Yachay Research University for Experimental Technology: from Utopia to Dystopia

Abstract

The Yachay Research University for Experimental Technology began operating in Ecuador in 2014. It was one of the central projects of Rafael Correa's government (2007-2017) and was marketed as the new Silicon Valley of the world. Yachay would not only be a university, but a "City of Knowledge". From the beginning it was a controversial project, not without criticism from academics and intellectuals, and from other universities in the country. This article analyzes the logic of the conception of the Yachayproject and its relationship with Sumak Kawsay (or "Buen Vivir"), the development regime of the country, established by the Constitution of Ecuador. In the same line, it analyzes the appropriateness of the project and its sustainability.