On Monday, October 17th, the university's branch in Quito held the National Meeting on the rights to housing and a worthy habitat, this meeting is within the context of the UN Habitat III Conference on Housing, Urban and Sustainable Development which will be taking place in Quito from the 17th to the 20th of October.

The aim is to analyze social, economic and political problems regarding the access and the exercise of the right to housing, habitat and the city, as well as give suggestions that strengthen the current approaches. 

The inauguration was attended by Jose Juncosa, the university's vice president in Quito, who welcomed all the attendees and invited them to rethink the city and the role of the university according to today's problems. Ximena Ponce, assemblywomen, spoke on behalf of the president of the national assembly and thanked the University for holding these events.

The first discussion panel was titled "Situation of human settlements and access to housing, legislation and public policy" the panel was made up by: Octavio Villacreses, Assemblyman for the province of Guayas; Victor Hugo Torres, UPS researcher and professor; Edgar Cajas, representative of the Lucha, Organización, Tierra y Esperanza Movement; Richard Calderon, Assemblyman for Imbabura; and Virgilio Hernandez, Assemblyman for Pichincha.

This panel was about the growth of cities, illegal sales, land trafficking, regularization of neighborhoods, rising house prices, deterioration of cities and the importance of public participation in order to decide and plan a new urban agenda.

The second panel "Proposals for strengthening the exercise of constitutional rights to housing, habitat and city", was made up by: Patricio Molina, Representative of San Jose del Condado; Maria Augusta Larco, Ruben Bravo, UPS professor, Luis Reina, councilor of Quito; Roxana Peña, manager and developer of alternative mobility in Quito; and Andrea Encalada, representatives of the 825 families affected by the Ciudad Bicentenario project.

Some of the proposals were: to build an urban subject, make sure that commitments turn into actions, rethink social action to decide and to influence, think of other city models, stop the public policy structure, insist on the right to democratic governance, and social function and acting collectively and not individually.

The event was held in "Girón" campus at Universidad Politecnica Salesiana thanks to the organizational work of the National Assembly of Ecuador, the Special Commission on Economic and Tax Regime and regulation and Control, the Legislative School and UPS.

To close the meeting they approved the DECLARATION OF THE NATIONAL MEETING FOR THE RIGHT TO DECENT HOUSING AND HABITAT