City Branding e Etnografia Participativa no Sul Global: Evidências do Caso de Trinidad (Cuba)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17231/comsoc.49(2026).6799Palavras-chave:
desenvolvimento sustentável, city branding, etnografia participativa, identidade, Trinidad (Cuba)Resumo
Embora o city branding se tenha consolidado como um recurso estratégico para a projeção internacional das cidades, na prática, reproduz frequentemente abordagens hierárquicas dominadas por consultores especializados e elites urbanas, com uma participação cidadã limitada. Esta limitação é particularmente evidente no Sul Global, onde a participação é frequentemente reduzida a consultas simbólicas e meramente formais nas fases finais dos projetos, sendo ainda escassas as experiências metodológicas documentadas. Neste contexto, a cidade de Trinidad (Cuba), classificada como “património mundial” da Organização das Nações Unidas para a Educação, a Ciência e a Cultura e reconhecida pela sua riqueza cultural, natural e patrimonial, iniciou o processo de construção da sua marca-cidade. O presente artigo visa apresentar a experiência de construção participativa dessa marca, cuja inovação reside na utilização da etnografia participativa. Para o efeito, foi concebido um protocolo metodológico, posteriormente validado por um painel de peritos e implementado através da articulação entre ciclos de trabalho etnográfico participativo e reflexão crítica da equipa criativa profissional. Ao longo de três ciclos etnográficos, foram recolhidas mais de 1.200 contribuições de cidadãos, empresários, agentes culturais e representantes governamentais, seguindo o critério de saturação teórica por coortes. A proposta final de marca foi avaliada por um painel interdisciplinar de 20 peritos internacionais, que confirmaram tanto a sua validade como a robustez do procedimento metodológico. Para além de alcançar uma marca com elevado nível de apropriação social, os resultados destacam a participação ativa e a reflexividade crítica como meios para tornar visíveis e abordar tensões entre identidades híbridas, conflitos comunitários, critérios técnicos dos profissionais criativos e aspirações locais. O protocolo metodológico validado constitui uma contribuição inovadora, ao fornecer uma referência replicável e adaptável a diferentes contextos de governança urbana. O estudo contribui ainda para o debate teórico, ao apresentar diretrizes práticas para a implementação de um city branding participativo.
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Direitos de Autor (c) 2026 Yánder Castillo Salina, Jose Angel Yañez Reyes
Este trabalho encontra-se publicado com a Licença Internacional Creative Commons Atribuição 4.0.
Os autores são titulares dos direitos de autor, concedendo à revista o direito de primeira publicação. O trabalho é licenciado com uma Licença Creative Commons - Atribuição 4.0 Internacional.
