The Metropolitan Area of Porto Alegre in the context of the contradictions of Brazilian contemporary metropolization

Abstract

The paper focuses on the Metropolitan Area of Porto Alegre in the context of current Brazilian urbanization and metropolization processes. First, the metropolization of Porto Alegre is associated with the changes in the metropolization processes that take place worldwide and particularly in Latin America. These changes result from a wider process of internationalization of the capital, which emphasizes the service economy and financialization of the economy, and its impacts on real estate and urban production of Latin America major cities. Thereafter, the specificities of the metropolization process in Porto Alegre and its metropolitan area are discussed, addressing the economic and social impacts of the transition of Brazilian capitalist development model during the last 30 years. Finally, we analyze the challenges posed to the administration of metropolitan space in the light of both the "Statute of the Metropolis", a recently enacted Brazilian law on territorial organization of metropolitan regions, and the political and social contradictions imposed by the new urban regime of accumulation observed in the metropolis.

Key-words:
Metropolization; Financialization; Urban Restructuring; Metropolitan Management; Porto Alegre Metropolitan Region