Urban Dinamics and Reserchs of the Center of Landscape Studies in the Water Suplies Area

Abstract

This paper presents the researchers developed at the Center for Landscape Study (NEP) focused on important water source areas for public supply – the Guarapiranga and Billings reservoirs. The studies regard different analysis scales and align with the necessity to comprehend the urban and environmental processes, besides the social participation. Diverse methods are used, including field work, thematic and stakeholders mapping, interviews and participant observation, in order to discuss the regional landscape changes and it’s caused conflicts, correlating them with the local scales. The results of such researches reinforce the urgency of actions directed to the socioenvironmental and urban quality improvement on the area, the necessity to enlarge the team to collaborative works with local groups, considering the complexity and the scope of the urban and environmental phenomenon. Thereby, it’s possible to bring new comprehension of the processes, as well as to illuminate and expound aspects which contributes to the analysis of public policies implications and of the urban construction processes, of its political contexts, and to clarify the actual conditions for effective popular participation on planning and management of urbanized water source areas for public supply.