Abstract

Considering social, economic and demographic issues, living in the city implies inadequate living conditions, social exclusion, inequities and other problems to the population. At the same time, the city is a setting of cultural, social and affective production. As a result, there is a need to reflect on the right to the city and its relationship with promoting the health of its inhabitants. To that effect, urban agendas have been developed to address the city's ambiguity. This paper aims to analyze four of these agendas through the lenses of Health Promotion. A qualitative document review approach was conducted on urban agendas proposed by international organizations and applied to the Brazilian context: Healthy Cities, Sustainable Cities, Smart Cities and Educating Cities. Results indicate some level of effort by the analyzed agendas to assume social participation, intersectoriality and the territory as central to addressing exclusion and inequities. However, more in-depth discussions are required on each of these concepts. We conclude that urban agendas can contribute greatly toward consolidating the right to the city, provided that their underpinning concepts are critically comprehended.

Key words
City planning; Health promotion; Equity; Public policies; Healthy cities

Introduction

City life has been the subject of intense debate in recent decades. Global trends point to demographic, environmental, social and economic problems that are exacerbated by how life is organized and produced in cities. At the same time, cities are recognized cultural, intellectual, technological, productive and organizational centers and also serve as human and social development drivers.

Inequity and exclusion are critical issues in the development of cities, yet they are the most commonly overlooked or superficially addressed¹1. United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Human Development Report 2016. New York: UNDP, [report Internet] 2016 [cited 2016 Jun 5], Available from: http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/2016_human_development_report.pdf
http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/... . The concept of the right to the city prompts a new look at urban agendas and policies by emphasizing that everyone, especially vulnerable and marginalized groups, has a right to the city itself and the right to shape and transform it. City planning has the potential to address complex issues in an integrated manner and provide a gateway to building new development models and experiment with new policies and interventions. The urban focus brings a reflection on the context (territory, time and space) that is mirrored in the city's social and political organization and allows thinking about how to influence political decisions and actions that occur in and for the city.

Fernandes and Meirinhos²2. Fernandes JA, Meirinhos JF. Cidades ideais, ideais de cidade, cidades reais. In: Pereira PC, editores. A Filosofia e a Cidade. Porto: Campo das Letras; 2008. p. 127-157. understand that, when faced with the dilemma between “ideal cities” and “real cities”, ideal cities serve as theoretical devices to address problems of real cities. On the other hand, Rodrigues³3. Rodrigues AM. A Cidade como Direito. Revista Eletrônica de Geografia e Ciências Sociais 2007; XI 245(33). points out that:

The city as a right is based on real life, the concrete space and the now. On the contrary, space and time are abstractions in the ideals of the ideal city. It reflects the thinking of planners, managers and decision-makers. Problems are model deviations, solvable with new types of planning and use of new technologies. Advances in technology articulate forms and contents of and in the city, but they do not “produce” the ideal city, although they trigger transformations in the real city.

From this proposition and the effect that urban agendas can have on the “real” city, this article examines how certain urban agendas approach key elements of the right to the city concept: equity, social inclusion, social participation and focus on the territory.

Right to the city

The city understood as the setting where human social life is constructed, leads to what Lefebvre has called the “right to the city”⁴4. Lefebvre H. O direito à cidade. São Paulo: Centauro; 2001.. Urban life presupposes the coexistence of ideological, political and lifestyle differences. However, the capitalist structure that prioritizes consumption expels the proletariat from the city and establishes suburbs. The notion of habitat as a place of social life is lost, also pushing away its creative capacity⁵5. Sanches JR. O direito à cidade. Revista do Direito Público 2017; 12(1):318-321.. Lefebvre argues that the discussion of the right to the city allows for new thinking and new horizons⁴4. Lefebvre H. O direito à cidade. São Paulo: Centauro; 2001..

Rolnik and Klink⁶6. Rolnik R, Klink J. Crescimento econômico e desenvolvimento urbano: por que nossas cidades continuam tão precárias?. Novos Estudos CEBRAP [periódico na internet].2001 [cited 2016 Jun 5]; (89):89-109. Available from: https://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0101-33002011000100006
https://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0101-3300201... say that cities are challenged by the economic dynamics of the territory. Urban growth based on economic discourse generates socio-spatial disparities, environmental degradation and inefficiency. In addition to expanded urban infrastructure, it is necessary to discuss the relationships between economic dynamics and urbanization conditions.

