Local power, democracy and territory: what can be learned from the experience of Arts CEU Jardim Ana Maria.
The second half of the twentieth century is characterized by the expansion of democratic regimes in Latin America. In Brazil this period begins from the promulgation of the Federal Constitution of 1988. 30 years later that same country is in the midst of a political and economic crisis which favors the increase of citizens indifferent to the regime of government, and the decrease supports Democracy. This thesis aims to look at the study of public policies from civil society, in order to verify how local practices can contribute to the current debate about the democratic crisis in Brazil. Although several works in the field of publics discuss how local management experiences contribute to the agenda of studies on local power and participation, this study aims to investigate how these practices can shed light on possible alternative ways to face current political reality. Based on the existing State-Society relationship in the production of public culture policies, this dissertation aims to carry out a case study on Arts CEU Jardim Ana Maria, in Santo André, São Paulo, in order to verify if the way practices are developed in this equipment, as well as the organization of the actors involved, can contribute to the debate on strengthening democracy from the local / territorial dimension.