The Social Dimensions of the Iron Quadrangle Region: An Educational Experience in Geodesign

Abstract

Mining brings about positive and negative changes for the residents of regions that are heavily dependent on such economic activity. In Brazil, the so-called Iron Quadrangle fits within a complex regional arrangement that results in various conflicts of interest between different stakeholders, which complicates decision-making processes regarding mining activities. In this article, we introduce geodesign as a methodological approach that could efficiently contribute to mediating these challenges and conflicts. We present an educational experience in geodesign conducted within the framework of a minicourse offered in 2019 to undergraduate students at a Brazilian university. The experience illustrates how students were able to use the framework of geodesign to propose projects and policies to be included in a sustainable development master plan for the Iron Quadrangle region. Specifically, to examine the social dimensions at play in an iron mining region, students applied Steinitz’s geodesign framework, premised on six main questions and six corresponding models. This case study contributes to the emerging literature on geodesign pedagogy by demonstrating the benefits of this process and proposing recommendations that are applicable not only in academia but also in real-world situations that would truly benefit from such an approach.

采矿业给严重依赖这种经济活动的地区的居民, 带来了积极和消极的变化。巴西的“铁四角”处于复杂的区域环境, 导致了不同利益相关者之间的各种利益冲突, 使采矿活动的决策过程变得复杂化。本文介绍了地学设计方法, 可能会有效地辅助调解这些挑战和冲突。我们展现了2019年在巴西一所大学的地学设计本科短课程的教学经验。经验表明, 学生们如何能利用地学设计框架, 为“铁四角”地区的可持续发展总体规划提供项目和政策。具体地, 为了研究在铁矿开采区发挥社会层面的作用, 以六个主要问题和六个相应的模型为前提, 学生们应用了斯坦尼茨的地学设计框架。本案例研究展示了这一过程的益处, 提出了不仅适用于学术界、也对现实情况有益的建议, 为新兴的地学设计教育研究做出了贡献。

La minería genera cambios tanto positivos como negativos para los habitantes de regiones altamente dependientes de tal actividad económica. En Brasil, el llamado Cuadrángulo del Hierro se encaja dentro de una disposición regional compleja que es el resultado de varios conflictos de interés entre diferentes actores, que complican los procesos de toma de decisiones en relación con las actividades mineras. Introducimos en este artículo el geodiseño, como enfoque metodológico que podría contribuir eficientemente a mediar en estos retos y situaciones conflictivas. Presentamos una experiencia educativa en geodiseño como parte de la estructura de un minicurso ofrecido en 2019 a estudiantes de pregrado en una universidad brasileña. La experiencia ilustra el modo como los estudiantes pudieron usar el marco de geodiseño para proponer proyectos y políticas destinadas a ser incluidos en un plan maestro de desarrollo sustentable para la región del Cuadrángulo de Hierro. Específicamente, para examinar las dimensiones sociales en juego en una región minera del hierro, los estudiantes aplicaron el marco de geodiseño de Steinitz a partir de las premisas de seis preguntas centrales y seis modelos correspondientes. Este estudio de caso contribuye a la literatura en desarrollo sobre una pedagogía del geodiseño demostrando los beneficios del proceso y proponiendo recomendaciones que sean aplicables no en situaciones académicas sino del mundo rea,l que verdaderamente se beneficiarían con tal enfoque.

Key Words:

• Brazil
• conflicts of interest
• decision-making processes
• geodesign
• mining applications

关键词:

• 巴西
• 利益冲突
• 决策过程
• 地学设计
• 采矿应用。

Palabras clave:

• aplicaciones de minería
• Brasil
• conflictos de interés
• geodiseño
• procesos de toma de decisiones

Acknowledgments

We are grateful for the very insightful and constructive comments made by three anonymous reviewers.

Notes

1 A total of eighty-eight diagrams were developed for the evaluation models: seventeen for culture, eleven for education, eight for housing, ten for basic sanitation, nine for health, eight for hew housing, nine for mining, nine for transportation, and seven for environment. From the total of eighty-eight, forty were policies and forty-eight were projects.

2 For this minicourse, the following target areas were defined by faculty: 7,000 ha for culture, 7,000 ha for education, 15,000 ha for housing, 15,000 ha for basic sanitation, 7,000 ha for health, 20,000 ha for new housing, 10,000 ha for mining, 10,000 ha for transportation, and 30,000 ha for environment.

3 GeodesignHub calculates and compares areas only for projects but not for policies. For this case study, the authors calculated the areas for all policies diagrams and included their values for the final design to understand how the final design matched with the target areas.

4 The final design had the following the number of diagrams per evaluation model: four for culture, six for education, three for housing, nine for basic sanitation, six for health, four for new housing, five for mining, five for transportation, and three for environment. Considering the forty-five diagrams included in the final design, the following evaluation models achieved the target area: health, mining, environment, basic sanitation, and transportation. Education, housing, new housing, and culture did not achieve the target area.

Additional information

Funding

We are grateful for the financial support from the Brazilian CNPq—National Council for Scientific and Technological Development—Universal Demand Call 1/2016, Process: 401066/2016-9.

Notes on contributors

Mônica A. Haddad

MÔNICA A. HADDAD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Community and Regional Planning at Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011. E-mail: [email protected]. She specializes in geographic information systems (GIS) and spatial analysis applications for planning issues. Environmental justice is the driving force of her scholarship, and she divides her research agenda into four themes: social justice, social development, environmental planning, and economic development.

Ana Clara Mourão Moura

ANA CLARA MOURÃO MOURA is a Full Professor in the Urban Planning Department at Federal University of Minas Gerais, 3013-140, Belo Horizonte, Brazil. E-mail: [email protected]. Her main research themes are landscape and urban planning, GIS, geodesign, and parametric modeling.

Vivian M. Cook

VIVIAN M. COOK is an MS Candidate in Community Development and Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011. E-mail: [email protected]. Her research explores how the arts can be used as a tool to encourage civic engagement in issues of social and environmental justice.

Thiago Lima e Lima

THIAGO LIMA E LIMA is an undergraduate student of Architecture and Urban Planning at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, 30130-141, Brazil. E-mail: [email protected]. His research interests include geospatial technologies applied to urban and landscape planning, public spaces, and walkability.