In the field of law, the main issue is the assurance of the right to the city for all, without exclusion or segregation. Mello⁷7. Mello CA. Elementos para uma teoria jurídica do direito à cidade. Revista de Direito da Cidade. 2017; 09(2):437-462. says that the right to the city is a new theme in the legal field, a kind of collective or community right, consisting of a complex normative content that requires understanding the right to a fair city. It is up to the legal field to explore this right in order to consolidate the ideal of a decent urban life for all.

The joviality of the “right to the city” theme generates a need for further studies in order to better apply it, especially after the UN employed the term at the HABITAT III conference, adopting different meanings, which may lead to a weakened proposal⁸8. United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development. The New Urban Agenda. In: Conferência Habitat III. 2016; Outubro. Quito, Equador.

The withdrawal of the subject from social settings leads the discussion of the right to the city to the concept of exclusion. According to Lopes and Fabris⁹9. Lopes MC, Fabris EH. Inclusão & educação. Belo Horizonte: Autêntica; 2013., the advance of economic discourse to the detriment of the idea of social rights has put what is different on the outside: what differs is excluded in favor of an idealized hegemonic culture.

Another central concept is that of equity, which can be analogous to the concepts of social justice and citizenship rights. As a tool, the health promotion framework emphasizes social participation, intersectoriality, a differentiated approach to marginalized and vulnerable group, and a focus on subjects and territories. Considering the connectivities between the concept of the right to the city and health promotion framework, it is significant to understand how some key and transversal elements are incorporated into urban agendas.

Urban agendas

City planning calls for a look into growing social, economic and environmental tensions. It is important to pay attention to the development of urban agendas that dispute institutional and political spaces, considering their potential to influence the thinking of decision-makers and city life planning.

Urban agendas can influence cities, for example, by promoting the introduction of strategic approaches into planning and management logics, influencing how politicians and decision makers think about the city and its processes, giving political impetus and legitimacy to priority issues, or shifting cities’ capacities to achieve goals such as sustainable development.

On the other hand, urban agendas may reflect the fragmented nature of public administrations and address urban segments (health, housing, transport, etc.). Although they recognize critical problems, such as inequity and inequality, they do not always point to methodological proposals to address them. Several models are proposed by international organizations, and their relevance to the local level needs to be considered. They are also traversed by the interests of funding agencies or expert opinions. One must also understand their presuppositions: what model of human and social development and what conception of subject and citizenship do they consider?

Methodology

The paper presents a descriptive and exploratory review of urban agendas proposed by international organizations and adopted in Brazilian contexts. It applies a qualitative approach and document analyses procedures. It is not an exhaustive review of all urban agendas, but of a selection to point out ways to build a framework for the analysis of urban agendas in the context of the right to the city. In Brazil, agendas were implemented in some cities; however, this research did not intend to review or evaluate these experiences.

Agendas were identified between June and August 2017 through free internet search and by consulting the website of international organizations. Inclusion criteria were as follows:

• Proposed or led by international institutions;

• Proposes a theoretical and methodological framework for city development;

• Proposes a development agenda for the city as a whole, not focused on specific populations;

• Has experiences implemented in Brazil during the research period;

• Has guidance documents from the managing institutions available on the web.

The free search on the web identified 12 agendas (Chart 1). Four agendas met the criteria: Healthy Cities, Sustainable Cities, Smart Cities and Educating Cities.

One methodological limitation was to not carry out a review of bibliography and other materials on each agenda, which could reveal more information about different approaches within their scope.

Once agendas were defined, we selected one or two institutions involved in its promotion and reviewed the materials they prepared. We considered official materials (letters, declarations) and information from the website of the proposing organization, based on the question: how does the agenda consider the principles of intersectoriality, equity, social participation, social inclusion and relationship with the territory?

Results

Smart Cities

The “Smart Cities” movement has gained momentum in recent years. Despite divergences over its concept, the definitions have in common the use of technology and innovation for city planning and management, the development of urban infrastructure, sustainable economic growth and improved quality of life. They allude to the potential of modern, creative, dynamic, connected, prosperous and efficient cities. Technology would be the engine of society's transformation and a key tool to meet the needs of the population. Brazilian cities that implement Smart Cities’ actions are Rio de Janeiro, Vitória and Florianópolis¹⁰10. Bouskela M, Casseb M, Bassi S, De Luca C, Facchina M. Caminho para as smart cities: da gestão tradicional para a cidade inteligente. Washington: BID; 2016. [acessado 2017 Jun 04]. Disponível em: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/7743/Caminho-para-as-smart-cities-Da-gestao-tradicional-para-a-cidade-in-teligente.pdf?sequence=12&isAllowed=y
https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/... .

