In the developed world, we take it for granted that every home or place of work has access to basic services. This includes clean water, electricity, sanitation, and access for emergency vehicles in case of need, such as ambulances or fire trucks. But this is far from being the rule in most developing cities and is a particularly stark challenge in informal settlements (slums), home for over 1 billion people around the world.

Reblocking is the process of physically transforming an informal settlement to provide an access path to all its structures. This project analyzes the spatial structure of informal city blocks, and uses an algorithm to suggest reblocking solutions that provide access to all structures within the block in a minimally disruptive way. Click on one of the examples below to see the process unfold.