THE MOBILE CITY

This research is part of a study program focused on secondary cities in Peru.

The city of Iquitos is located in the heart of the Peruvian Amazon rainforest, on the banks of the Amazon River. It is not connected to the rest of the country by road. This city has long drawn its wealth from the rubber trade.

Iquitos is now composed of three cities, three urban forms with distinct logics and dynamics:
- The historic and colonial city, which serves as the urban center.
- The fluctuating city, made up of neighborhoods built in flood-prone areas; its urban fabric is flexible and irregular, adapted to the terrain's morphology and conditioned by the river's movements.
- The sprawling city, consisting of spontaneous housing further from the river.

The Amazon River is the primary means of transportation, an important food source, and a drain for wastewater. The river moves, subject to the Coriolis effect. It shifts across this soft terrain, moving away from the city, which is now no longer connected to the river's current. At the same time, Iquitos has doubled its population through spontaneous urban growth, with neighborhoods developing and self-built construction.

One of the challenges is to reconnect with a culture of mobility, floating neighborhoods capable of adapting to the river's movements. There are similar examples in Indonesia, Cambodia, Benin, and Thailand.