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) coordinates the “Emerging and Sustainable Cities” initiative that promotes Smart Cities’ projects in 10 cities, including Rio de Janeiro. The World Bank has set up a Working Group on Smart Cities to guide governments and other stakeholders in the development of Smart Cities¹¹11. Banco Mundial. The Smart Cities KSB [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: https://collabora-tion.worldbank.org/groups/the-smart-cities
https://collabora-tion.worldbank.org/gro... . We examined the IDB publication, “Path to smart cities: from traditional management to a smart city”¹⁰10. Bouskela M, Casseb M, Bassi S, De Luca C, Facchina M. Caminho para as smart cities: da gestão tradicional para a cidade inteligente. Washington: BID; 2016. [acessado 2017 Jun 04]. Disponível em: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/7743/Caminho-para-as-smart-cities-Da-gestao-tradicional-para-a-cidade-in-teligente.pdf?sequence=12&isAllowed=y
https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/... and materials from the Smart Cities Working Group website¹¹11. Banco Mundial. The Smart Cities KSB [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: https://collabora-tion.worldbank.org/groups/the-smart-cities
https://collabora-tion.worldbank.org/gro... .

The IDB defines Smart City as “one that puts people at the core of development and information and communication technologies in urban management and uses these elements as tools to stimulate the design of an effective government that includes collaborative planning and citizen participation. By promoting integrated and sustainable development, Smart Cities become more innovative, competitive, attractive and resilient, thereby improving lives”¹⁰10. Bouskela M, Casseb M, Bassi S, De Luca C, Facchina M. Caminho para as smart cities: da gestão tradicional para a cidade inteligente. Washington: BID; 2016. [acessado 2017 Jun 04]. Disponível em: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/7743/Caminho-para-as-smart-cities-Da-gestao-tradicional-para-a-cidade-in-teligente.pdf?sequence=12&isAllowed=y
https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/... .

The World Bank says that Smart Cities “use innovative information and technologies to improve the quality of life of their citizens, reduce poverty and boost the prosperity of their citizens, increasing the efficiency and transparency of their urban operations and services.” The main areas of urban development are energy, transportation, water and waste management, housing, social themes, government and finance¹²12. Banco Mundial. The Smart Cities KSB Brochure [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: https://collaboration.worldbank.org/docs/DOC-23032
https://collaboration.worldbank.org/docs... .

Both proposals emphasize collaboration and multisectoriality as fundamental elements of the management and long-term planning of Smart Cities. Stakeholders mentioned include public and private sector, academia, citizens, civil society, entrepreneurs and specialized professionals. They underscore the exchange of experiences and mutual learning and emphasize the establishment of public-private partnerships as the basis for innovation and development of infrastructure and urban services. The leadership of local governments is highlighted, but with an important role of private initiative and entrepreneurship for the search and implementation of technological solutions.

Little emphasis is given to issues of equity, social justice, inequalities and social inclusion as the basis or a core value to build a Smart City. The IDB proposal refers to the implementation of urban management and governance strategies that improve the lives of “all social classes”¹⁰10. Bouskela M, Casseb M, Bassi S, De Luca C, Facchina M. Caminho para as smart cities: da gestão tradicional para a cidade inteligente. Washington: BID; 2016. [acessado 2017 Jun 04]. Disponível em: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/7743/Caminho-para-as-smart-cities-Da-gestao-tradicional-para-a-cidade-in-teligente.pdf?sequence=12&isAllowed=y
https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/... . People are identified as “beneficiaries and participants in the transformations of the city”¹⁰10. Bouskela M, Casseb M, Bassi S, De Luca C, Facchina M. Caminho para as smart cities: da gestão tradicional para a cidade inteligente. Washington: BID; 2016. [acessado 2017 Jun 04]. Disponível em: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/7743/Caminho-para-as-smart-cities-Da-gestao-tradicional-para-a-cidade-in-teligente.pdf?sequence=12&isAllowed=y
https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/... .

