Study on Poverty in Urban Central Areas

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OBJECTIVES: To identify and outline the social and economic dimension and components of poverty in cities' downtown areas and their impact on the sustainable management of these areas. The research will suggest possible strategies and operative actions for poverty reduction accomplishments. Consequently the project will focus on: a. Identifying the specific issues that urban central areas are facing and possible actions to undertake; b. Identifying best-practice policies in order to stimulate an economic reconstruction pattern for the affected communities; c. Identifying actions that being implemented in the downtowns areas, will extend their impact on poverty reduction and alleviation at the metropolitan level. d. Determining the willingness of specific countries', local governments and/or national social groups' to engage themselves in such best practice. DESCRIPTION: This project will be structured in three stages: 1) General analysis and elaboration of a reference framework on urban poverty in Latin Americas' downtown areas; 2) Development of case studies; 3) Elaboration of a final document including the results of the case studies and the identification of possible strategies and actions. The organization of the research for the Project will deal with academic institutions, national actors and associations, national and international institutions. In the elaboration of the principal document, such as for each case study, the research related to the present Project shall check the following elements: a. Analysis of the specific characteristics of downtown areas' poverty: residents, user and workers; identification of eventual specific connections between groups (social, ethnic root, activities, etc); b. Identify the level of marginality / integration of these groups in the context of the area and of the rest of the city; c. The relationship between " traditional poverty" and "new poverty"; d. The downtown poverty's impact on the social balance of the affected cities (considered by the perspective of their dimension). e. Definition of a possible connection (if any) between globalization process and downtown areas poverty.