64 Curitiba Facts: History, Weather, Sustainability And More

Anusuya Mukherjee
Oct 24, 2023 By Anusuya Mukherjee
Originally Published on Mar 02, 2022
The city is believed to be among Latin America

Curitiba is a beautiful Brazilian city that is known for its history, weather, and sustainability.

It is the capital of the state of Parana and has a population of over 1.8 million people. Curitiba is known for its high quality of life, and its environmental measures have helped it become a reference city for the entire globe.

Curitiba, whose name comes from the Guarani language and means 'pinewood,' has a more green city compared to any other Brazilian city. It has 28 parks and 2152782083 sq ft (20 million sq m) of undeveloped land.

Most of Curitiba's parks have recovered and been turned into parks after being used for industrial or commercial purposes.

The country's official language is Portuguese, which is also the major language in municipal schools. Curitiba is the world's greenest and most sustainable metropolis, with 559 sq ft (52 sq m) of green area per inhabitant.

Many of the city's smaller parks are devoted to one of the city's many ethnic communities.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is included in the Gate Cultural Centre complex and is popularly known as the 'MUMA'. This Museum of Modern Art, which opened in May 1998 and has housed the works of many prominent artists, has lately undergone extensive renovations.

The Holocaust Museum in Curitiba, Paraná, which opened on February 12 this year, is the first of its sort in Brazil. Remembrance, documentation, research, and teaching are the four pillars on which the museum's operations are built.

Curitiba is an innovative city, and its urban design has resulted in poverty reduction as well as population increase, making it one of the world's top green cities.

Its per-capita income is 66 % greater than the national average, and its 30-year rate of economic growth is 3.1 % greater than the average.

Curitiba is a massive cultural, administrative, and economic center in Latin America, and it is home to the Federal University of Paraná, which was founded in 1912. Curitiba's advantageous location between cattle-breeding rural areas and markets resulted in a thriving cow market and the city's first big expansion in the 1700s.

Nowadays, the city does have a cosmopolitan feel to it and is considered Brazil's safest city. Curitiba seems to be the Brazilian capital with the highest quality of life and a diverse industrial hub, earning it the 4th biggest economy in the country and the biggest in the southern area.

The city is believed to be among Latin America's top five investment destinations and the world's 49th most influential city.

Where is Curitiba?

Curitiba is located in the state of Parana, Brazil. The Curitiba Metropolitan Area consists of Curitiba and its surrounding municipalities, which include Piraquara and Rolândia.

Curitiba's total population is over two million people! On the very first plateau of Paraná, the city occupies 166.86 sq mi (432.17 sq km).

Curitiba is a big city/town in Paraná, Brazil, in the continent/region of southern Brazil. Corityba, Curityba, Atuba, and Curytiba, are cities, towns, and settlements close to Curitiba. Joinville, So José, Ponta Grossa, and Blumenau are among the nearby significant cities.

The city is located on a plateau at an elevation of 3058 ft (932 m) above sea level.

The Afonso Pena International and Bacacheri airports serve the city, which is located west of Paranaguá's harbor.

Curitiba is situated in a region of Ombrophilous Mixed Forest (commonly known as Araucaria wet woods), an Atlantic forest sub-type.

Steppes, woodlands, and other landforms may be found in Curitiba.

The local vegetation is made up of relics of the Paraná (or Brazilian) pine (Araucaria Angustifolia), which have defied settlers' attempts.

Curitiba is considered to be a populous city in the affluent south region, with a strong German, Ukrainian, Italian, Russian, and Polish population.

The city's sophisticated public transportation system is well-known among urban planners across the world.

Curitiba's transportation system is both basic and functional. Express buses are the only mode of public transportation. Buses come in various shapes and sizes, each with its own purpose.

Driving in Curitiba may be challenging for individuals who are unfamiliar with the city's traffic, especially for newcomers.

Several one-way city streets, parking restrictions, and walkability and bus-only citizenship streets may be found in the downtown area.

Curitiba has nearly 38 mi (61 km) of bus lanes, making it a very popular mode of transportation. In the city center, most avenues are broad and have wide walkways, and they are typically set out in a grid layout.

Despite the fact that inhabitants and visitors to southern Brazil have a negative view of crime, common prudence may prevent the majority of violent incidents.

Curitiba is regarded as a generally secure city among Brazilians. Tourists should take certain steps to ensure that their visit is safe. The express buses are generally safe.

Curitiba's History

Curitiba was founded in 1693 by Portuguese settlers. The city has a rich history and is known for its cultural diversity.

Curitiba's economy is based on industry, trade, and services. The city is also home to Brazil's largest university, the University of Parana.

It began as a gold-mining settlement in 1654, but the handling of maté (tea) and timber products led to long-term expansion.

Curitiba became the state capital in 1854.

Curitiba has significant social, economic, and cultural resources in Latin America, as well as being the home of the Federal University of Paraná, which was founded in 1912.

Curitiba's advantageous placement between cattle-breeding rural markets resulted in thriving cow commerce as well as the city's first major enlargement in the 1700s. Between 1850 and 1950, it arose when the state of Paraná expanded its forestry and agricultural industries.

Waves of European immigrants, mostly Italians, Germans, Ukrainians, and Poles, came to Curitiba in the 1850s, boosting the city's important cultural development.

Only a tiny number of immigrants enter these days, mostly from the Middle East and South America.

Curitiba's most rapid growth happened after the '60s, thanks to smart, urban planning that enabled the city's population to rise from tens of thousands to over a million people.

In the '60s, Curitiba's population expanded to about 430,000 people.

Mayor Ivo Arzua published a request for bids in 1964 to equip Curitiba for future expansion.