Social inclusion would be associated with digital inclusion, which would “enable citizens to participate actively through the use of electronic equipment and applications that would allow monitoring and collaboration in the transformative actions carried out by city leaders and governors”¹⁰10. Bouskela M, Casseb M, Bassi S, De Luca C, Facchina M. Caminho para as smart cities: da gestão tradicional para a cidade inteligente. Washington: BID; 2016. [acessado 2017 Jun 04]. Disponível em: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/7743/Caminho-para-as-smart-cities-Da-gestao-tradicional-para-a-cidade-in-teligente.pdf?sequence=12&isAllowed=y
https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/... . Decreased inequality would result from the creation of jobs associated with technology. The World Bank emphasizes interventions focused on reducing poverty and promoting prosperity. The strategies proposed by the World Bank focus on technological measures that optimize time and cost of urban services for families and companies and with a special focus on how they affect the poorest¹¹11. Banco Mundial. The Smart Cities KSB [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: https://collabora-tion.worldbank.org/groups/the-smart-cities
https://collabora-tion.worldbank.org/gro... . It proposes the “empowerment of citizens and stakeholders” through technology that enables active participation in the planning and definition of solutions based on transparency and feedback on the quality of services.

Social participation is quoted in both materials as essential in defining issues and seeking solutions. Mechanisms used as examples are related to the use of applications and digital inclusion.

Educating Cities

Since cities are strategic spaces for health promotion and the production of life, the “Educating Cities” agenda proposes actions with education as the driver of personal and collective development and improved coexistence and social cohesion.

The proposal builds on the principle that the task of educating is the responsibility of society; an Educating City defines itself as one that seizes and exploits the potential of the territory, transforming it into an educating capital. They are governed by principles of formative actions for the comprehensive development of all citizens in a lifelong educational process and from the relationship with the spaces and individuals of the municipality.

The Charter of Educating Cities and the consequent Declaration of Barcelona (1990), were born in the First International Congress of Educating Cities¹³13. Declaração de Barcelona. Carta das Cidades Educadoras. Genova: s.n.; 2004. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://comunidadesdeaprendiza-gem.org.br/cartadascidadeseducadoras.pdf
http://comunidadesdeaprendiza-gem.org.br... ^,1414. Declaração de Barcelona. Carta das cidades educadoras. Barcelona: s.n.; 1994. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://comunidadesdeaprendiza-gem.org.br/Cartadascidadeseducadoras.pdf.
http://comunidadesdeaprendiza-gem.org.br... . The proposal of Educating Cities is coordinated by the International Association of Educating Cities (IAEC)¹⁵15. Associação Internacional de Cidades Educadoras. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://www.edcities.org/
http://www.edcities.org/... . This lists that 470 cities from 36 countries signed the Charter of Principles. Brazilhas 14 EducatingCities: Belo Horizonte, Caxias do Sul, Guarulhos, Horizonte, Mauá, Porto Alegre, Santiago, Santo André, Santos, São Bernardo do Campo, São Carlos, São Paulo, Sorocaba and Vitória. The Apprentice City School Association supports the strategic actions developed in Brazil¹⁶16. Associação Escola Aprendiz [internet]. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://portal.aprendiz.uol.com.br/2015/05/07/5-cidades-educado-ras-que-transformaram-suas-realidades-locais-pelo-aprendizado/
http://portal.aprendiz.uol.com.br/2015/0... .

According to the Association, in order to be considered an Educating City, it is necessary to commit to the principles and assumptions established by the Charter: citizen participation; strengthening of the sense of belonging and preservation of cultural harmony; use of public space; and full attention to people and the promotion of sustainable practices in the school environment and its surroundings, in order to contribute to the development of students, families, communities and the city¹⁶16. Associação Escola Aprendiz [internet]. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://portal.aprendiz.uol.com.br/2015/05/07/5-cidades-educado-ras-que-transformaram-suas-realidades-locais-pelo-aprendizado/
http://portal.aprendiz.uol.com.br/2015/0... .

Aspects to be covered by the municipalities include the territory as a setting of construction and experimentation for the subjects; integration of knowledge among individuals, training, promotion and development; conditions for full equity; access to information and communication technologies; congregation between formal, non-formal and informal educational institutions for collaboration in teaching and learning of all; cooperation with institutions and research and study projects; urban planning; development of the educational potential of the city; recognizing the diversity of knowledge, culture and revival of local memory; and conception of education as a dynamic collectively-built social good.

The Charter of Educating Cities reinforces the concern with the mechanisms of exclusion and marginalization that affect the cities. It proposes the construction of inclusive, fair and participative cities, and highlights the creation of mechanisms that allow children and adolescents to fully experience their citizenship. It understands that comprehensive education, which addresses inequalities in the school environment and promotes better quality of education of the subjects, with priority to communities with greater vulnerability, points to a quality educational policy, with equity.

