Lima transforms water, food, and ancient sites through three low-tech innovations

More than half of Peru's population faces moderate or severe food insecurity. In Lima, 2 million people lack running water. Yet Soroush Parsa, founder of Lima 2035 and named a Rockefeller Foundation Top Food System Visionary in 2020, believes the city can rebuild itself as regenerative and resilient using three straightforward, low-tech solutions.

"Lima is in fact green. It's just not green for everybody," Parsa says. The capital has two versions: one where wealthy residents pay one price for water, another where isolated communities in the hills pay ten times as much.

Fog becomes water

Parsa's first innovation uses mesh nets, called fog catchers, to harvest moisture from the Pacific's dense fog that rolls into the Andes. Communities have used this method for years—simple sheets positioned on hillsides collect 200 to 400 liters of fresh water daily as wind pushes fog through the fibers, leaving water droplets that drip into storage tanks.

Lima 2035 is now scaling this with a new "harvesting tower" design by architect Alberto Fernandez. The expanded surface area captures up to 10,000 liters daily—enough to serve remote neighborhoods that currently have no reliable water source. "Once we are able to bridge the water access gap, then many more opportunities become available," Parsa explains. That gap, once closed, opens doors to food production, sanitation, and dignity.

Rooftops feed neighborhoods

The second innovation transforms underused city rooftops into working farms. Alison Anaya, founder of Huertos En Azoteas (Rooftop Gardens), builds compact growing units in Lima's most underserved areas—schools, community centers, and homes led by women. The gardens use recycled materials and water-saving techniques to grow fresh vegetables and herbs that residents can eat or sell.

"The majority of the people, they do not have the resources to pay for one vegetable," Anaya says. Her rooftop gardens change that equation. Families diversify their diets, learn to grow their own food, and earn extra income. Since winning the Food System Visionary prize in 2020, Anaya's team developed an app letting customers scan a QR code to see exactly how vegetables were grown, what inputs were used, and when they were harvested. "When you step inside [the rooftop garden], despite being in the middle of the city, there is a surprising color," Anaya reflects. "It feels like a small green room suspended above the urban chaos."

Ancient sites become gathering places

The third innovation recognizes Lima's food heritage. The city has 350 archaeological sites—sacred spaces now threatened by urban sprawl. Architect and urban designer Jean Pierre proposes activating these sites as community hubs: farmers' markets, seed exchanges, gastronomy tours. "The only way to preserve these places is by activating them," Pierre says. "And the answer is food."

Together, the three innovations form a system. Fog nets bring water to hillside communities. Rooftop gardens feed neighborhoods and restore dignity. Ancient sites become living centers where people gather around food and culture. None requires expensive infrastructure or imported technology. All three rely on community leadership and the understanding that food—how we grow it, share it, and remember it—can rebuild a city fractured by inequality.