Zenólia ALMEIDA
PhD. Governador Valadares Academy of Letters, Minas Gerais, Brazil
zenalmeida@gmail.com
Inguelore SCHEUNEMAN
PhD. Assistant Professor retired from Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Brazil
inguelore@gmail.com
Teresa SEQUEIRA
PhD. Assistant Professor at Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), and Senior researcher at Centre for Transdisciplinary Development Studies (CETRAD), Vila Real, Portugal
tsequeir@utad.pt
Francisco DINIZ
PhD. Associate Professor with Abilitation retired from UTAD, and Senior researcher at CETRAD, Vila Real, Portugal
fdiniz@utad.pt
Abstract
The town of Governador Valadares went through several economic cycles throughout its history which led to the destruction of its forests and the depletion of its soil, causing poverty and stagnation. Socioeconomic indicators point out the actual stage of the town’s development. In order to fully understand what its inhabitants think about this reality, two separate researches were conducted: a) with students and teachers of both public and private secondary schools to assess their social awareness regarding the environment, their attitudes, values and social practices towards Rio Doce, as well as the town’s natural and cultural heritage; b) with stakeholders, opinion makers and other inhabitants to understand what they think about “the town we have” and their view of a suitable future for Governador Valadares; in other words, “the town we want to have in a near future”. The information gathered made it possible to make a SWOT analysis that can serve as an important basis for public policies targeting the town’s sustainable development. The final goal of the current study is to make a Master Plan for the Integrated Territory Management – ITM methodology.
Keywords: Territory, Social Perception, Integrated Management, Governance, Sustainability
JEL classification: R58, Q01, 021
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