The controversial presence of sugarcane in rural settlements, in the recent years, requires a careful examination of its interference in the way of life of the settlers and in the relationship of the settlements with the dynamics of regional development. The cultivation of sugarcane in the settlements has caused internal conflicts, and put into debate the past, present and future of these experiences. The analysis of the partnership with the agribusiness is entangled in a web of tensions, thus requiring an analytical scrutiny of the inequalities that led to this controversial integration of the settlers into sugar and ethanol processing plants, as well as the socio-economic and environmental consequences of the problematic transformation of rural settlements into sugarcane farms. This article examines the settlements in Araraquara and Pontal do Paranapanema, in the state of São Paulo, and the prospects for another model of development.
Rural settlements; Land reform; Expansion of sugarcane; Socio-economic and environmental impacts
