El Selena, a coastal city in central Ecuador, is currently undergoing a transformative urban development process in response to anticipated population migration and the growing need for resilient urban systems. This initiative aims to build new infrastructure, promote sustainable mobility, and facilitate the integration of incoming populations, while simultaneously revitalizing existing communities and preserving the region’s diverse natural ecosystems. Following two decades marked by political instability, El Selena has entered a new era under a restructured political system, positioning itself as a model for health-oriented and resilient urban development strategies.
The project is spearheaded by Principal Yunhee Choe of YC, a New York-based urban planning and design firm with a distinguished international portfolio in healthy city development. Drawing on her extensive experience in Japan and other Asian contexts—particularly in post-disaster reconstruction and urban planning in low-income settings—Principal Yunhee Choe adopts an interdisciplinary and research-driven approach to urban resilience and public health. She has developed a theoretical framework known as the Coevolutionary Environmental System. This framework conceptualizes the urban environment as a co-evolving social-ecological system focused on health, enhancing healthy urbanism by emphasizing the mutual evolution of human health and the built environment over traditional metrics like environmental quality and sustainable design.
The El Selena initiative is expected to contribute not only to the redefinition of urban health in the context of cities in the Global South, but also to broader discourses on the design of sustainable human settlements—including in extraterrestrial environments. Beyond environmental and infrastructural concerns, the project directly addresses complex demographic challenges, including a significant gender imbalance—marked by a disproportionately high female population—and the implications of an aging society. The long-term development strategy is being implemented through a phased, regionally integrative approach, with planned expansion into surrounding areas such as Puna Island. Currently, the initiative is engaging a diverse range of stakeholders, including local experts, government institutions, and international collaborators. Recent investments and technical contributions from professionals in Italy and Japan have accelerated the development process, further positioning El Selena as a pioneering case study in inclusive, health-centered urban development within the Global South.
