Right to the City and Public Policies: Current Perspectives of the Judicialization of Environmental Sanitation Policies in Brazil

Abstract

The paper aims to make a reflection about the need of recognizing the right to the city as a fundamental right associated with the constitutional principles of the dignity of the human being, the social function of the city and the protection of the environment. In this context, the article will pinpoint the challenges of the contemporary city, emphasizing its urbanization process thought through a capitalist view and the necessity to guarantee the right to the city to all citizens, in special, through the fulfillment of the right to an environmental sanitation, having as parameters to this implementation the principle of sustainability and the concept of smart cities in order to equalize the need of economic development and the protection of the environment. Moreover, the paper will explore, briefly, how the brazilian superior courts have positioned themselves upon the recognition of the right to the city as a fundamental right and analyze a leading case from brazilian jurisdiction regarding the compulsory implementation of public politics to improve the quality of the water supply and sanitary sewage system, pointing out how the brazilian legislation treats the basic environmental sanitation system due to the educational environmental constitutional principle.