Programa de Pós-Graduação em Planejamento Territorial e Desenvolvimento Socioambiental

Environmental Analysis and Management

The line of research Environmental Analysis and Management seeks to grasp and structure methodologies that integrate the environmental dimension into territorial planning and socioeconomic development. Historically, planning in Brazil was guided by a technocratic and economic approach, in which the environment was regarded as a resource to be exploited, without due concern for ecosystem sustainability.

Examples of this approach are clear in the intense exploitation of the Mixed Ombrophilous Forest, where Brazilian pine was extracted without considering the environmental and social impacts, and in coal mining in southern Santa Catarina, which left significant environmental liabilities, degrading soil and water resources. However, new territorial planning guidelines, supported by current environmental legislation, seek to correct this legacy and establish rather sustainable practices.

Currently, the environment is already addressed as a central element of planning, promoting a restorative approach to socio-environmental processes. Tools such as Ecological and Economic Zoning (EEZ) and environmental diagnostic and analysis methodologies play a key role in sustainable territorial management. The implementation of the EEZ requires an in-depth study of the potential, strengths, and weaknesses of various geographic areas, considering ecological, economic, and social aspects.

The main assumptions for efficient ecological and economic planning methodology include: Interconnected understanding of environmental and socioeconomic systems; Application of eco-development and ecoregional planning concepts; Interconnection of physical, ecological, economic, and social knowledge; Analysis of existing territorial plans, programs, and projects; and Use of cartographic methodologies appropriate to territorial planning goals.

Brazilian government agencies are still shifting between traditional planning and a rather sustainable and participatory model. Environmental Analysis and Management stands out by proposing methodologies for systematizing information and developing effective strategies for territorial planning. This line of research emphasizes the stages of inventory, diagnosis, mapping, and analysis of environmental and social processes, promoting an interconnected approach between physical and socioeconomic planning.

The advancement of geoprocessing technologies and Geographic Information Systems (Sistemas de Informação Geográfica [SIGs]) represents a major step in the systematization and interpretation of spatial data. These tools allow for the superposition of graphic and cartographic representations on geographic databases, making decision-making more efficient and informed. However, the mere availability of these technologies is not enough; it is key that their application be aligned with ecological and economic planning concepts and be accessible to municipal and regional administrations.

One of the challenges facing the implementation of advanced methodologies is the poor territorial management structure in many regions of Brazil and Latin America. Most municipalities lack the human and technological resources needed to deploy highly sophisticated and costly methodologies. Therefore, it is necessary to create intermediate strategies that can be incorporated into local public administrations.

Faced with this scenario, the Master's and Ph.D. courses in Territorial Planning and Socio-Environmental Development aim to prepare professionals capable of working in environmental management and territorial planning. The technical and scientific qualifications acquired allow researchers and managers to see the complexity of territories, interconnecting knowledge in planning, sustainability, and environmental governance.

Geographic spatial recognition is crucial for any efficient planning. Socio-environmental mapping, combined with advanced technologies, enables more integrated and participatory management. With the growing demand for intelligent spatial and territorial analysis systems, the use of GIS has become indispensable. It allows for the fusion of cartographic representations with georeferenced databases, making spatial analysis and decision-making at various scales easier.

In this way, the line of research Environmental Analysis and Management is consolidated as a major field for the formulation of public policy and sustainable territorial planning strategies, contributing to the interconnection of economic development and environmental preservation. It is consolidated as a key field for sustainable development, encompassing territories such as conservation units in their various categories and new territories for environmental analysis, such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Geoparks.

Territorial Planning and Social, Economic and Spatial Development

This line of research addresses territorial planning, seeking solutions aimed at social, economic, and spatial development. Therefore, the territorial planning process is based on a research proposal that addresses, theoretically and empirically, social, economic, and spatial processes, such as intra-urban or intra-regional imbalances. The approaches in these studies must be interconnected with the historical processes of establishment, making, and occupation of the territory in Brazil, analyzing the established forms and structures, as well as proposing forms of intervention aimed at developing depressed or stagnant regions, with a view to mitigating the social and economic imbalances materialized in the territory.

These imbalances and inequalities have their origin in the economic and urbanization models adopted in Brazil in recent decades, which have resulted in cities marked by spatial fragmentation and social and territorial exclusion and segregation. The lack of effective planning actions to control peripheral growth, associated with the profound inequality between poor areas – lacking urban development – ​​and rich areas – with a concentration of urban equipment and infrastructure –, deepens these disparities, reinforcing social injustice and making the right to the city unfeasible for everyone.

Most urban areas in all Brazilian regions, also in the State of Santa Catarina, are home to some form of poor human settlement, often remote, difficult to access, and lacking basic infrastructure and facilities. Thus, on one side of the territory, millions of Brazilians remain excluded from formal housing finance systems and from access to regularized and urbanized land; on the other, primarily in central city areas, many properties are vacant or underutilized. This economic and social duality reinforces exclusion and spatial segregation, creating hubs of poverty and segmenting cities into zones of poverty and wealth (such as gated communities). The urban territory thus becomes a site of conflicts that fuel violence and segregation, hindering the full exercise of citizenship and the flourishing of a dignified and interconnected urban life.

In small municipalities with up to 20,000 inhabitants – which, while home to less than 20% of the national population, represent around 73% of all municipalities –, had the lowest rates of socioeconomic development, as well as the greatest difficulties in territorial planning and management, and a continuing accumulation of social deficiencies. At the other end of the Santa Catarina urban network there are medium-sized urban agglomerations, which concentrate employment, political power, and relatively good quality of life indices, but which have been facing an intense process of infrastructure dismantling, breakdown of social relations, and increasing violence. In short, poor urban life exists in virtually all municipalities.

The same analysis applied to the urban and intra-urban scales also applies to the regional scale – another focus of this line of research. Both the territory of Santa Catarina and the Brazilian territory are marked by profound regional inequalities and imbalances, resulting in various levels of social, economic, and spatial development. In many cases, planning strategies have considered only economic aspects, usually aimed at attracting industrial ventures, which generate few jobs and limited revenue for regions and/or municipalities through the grant of tax incentives.

It is through this attentive look at the territories that planning issues are linked to social, economic, and spatial dynamics, with a view to some development that incorporates values ​​such as democracy, citizenship, and social justice.

Furthermore, it is increasingly urgent to incorporate environmental issues into territorial planning, especially in the context of climate crisis and recurring natural disasters. Sustainable land use, protection of permanent preservation areas, watershed management, and confrontation of socio-environmental vulnerabilities must be considered central elements in territorial planning processes, ensuring urban resilience and quality of life for the populations most exposed to risks.

A critical analysis of territorial governance models and current public policies is key for building more effective and democratic instruments for territorial management. This implies active participation of communities in decision-making processes, strengthening of municipal institutional capabilities, and interconnection between the local, regional, and national levels. Thus, this line of research contributes to developing applied knowledge that aims to change the Brazilian territorial reality in a fair, equitable, and sustainable way.