Healthy Cities

The Healthy Cities’ agenda builds on the health promotion approach that prioritizes sociopolitical actions with stakeholders beyond the health sector, integrated multi-sectoral experiences and dialogue. It emphasizes that mainstreaming health promotion in the spaces where people live requires thinking about the city where they live and circulate. The agenda is supported by the Ottawa Charter¹⁷17. Organização Mundial da Saúde (OMS). Carta de Ottawa para a Promoção da Saúde.; Ottawa: OMS;1986. [documento da internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://www.who.int/healthpromotion/conferences/previous/ottawa/en/
http://www.who.int/healthpromotion/confe... , and its strategic actions, namely, establishing healthy public policies; creating healthy environments and surroundings; empowerment and community action; development of personal skills and reorientation of health services.

As a strategy of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Healthy Cities agenda was born in the 1990s in Europe. Since the Bogota Conference in 1992, the need to adress inequities in Latin America has been highlighted in the ideals of health promotion, and the strategy has been renamed “Healthy Municipalities and Communities” (HMC), allowing a greater scope and uniqueness to the process in the Latin American context¹⁸18. Mendes R. Cidades saudáveis no Brasil e os processos participativos; os casos de Jundiaí e Maceió [tese]. São Paulo: USP; 2000..

In 2004, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) launched the document “Healthy Municipalities and Communities: A Guide for Mayors to Promote Quality of Life”¹⁹19. Organização Panamericana da Saúde (OPAS). Guia dos prefeitos para melhorar a qualidade de vida, 2004. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: www.paho.org/portuguese/AD/SDE/HS/guia_prefeitos.html
www.paho.org/portuguese/AD/SDE/HS/guia_p... , in which a healthy municipality is one that reaches a social pact between civil society, public management and other institutions to promote the health of the population, which requires changes in policies, legislation and services usually provided by the municipality.

The Guide orients the implementation of HMC from essential elements: public commitment between management, legislative power, NGOs, private sector and community in favor of HMC; strengthening social participation at all stages of the process; strategic planning, indicating the need to mobilize resources, support and cooperation; building consensus and forming partnerships; stimulation of the participation of other social sectors, beyond the health sector; formulation of sound public policies at the local, regional and national levels with opportunities to participate in decision-making processes, monitoring and evaluation of processes¹⁹19. Organização Panamericana da Saúde (OPAS). Guia dos prefeitos para melhorar a qualidade de vida, 2004. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: www.paho.org/portuguese/AD/SDE/HS/guia_prefeitos.html
www.paho.org/portuguese/AD/SDE/HS/guia_p... .

Countries in the Americas have taken ownership of this Guide, adapting it and developing their own guiding materials. These materials point to different conceptions of health promotion and its elements, but it was not the purpose of this work to review these materials.

In 2015, PAHO began to invest in revitalizing the HMC strategy. The objective is to update it based on the countries’ experiences over the last decades and to mobilize managers and local authorities for its implementation. The “Road to Shanghai” forum was held in 2016 with the participation of 12 Latin American countries, culminating in the Declaration of Santiago²⁰20. Organização Panamericana da Saúde (OPAS). Declaración de Santiago: Pre-Foro de Alcaldes de las Américas Camino a Shanghái 2016. Santiago: OPAS; 2016.. The Declaration sought to give political and legislative impetus to the HMC movement and was shown at the 9^th World Conference on Health Promotion in Shanghai, China, in 2016.

The Declaration recognizes health as a fundamental right, related to social, economic, human and sustainable development of communities and territories. To address inequities, it emphasizes the participation of local authorities and various sectors, and the participation and empowerment of communities. It also reinforces that local management is closer to the territory, assuming the need for regionalization. Health is understood as an indispensable factor for an equitable and sustainable society. It also assumes the need to build healthy environments that are conducive to social, physical and subjective development, enabling everyone to reach their potential for health and well-being²⁰20. Organização Panamericana da Saúde (OPAS). Declaración de Santiago: Pre-Foro de Alcaldes de las Américas Camino a Shanghái 2016. Santiago: OPAS; 2016..

