Banca de DEFESA: LARISSA LAYERR OLIVEIRA DE MEDEIROS E LIMA

Uma banca de DEFESA de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : LARISSA LAYERR OLIVEIRA DE MEDEIROS E LIMA
DATE: 18/12/2025
TIME: 09:00
LOCAL: Google Meet
TITLE:

Reconfiguring the smart city: a territorialized reading from Caicó-RN

KEY WORDS:

Smart Cities; Innovation; Semi-arid; Higher Education Institutions; Innovation Ecosystem.

PAGES: 196
BIG AREA: Ciências Humanas
AREA: Geografia
SUMMARY:

This study examines how public Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and the Local Innovation Ecosystem (LIE) contribute to transforming Caicó into a smart city. It considers both social demands and the territorial specificities of Brazil’s Semi-arid region. The research adopts a qualitative, exploratory, theoretical, and empirical approach. It includes a literature review on smart cities and regional development, a mapping of research groups in the CNPq Directory, and an analysis of the Pedagogical Project of Courses (PPCs) of local HEIs using the IRaMuTeQ software. The study also conducts semi-structured interviews with representatives from HEIs and the LIE, and applies a public opinion survey with residents of Caicó. The results show a predominance of technological fields in national scientific production. They also reveal a strong concentration of research in the South and Southeast of Brazil. These patterns highlight territorial inequalities in knowledge production and reinforce a technocratic focus in national smart city agendas. In Caicó, smart development policies are still in an early phase, and institutional actors show limited coordination. The analysis of the PPCs indicates that local HEIs emphasize social and territorial dimensions in their training approach. Technology and innovation appear only as complementary elements. This combination suggests potential for smarter development but also exposes important limitations. The LIE is still under consolidation and faces several challenges. These include the lack of effective regulation of municipal innovation policies and unstable participation from local government. The opinion survey shows that residents prioritize improvements in urban mobility. It also reveals low perceptions of safety for active transportation. Even so, the population recognizes that technology may improve quality of life and shows greater trust in universities than in municipal authorities when it comes to cooperation initiatives. The study concludes that Caicó’s transition toward a smart city requires a territorialized approach. This approach must integrate technology, social justice, and sustainability. It also needs to overcome the current lack of coordination among academia, the innovation ecosystem, and government. Strengthening mobility policies, expanding access to basic services, and establishing a municipal program for collaborative governance appear as strategic paths to promote more inclusive urban development adapted to the Semi-arid region.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - 1804177 - DIEGO SALOMAO CANDIDO DE OLIVEIRA SALVADOR
Interno - 1450055 - JOAO MANOEL DE VASCONCELOS FILHO
Externo à Instituição - GERSON GOMES DO NASCIMENTO - IFRN