Ocupa Santo Amaro. Public spaces and grassroots of favelas. Morro Santo Amaro case study.

Abstract

The understanding of public spaces may differ rather than the one located in the North or South part of the globe, in a high or low-income area of the city. A global understanding of public space and democracy can be shifted to diverse perspectives once the public space can also be used as a tool for urban improvement and social inclusion. Considering the lack of public support and financial resources in determining areas of the world, certain communities embrace self- development through a bottom-up system. The grassroots groups are frequently the main actors for greater social changes in certain communities. The ones that seek community development through space interventions, can generate the thinking on how this type of action may promote social inclusion for low-income areas such as favelas.

A spatiality transformation through a bottom- up system might engage distinct matters. For instance, the remodeling of a small square on a favela through grassroots actions. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how the improvement of public spaces in low-income areas can promote community development. Complementarily, the work further investigates how grassroots may transform communities’ public spaces through an illustration of public spaces and grassroots in the case study, Morro Santo Amaro, a favela located in Rio de Janeiro.

The thesis is divided into two main parts. The first, embrace research on discussions of public spaces and grassroots. Furthermore, favelas’ contextualisation is enhanced to the matter as well as its historical research. During this first part, the work presents the Morro Santo Amaro case study through its public spaces and grassroots. All things considered, a summary of theoretical comprehensions within the context is presented. The second part of the thesis applies learnings from the first section as a base for the achievement of new proposals for the case. Nonetheless, a deeper description of the case is shown, as well as research findings, and planning proposals. Moreover, the planning proposals are based on a manifesto, a design for a small square at Santo Amaro, and a plan for action development.

The work was based on combined strategy research regarding a case study, in addition to planning proposals. Moreover, primarily theoretical research based on public spaces and grassroots is presented, followed by spatial, historical, and social research, as well as qualitative, and quantitative research on favelas. In addition, the case study material was gathered through observations of the site, interviews with grassroots and residents, and an online questionnaire with Santo Amaro’s locals.

Grassroots actions are the main factors in enabling greater scales of social changes within favelas and urban environments. Spatiality transformations planned within the community and by the community present higher potentialities for individual and community development. In light of that, the author seeks to propose spatial changes for the favela from which she is from. Nonetheless, a transformation of space may stimulate individual and collective possibilities, since favelas are communities formed by state negligence and territorial impacts, which finds enforcement from their historical, collective, and cultural identity.