Maringá and Higher Education institutions: new spaces for concentration and exclusion

Abstract

This article discusses the transformations occurring in the urban space of Maringá, emphasizing the changes occurring since the implementation of Higher Education institutions. The study is based on indicator of the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics and of the National Institute of Studies and Research, as well as on a bibliographical review which discusses the expansion of higher education, the urban recentralization in Brazil and in the State of Paraná, and the urban space. As these institutions became more numerous, Maringá consolidated itself as an educational and cultural center, causing deep changes in the (re)production of urban space and its respective contents. As a consequence, the city began attracting an increasing number of university candidates and academics from other cities in Paraná and even from other Brazilian states. Those students made use of housing, services, infra-structure, commerce, leisure, and thus, they caused significant economical, social, political and geo-spatial transformations.