It is becoming increasingly common that cities are being negatively impacted by extreme weather events. Moreover, climate projections point to an increase in the frequency and severity of those events. Cities across the world must thus assess their vulnerabilities to extreme events and adapt accordingly. Compared to big metropolises, smaller cities face more opportunities to adapt their practices to defend and protect from these impacts, since in many cases they are still not locked-in by existing infrastructure, and show greater potential for future sustainable urban planning. Nevertheless, few studies have assessed the vulnerability of small cities, which generally present fastest population growth rates, along with lack of capacities, resources and financing options. This paper investigates the vulnerability of Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, which is expected to be among the top five fastest growing cities in Latin America by 2030. The analysis is based on a mixed methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative techniques. Quantitatively, an Urban Vulnerability Index was built using 73 economic, social, climatic and environmental indicators, in order to quantify the sensitivity of the city to extreme weather events, as well as its capacity to cope and adapt to those events. In qualitative terms, data collected from interviews was used to complement the quantitative findings. The results show that the city is highly sensitive to extreme weather events, due to its vastly urbanised area, lack of green spaces and amount of vulnerable and exposed population. The city also shows a lack of adequate urban planning and a low capacity to plan for weather and climate disasters. The paper, in this sense, highlights areas of urgent attention to reduce its vulnerability.
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)