The forest will also serve another purpose – increasing public space in an otherwise cramped city. Alejandro Aravena says that before the earthquake, there were 2.2 square meters of public space for each of Constitución’s 50,000 inhabitants – and this is set to treble once the plan is fully implemented.

Aravena has championed an approach he describes as "incremental," in which governments fund construction of "half a good house," with residents completing the other portion as resources allow.

The architects designed the social housing units as half of a good house instead of a complete but small one. Photo: Cristian Martinez / ELEMENTAL.

The approach builds-in the possibility for residents to double the floor area of the house to 80 square meters. Photo: Cristian Martinez / ELEMENTAL.

The project advocates a long-term strategy to upgrade the built environment rather than implementing an ad hoc action plan to reconstruct the part of the city that was destroyed by the tsunami and earthquake. Photo: Cristian Martinez / ELEMENTAL.

The tourist promenade and cycle lane consists of a series of coastal lookout points along the way from Maule River’s mouth (downtown) to Maguellines Port, in order to reinforce and highlight the natural heritage embodied by the huge rocks of this landscape.

Global Holcim Awards Finalist certificate 2012 handover for "Sustainable post-tsunami reconstruction master plan", Constitucion, Chile (l-r): Fernando Palma, Corporate Commercial Director, Cemento Polpaico; Alejandro Aravena, Executive Director, ELEMENTAL; Charles Kimber, Corporate Affairs and Public Relations Manager of Celulosa Arauco; Alejandro Gutierrez, Associate Director, ARUP; and Eugenio Marcos, Director of Tironi y Asociados.

The Cultural Center is located on one side of the square in the center of the city, and becomes the first in a series of new public buildings for Constitución.

The portico of the city’s new cultural centre.

"Against geographical threats, geographical answers", Production and innovation in wooden structures for incremental housing.

This project upgrades obsolete urban standards from 2.2 square meters of green space per person to 6.6 square meters.

Prosperity - Given that public money was going to be scarce, one of the five courses of action considered was economic reactivation of the city so that people themselves could begin to add to the reconstruction efforts.

Proficiency - The aesthetic approach goes directly on the hand of local productive development.

Aerial view of the project area in Constitución, Chile.

Members of the winning team of the Holcim Awards Silver 2011 Latin America for Sustainable post-tsunami reconstruction master plan, Constitución, Chile (l-r): Alejandro Aravena, Juan Cerda and Diego Torres of ELEMENTAL S.A., Chile

Reconstructed foreshores.

Damage after earthquake-tsunami, and PRES mitigation park solution.

New green urban areas.

Park opens the city to the river.

Reconstructed foreshores.

Forest mitigates tsunami impact.

Conditioned construction area.

Reconstruction of public space.

Reconstruction of housing.

Active citizen participation.

Project entry 2011 Latin America – Sustainable post-tsunami reconstruction master plan, Constitución, Chile