According to the Declaration of Santiago, this HMC approach provides a practical and adaptable framework to foster health at all levels of local management. Thus, one must understand each city as unique and distinct, capable of determining the areas of action important to its reality. Finally, it recognizes that the transformative potential of the strategy is only achievable if built through the joint efforts of the different stakeholders in the territory, thus depending on the availability and capacity to seize opportunities to improve the health of current and future generations²⁰20. Organização Panamericana da Saúde (OPAS). Declaración de Santiago: Pre-Foro de Alcaldes de las Américas Camino a Shanghái 2016. Santiago: OPAS; 2016..

Sustainable Cities

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted in 2015²¹21. Organização das Nações Unidas (ONU). Sustainable Development Goals: 17 Goals to Transform our World [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustaina-ble-development-goals/
http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment... , is an ambitious global initiative to promote sustainable development by achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

In Brazil, the Sustainable Cities Program (SCP) seeks to promote the sustainable development agenda among Brazilian municipalities²²22. Programa Cidades Sustentáveis [internet]. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://www.cidadessustentaveis.org.br
http://www.cidadessustentaveis.org.br... . The Program has been implemented since 2011 and recently incorporated into its agenda the achievement of SDGs and commitments made at the COP-21. It is carried out by RedeNossa São Paulo, the Brazilian Social Network for Fair and Sustainable Cities and the Ethos Institute, with partners from the public and private sector and civil society organizations. We reviewed the material made available on the Program's website.

The SCP promotes actions for the “transition to sustainable development that integrates the social, environmental and ethical realms, based on an economy that is inclusive, green and responsible”²²22. Programa Cidades Sustentáveis [internet]. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://www.cidadessustentaveis.org.br
http://www.cidadessustentaveis.org.br... . It proposes a list of 260 indicators organized in 12 thematic axes. The proposal is geared to urban centers and seeks to influence public agendas and the action of elected representatives in the direction of the “sustainability agenda”. At the time of the research, the Platform listed 199 participating cities in Brazil.

The municipalities commit to carry out a municipal assessment based on a selection of the list of indicators and use this diagnosis to consolidate their Plan of Targets. Periodically, municipalities update information about their indicators on the SCP platform. Adherence to the Program occurs through the signing of a letter of commitment by the mayor; a version can be signed by council members for its legislature.

The thematic axes and associated indicators are broad and consider key issues to sustainable development: governance, equity, social justice, local economy, environmental sustainability, etc. The indicators derive from processes and results, pointing to the construction of sustainable mechanisms to achieve the desired impacts.

The SCP seeks to influence and direct the local agenda, but leaves it to the municipality to define mechanisms, policies and strategies to advance the achievement of indicators. Thus, it allows actions to be adapted and contextualized to the territory.

Regarding intersectoriality, mention is made about the importance of consulting and collaborating with other sectors in the construction of the Targets Plan (in fact, the elaboration of the Targets Plan is already an intersectoral process).

Social participation is emphasized in the thematic axes and in the construction of indicators as a cross-sectional value. The importance of consulting with society on the Targets Plans from public hearings, wide dissemination and mobilization of sectors is mentioned. The incorporation of participants’ suggestions into the Targets Plan is stressed.

The SCP recognizes that addressing the issue of inequality is key to approach sustainability and proposes the implementation of actions to address it, such as the occupation of territories with quality public equipment and services. There is a specific line of action on the theme: “Equity, Social Justice and Peace Culture”. Related indicators cover a wide range of topics: gender, violence, income, environmental impact and so forth, but unlike social participation, the promotion of equity is not integrated into the agenda as a cross-sectional issue.

Analysis

The agendas point to diverse models and understandings about the problems, potentialities and production of city life and spaces.

Intersectoriality

With regard to intersectoriality, all the proposals mention the importance of bringing together sectors and stakeholders in different stages. All emphasize leadership of local government in the process, which from the viewpoint of the right to the city is also essential. In the case of Sustainable Cities, the role of intersectorialityis identified at the time of planning the Targets Plan and the stance on the issue in the previous stages is unclear (definition of indicators and diagnosis). It indicates an understanding of intersectoriality as a timely tool in the processes and not as a cross-sectional principle in the construction of the agenda. In the case of Smart Cities, the role of the private sector and of public-private partnerships is emphasized, pointing to an influence of market logic and neoliberal models of development. One can reflect on what effects agendas with this approach could have on the outsourcing or privatization of public services and on the role of the state in ensuring the well-being of the population.

Educating Cities emphasize the exchange of experiences and knowledge at different levels of management and, above all, between formal and informal education, there are references on the need to coordinate among different sectors of government and society in a pact for human development.

