The project titled ""Los Pinos: Comunidad del Buen Vivir" has been awarded a prize by Habitat 2017. UPS is part of this project which is aimed at developing an integral neighborhood plan.

UPS has worked for five years on the development of this neighborhood located in the canton of Mejia, in the province of Pichincha. The award highlights not only the alliances of the academic world but the shared vision that the territory is a right and not product of the market.

Every year people present inspiring projects for Latin America that demonstrate changing processes for production and social management of habitats, facilitate exchange among citizens and strengthen their possibilities of political incidence. 

In the case of the psychology undergraduate program, they work on psycho-social support with 300 families, more than 1300 inhabitants from which half are children and adolescents

Infografía del proyecto "Los Pinos: Comunidad del Buen Vivir" ubicado en el cantón Mejía 

Additionally, the university's Psychosocial research group (Grupo de Investigaciones Psicosociales (GIPS)  is developing two research projects. The first is titled "La praxis de las luchas populares en la periferia urbana de Quito: existencia, articulación y territorialidad" and the second "¡Batallando para entrar bien a la ciudad! El compromiso activo de los ciudadanos pobres organizados con la defensa del suelo urbano público y contra el tráfico de tierras, en Ecuador", the project is financed by CLASCO.

Gino Grondona, psychology professor, said that this work has allowed students to learn about other people's realities and develop professional skills.

On the other hand, the civil engineering undergraduate program has an interinstitutional cooperation agreement with CDC-LP to carry out graduation projects in the areas of potable water, sewerage and road systems, as well as in the design of houses.

Find out more about this project here: https://www.urbamonde.org/es/premio-psh-am%C3%A9rica-latina-2017