ABSTRACT
This article presents a critical review of the accumulated knowledge about the role of urbanization in history and its transformations in contemporary times. We highlight the essentials of these studies to explain and transform the present and project the future, not only of cities, but of the planet as a whole, with which they largely identify. We then transpose this line of reasoning to Brazil and the metropolitan region of São Paulo, identified as a synthesis of the main changes that have occurred in the country since the end of the 19th century. Finally, we consolidate previous reflections into a provisional critical mass of conceptions and possible lines of action, drawing attention to the potential and limits of urban activism. In the final considerations we summarize the previous reasoning, addressing the municipal elections of 2024 in the country as an opportunity to review programmatic options and contextualize alternatives.
KEYWORDS:
Economic geography; Spatial scales; Metropolis of São Paulo; Urban politics; Municipal elections; Capitalist world-system
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Fonte: Elaboração do autor.