Santarém (state of Pará): a case of metropolitan space under multiple determinations

Abstract The Metropolitan Region of Santarém illustrates an unusual metropolization pattern in which socio--spatial diversity satisfies both the metropolitan hegemonic profile and the Amazonian riverside origin. This article approaches coalitions created among economic agents of global capitalism, local elites and the public sector, and how the new correlation of forces favors the interests of the real estate and financial sectors, to the detriment of the local population, which, historically, has been wise in the management of their spaces. The trajectory of Santarém’s, Belterra’s, and Mojuí dos Campos’ municipality seats, when opposed to hundreds of rural settlements, reaffirms the limitations of the official institutionalization of this metropolitan region, excluding traditional communities and benefitting large capitalist agents, wasting innovative potentials that head towards a balance between the urban and the natural environment.