Oportunidades e desafios para a internacionalização de Uruguaiana (rs) a partir do uso da paradiplomacia Transfronteiriça

Abstract

Paradiplomacy is the involvement of subnational entities in international relations through permanent or non-permanent contacts, and it becomes important as globalization has brought previously geographically distant dynamics into the local level. Within this context, this paper presents paradiplomacy as a tool for local development, aiming to identify elements for fostering this practice in the city of Uruguaiana (RS), located on the border between Brazil and Argentina. The methodology consisted of a qualitative bibliographic and documentary analysis, combined with an exploratory case study conducted through semi-structured interviews with actors from the public sector and entities from the civil sector that operate in the Municipal Council of Foreign Trade. As a result, it was found that the border city has an endogenous profile for paradiplomatic activities. However, challenges were also identified regarding coordinated action with the federal sphere and the need to transition from a view of the border as a space of conflict to a space of cooperation.