In the Healthy Cities agenda, intersectoriality is the founding pillar and reaffirms references of the Ottawa Charter. It aims to attract other sectors and stakeholders relevant to the design, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of actions.

Equity

An important issue regarding equity, which appears in the reading of materials, is the diverse understandings about its concept, causes and models for addressing it. The production of equity in health relates to efforts focused on vulnerable populations or neglected health issues. In the field of education, the focus is in access to quality educational services. In Educating Cities, the concern is how to face inequalities, discussing access to quality education in different social strata; on the other hand, in Healthy Cities, by addressing the social determinants of health, the search for equity requires analyzing socioeconomic issues that affect the quality of life of the populations.

In the design of Smart Cities, equity is related to the implementation of economic growth and poverty reduction actions. Here we should reflect on the development models that underpin the basis of the agenda, which is that economic development will automatically lead to human development. This issue is controversial; if, on the one hand, economic growth can lead to improved household income, access to goods and services and improved quality of life, this same economic growth, with its exclusionary patterns, can lead to increased inequities and concentration of income if it is not accompanied by public social policies that mitigate these effects and better distribute the results of the economic growth generated²³23. Bacelar T. Desenvolvimento econômico e redução das desigualdades sociais. Entrevista a Maira Baracho [entrevista na internet]. Recife (PE):Portal Nordeste; 2013 Fev 13. [internet]. [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: http://dssbr.org/site/entrevistas/desenvolvimento-economico-e-reducao-das-desigualdades-sociais
http://dssbr.org/site/entrevistas/desenv... . Poverty reduction measures can be a key element for equitable urban development²⁴24. Brown A, Kristiansen A. Urban Policies and the Right to the City: Rights, responsibilities and citizenship. Paris: UNESCO; 2009.. However, the interface between economic growth and prosperity, improved quality of life and (economic and human) development, and the role of social public policies is unclear in the models analyzed.

The Smart Cities model proposes measures to address inequalities, interventions to improve access and quality of public services, digital inclusion and generation of technology-associated jobs. The proposal does not make linkages with other factors involved in the production of urban inequalities, such as access to basic services (sanitation, health and education), concentration of income among the richest strata of the population, among others. Some studies relate improved access and quality of health services with reduced racial inequalities²⁵25. Hone T, Rasella D, Barreto ML, Majeed A, Millett C. Association between expansion of primary healthcare and racial inequalities in mortality amenable to primary care in Brazil: A national longitudinal analysis. PLOS Medicine 2017; [periodico na internet] 14(5). [acessado 2017 Ago 25]. Disponível em: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1002306
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.100... . It would be interesting to understand the potential of technology within a Smart Cities framework, to strengthen access and quality of services in order to curb social inequities. Regarding social inclusion through digital inclusion, considering the lack of access to technology that still affects much of the world's population, a wide range of applications and platforms would be available only to a portion of the population, potentially increasing inequalities within and between cities. This apparent contradiction is not addressed in the revised materials.

In the case of Sustainable Cities, equity is not identified as a cross-sectional issue, but rather as part of lines of action and indicators. For example, it is not emphasized the identification of inequities in the assessment by giving greater visibility to marginalized or vulnerable groups in the construction of the targets plan. The issue of equity in social participation is not highlighted, for example, emphasizing that it should include marginalized groups or the most vulnerable. Since the SCP is based upon the monitoring of indicators and not from the construction of adopted strategies, an analysis of experiences could point out how municipalities are considering this matter.

Social participation

Social participation is part of all the agendas, but in different ways. In Sustainable Cities, participation is proposed as a cross-sectional aspect in the lines of action and indicators, but the participatory process is emphasized once a proposal of the Targets Plan has already been elaborated. This raises the issue of participation in the previous stages: definition of indicators and municipal assessment. A review of experiences could elucidate whether participating municipalities are being mindful about this issue.

In the Smart Cities materials, participation is set from a base of predefined “desirable” values: efficiency, connectivity, “intelligence” and entrepreneurship. From the standpoint of health promotion and the right to the city, values such as solidarity, strengthening of individuals and groups, respect for diversity, social justice, among others, are highglighted. This dispute over values require a more in-depth reflection. Are Smart City values in line with its inhabitants’ desires? Which development model established these values?

Worth questioning in the Smart City is the place given to the relationships and interactions between citizens, decision-makers and other stakeholders if everything is to be mediated by technology, and what is the place of concrete daily life experiences of subjects and groups in this construction.

