Espacios que enseñan: Anteproyecto de rediseño de un espacio educativo para niños en contextos urbanos vulnerables. Caso Fundación Salesiana PACES - Feria Libre

Abstract

The Feria Libre sector of Cuenca is characterized by labor informality, high mobility, and social vulnerability, conditions that directly affect children and adolescents, who face early involvement in productive environments, fragmented educational trajectories, and exposure to psychosocial risks. In this context, the Salesian Foundation PACES operates as a space for non-formal education and protection. The research adopts a mixed-methods approach, integrating direct observation, participatory mapping, and collaborative work with educators to analyze the socio-spatial conditions of the environment and children’s perceptions of the existing educational space. Based on the diagnosis, the project proposes the redesign of the center under criteria of spatial flexibility, adaptability, sensory regulation, and inclusion. Architecture is conceived as an active support for the educational and emotional process, functioning as a refuge that fosters safety, belonging, and integral development, while restoring the right to inhabit, play, and learn within a dignified environment.