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 78362269

CAMPUS FERNANDO ILLANES DE LA RIVA - FIR
LA PAZ

Achocalla Road Km. 3.5
Phone: +591 (2) 2165700

Undergraduate Admissions

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 78362269

SANTA CRUZ CAMPUS


Extension of Av. Piraí between 6th and 7th ring
Phone: +591 (3) 50850020

Undergraduate Admissions

Prolongation Av. Piraí between 6th and 7th ring
Phone: +591 72139181

© UPB 2026. All Rights Reserved

JULIO LEÓN PRADO CAMPUS - JLP
COCHABAMBA

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 (4)4178100 - +591 (4)4268287

Undergraduate Admissions

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 78362269

CAMPUS FERNANDO ILLANES DE LA RIVA - FIR
LA PAZ

Achocalla Road Km. 3.5
Phone: +591 (2) 2165700

Undergraduate Admissions

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 78362269

SANTA CRUZ CAMPUS


Extension of Av. Piraí between 6th and 7th ring
Phone: +591 (3) 50850020

Undergraduate Admissions

Prolongation Av. Piraí between 6th and 7th ring
Phone: +591 72139181

© UPB 2026. All Rights Reserved

JULIO LEÓN PRADO CAMPUS - JLP
COCHABAMBA

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 (4)4178100 - +591 (4)4268287

Undergraduate Admissions

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 78362269

CAMPUS FERNANDO ILLANES DE LA RIVA - FIR
LA PAZ

Achocalla Road Km. 3.5
Phone: +591 (2) 2165700

Undergraduate Admissions

Av. Cap. Víctor Ustáriz Km. 6.5
Phone: +591 78362269

SANTA CRUZ CAMPUS


Extension of Av. Piraí between 6th and 7th ring
Phone: +591 (3) 50850020

Undergraduate Admissions

Prolongation Av. Piraí between 6th and 7th ring
Phone: +591 72139181

© UPB 2026. All Rights Reserved