Murgante and Borruso²⁶26. Murgante B, Borruso G. Cities and Smartness: a critical analysis of Opportunities and Risks. In: Murgante B, Borruso G, editors. Lecture Notes in Computer Science Book Series volume 7973. Internacional Conference on ComputationaI Science and its Applications 2013, Part III, LNCS 7973. Berlin: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg; 2013. p. 630-642. criticize the definition of “intelligence” when it comes to the city and question why this idea is linked to the technological issue. They say that the main role of Smart Cities would be to support better urban planning and to harmonize the different stakeholders, in a process facilitated by technology. That is, technology would be the tool connecting and facilitating relationships and interactions, not replacing them. The Smart City “would enable a platform for the activities that its citizens want to develop, linking the spaces of the past with those possible in the future, thus not focusing on applications only, but on the possibility of citizens to realize them”²⁶26. Murgante B, Borruso G. Cities and Smartness: a critical analysis of Opportunities and Risks. In: Murgante B, Borruso G, editors. Lecture Notes in Computer Science Book Series volume 7973. Internacional Conference on ComputationaI Science and its Applications 2013, Part III, LNCS 7973. Berlin: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg; 2013. p. 630-642..

Educating and Healthy Cities’ agendas affirm the need to increase community capacity to recognize and respond to city problems. The promotion of social participation is understood as the possibility and opportunity for the community to take ownership of its problems and exercise some control over them. However, it is not clear, in any of the agendas, how to reflect together with the community on their intervention capacity and they do not explain how to reach the different spheres involved.

Relationship with the territory

The agendas that discuss the territory are Educating, Sustainable and Healthy Cities. They assume that subjects are part of the process, considering their culture, their experiences and knowledge, respecting their diversity. However, the understanding of the concept in each agenda is not clear; education addresses educational settings, while health the expanded territory. It is necessary to better understand this scope.

The Sustainable Cities Program shares health promotion's core values. It is, however, an agenda based on the achievement of pre-determined indicators and it would be important to understand the effect of overlapping global and local priorities. If on the one hand, predetermination of themes for diagnosis and Targets Plans can provide visibility to themes central to sustainable urban development, on the other, they can shift focus from issues emanating from subjects and territories. What effect, if any, would the implementation of this agenda have on the territory's ability to identify its own priorities?

The indicators defined are relevant and comprehensive; it is not clear, however, how the selection of indicators by the municipal administration when joining the Program occurs: who defines and based on what criteria? This would be a key question from a perspective of the right to the city, considering that it is the starting point for the construction of the agenda and interventions in the territory; it would be essential to ensure that this process is participatory and relevant to the inhabitants of the territory from the outset.

The agenda of Educating Cities reinforces the importance of the territory in the consolidation of actions. Education as a core carries within itself the intention of sensitizing people on the oppression they are experiencing. It then includes the risk of prioritizing pre-conceived dominant values, as well as the risk of assuming that subjects to whom educational actions are addressed are devoid of knowledge and that they will achieve freedom through education.

Inclusion

All agendas discuss the importance of social inclusion. As they are international agendas, it is unclear whether it is to include the diversity of the territory or to convince subjects to think and act in pre-established formats. In the second hypothesis, for purposes of inclusion, we may be working towards the normalization of subjects’ conduct. A reflection would be as follows: do agendas move towards adjustment in an ideal city model or do they work for equity and respect for diversity, and are thus mediators of the process?

Conclusion

This study aimed to analyze how key themes for the framework of the Right to the City and Health Promotion are considered in four international urban agendas operating in the Brazilian contexts. It was based on the idea that these agendas influence public agendas, the definition of priorities, mechanisms and strategies and, thus, the development of cities and the lives of their inhabitants. It is important to understand how these agendas align with the precepts of the right to the city, hoping that they will be confluent models and reinforce a transforming participatory process in favor of equity and diversity.

Considering the number of municipalities in Brazil, few experiences are happening or being published. In future works, we should discuss what these are and the scope of these agendas. In order to think about the contributions of health promotion in the consolidation of the right to the city, it is important to conduct evaluative research and understand the scope of the agendas in the territory.

The discussion enable us to say that the four urban agendas provide us with clues as to how to produce health within the city. However, considerations are needed in order for them to better influence the right to the city: to have a common definition of the right to the city; to construct homogeneity between the different understandings of the concepts used; and to build opportunities for agreements among the agendas, considering their similarities and strengthening the power of the proposed right to the city.

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