Jamie Lerner led a bunch of young, optimistic designers from the Federal University of Paraná to respond.

Their proposal outlined ideas to curb urban sprawl, minimize downtown traffic, protect Curitiba's historic area, and make public transportation more accessible and inexpensive.

Curitiba has the fourth biggest economy in Brazil, depending on the industry and services.

Curitiba's economic expansion coincided with a large inflow of people from Brazilian cities in other regions of the nation since about 50% of the town's population was not raised there.

Curitiba's agriculture was merely for subsistence by the 17th century, and its major economic activity was mineral mining.

After 1850, waves of Poles, Italians, Germans (primarily from Russia), and Ukrainians flooded the country. In 1885, the Paranaguá-Curitiba railway was inaugurated.

Curitiba profited from the richness of the yerba mate factories around the turn of the 20th century.

Curitiba's Sustainable Measures

Curitiba is known for its sustainability initiatives which have made it a model city for the rest of the world.

Curitiba has a population of over one million people and is the capital of the state of Parana, Brazil.

When Jaime Lerner was elected mayor of Curitiba in 1972, he implemented his concept for smart development.

Curitiba's innovative urban design has resulted in poverty reduction as well as population increase, making it one of the world's top green cities.

Curitiba's population has expanded by 1,000 % in the previous 60 years, reaching a startling 2 million people.

With such rapid population growth and migrant population, wealth disparity and poverty would be expected in Curitiba.

Indeed, 10 to 15% of the population of Curitiba lives in inadequate housing.

This is really a trend that other significant cities in Brazil are following, as are cheap housing proposals.

This is also demonstrated by the city's above-average per-capita income.

These figures are anticipated to fall, allowing Curitiba to continue its poverty-relieving and environmental-sustainability mission.

Cidade Industrial de Curitiba, also known as an industrial district, is native to a number of global corporations, including Renault, Nissan, Volkswagen, Audi, Philip Morris, Volvo, Siemens, HSBC, ExxonMobil, Kraft Foods, and Electrolux. As well as this, the industrial district supports many other well-known national corporations.

Since 1968, the city seems to have had an urban master plan. It is a great example of how to manage urban growth in such a sustainable manner.

Social, economic, and environmental programs are all part of the master plan.

Urban expansion is limited to development corridors, which run parallel to major transportation routes. Only along bus lines are tall structures permitted.

Curitiba's economy is based on industry, trade, and services. Curitiba, the capital city of Brazil's state Parana, has long been an economic and cultural center in the region, having evolved from a 'sleepy' city covered by farmland to a magnet for European immigration in the 19th century.

Curitiba saw a watershed moment in the '40s when soybean farming became mechanized.

Curitiba's population quadrupled in 20 years, turning the city into a frantic metropolis.

When Jaime Lerner was elected mayor of Curitiba in 1972, he implemented his concept for a sustainable city.

Curitiba, in the Brazilian state of Parana, has introduced a number of innovative techniques to create jobs, increase public transit accessibility, encourage housing growth, and improve waste management.

The city has used a 'radial linear-branching plan' to maintain density by directing traffic away from the city center and to promote industrial growth along radial axes.

Curitiba has developed a Bus Rapid Transit System and the Curitiba Industrial City (CIC) in the city's western outskirts, which is governed by tight environmental rules and does not allow polluting enterprises.

Curitiba's public transport service was one of the city's most significant innovations. Curitiba has been able to maintain a speedy, affordable, and low-emission public transport system because of an express tourism bus line, with specifically constructed buses for quick boarding, and low and consistent ticket pricing.

Curitiba has cultivated 1.5 million trees as well as constructed 28 public parks since the '70s.

Curitiba surrounded the metropolitan area with areas of grass to fight flooding that had previously afflicted the city, saving itself the financial and environmental damage of dams.

Curitiba recycles over 70% of its rubbish owing to a scheme that allows residents to trade bus tokens, notebooks, and food for recycling.

This not only protects the environment but also improves education, food availability, and transportation for the city's underprivileged.

In Curitiba, the Free University for the Environment empowers and educates the city's underprivileged people.

Citizens may learn about the city's green design through signs and information panels.

The city's greenness may be maintained through fostering a culture of pleasure around sustainability and increasing knowledge.

Curitiba's Weather

The following section reveals the typical weather that can be experienced in Curitiba.

Curitiba experiences a humid, subtropical climate with four distinct seasons.

Curitiba is a city of over one million people and is the capital of the state of Parana, Brazil which is located on the equator.

Curitiba receives most of its rainfall during the summer months, while winters are cool and dry. The city's average temperature is 64 F (18 C).

Curitiba has an annual precipitation rate of approximately 23 in (58 cm) per year, which makes it one of the wettest cities in Brazil!

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Sources

https://borgenproject.org/sustainability-in-curitiba/#:~:text=Recycling: Curitiba recycles around 70transport for the city's poor.

https://www.tripfactory.com/trip/popular-museums-in-curitiba-21096

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curitiba#History

https://www.wunderground.com/weather/br/curitiba

https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&type=99&nr=57&menu=1449

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Written by Anusuya Mukherjee

Bachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights

Anusuya Mukherjee picture

Anusuya MukherjeeBachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights

With a wealth of international experience spanning Europe, Africa, North America, and the Middle East, Anusuya brings a unique perspective to her work as a Content Assistant and Content Updating Coordinator. She holds a law degree from India and has practiced law in India and Kuwait. Anusuya is a fan of rap music and enjoys a good cup of coffee in her free time. Currently, she is working on her novel, "Mr. Ivory Merchant".

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