From emergency response to recovery: How Build Back Better is core to disaster management in Chile

In February 2024, Patricia Díaz was planning an asado---a barbecue in her backyard---with friends. The food was served, and they were enjoying a glass of wine. She knew there were wildfires in the area, but they were on the other side of the botanical garden behind her home, so she felt safe.

Then her son ran into the house, yelling "We have to evacuate!"

Patricia barely had time to grab her cats and dog before fleeing. A fresh scar on her arm is a reminder of the hot debris that filled the air that day. Her house and everything in it burned to the ground. With nowhere else to go, she had to move in with her eldest son, bringing nothing but the clothes on her back.

"The biggest tragedy of my life was losing my husband to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis," Patricia shared, recounting the events. "But this fire? It took everything I had left---all the photos and keepsakes I had of him, including from the trip to Europe we saved for and planned together for years."

In December 2024, Patricia received the keys to her new home, one of 72 houses rebuilt by Desafío Levantemos Chile, a CBi Member Network, through its Canal Beagle project.

The impact and aftermath of the wildfires

In February 2024, wildfires ravaged thousands of hectares of land in Chile and impacted more than 15 thousand dwellings. The situation was bleak. But within 24 hours, Desafío was on the ground in Viña del Mar, mobilizing hundreds of volunteers and distributing debris removal kits.

True to their model, Desafío didn't limit itself to merely responding to the crisis but immediately started assessing what would be needed for recovery. Their intervention in Viña del Mar became a reconstruction milestone: over 10 months, they raised approximately $12 million, rebuilt 72 new homes in the Canal Beagle neighbourhood, completing 41 projects across devastated communities.

"They've rebuilt more than our houses---they've rebuilt our lives," said Andrés Manuel Acevedo Macilla, who now lives in one of these new homes.

Using crises to "Build Back Better"

Building standards for sustainable, climate-resistant homes have evolved significantly in recent years. Desafío has adjusted its approach accordingly and now offers a variety of interlocking modular home designs that can be tailored to families' needs.

Each step in their rebuilding process is closely coordinated with the local municipality to determine who can provide support, what resources each party can contribute, and how assistance will be delivered. Desafío provides some families with professional construction crews, while households that have skilled labour receive only the materials they need.

"We want people to have a home and retain their dignity throughout the rebuilding process," explains Pablo Mayegas, Emergency Leader at Desafío. "Many people stay with friends or relatives until they can return home permanently, but we've also worked with people living in emergency housing right next to their construction site. In every case, we evaluate the situation with the affected families to identify the best solution."

The most critical component in Desafío's approach is partnering with local construction companies. In Puerto Varas, for example, Desafío uses a competitive bidding process to select local construction firms that best meet its quality standards and timelines. By assigning neighbouring houses to different construction companies, Desafío's reconstruction projects create healthy competition while ensuring consistent quality standards.

Desafío's approach aligns with the United Nations' Build Back Better principle, using the disaster recovery phase to enhance community resilience by integrating risk reduction measures into rebuilding efforts.

In Viña del Mar, all rebuilt homes now include fire-resistant materials and firewalls---thin structural barriers between roofs that prevent flames from "jumping" between houses, the result of lessons learned from the recent fires. Though common in other locations, these features were absent from most houses before the disaster.

Desafío's reconstruction model shows that precision and quality in disaster reconstruction are achievable. The organization moves beyond emergency response to create permanent recovery solutions, leveraging private sector capabilities for the public good. Desafío demonstrates how proper planning, community engagement and flexible methodologies can help communities build back better, making them more resilient to future crises.