ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CHANGES THROUGH THE RETAIL EQUIPMENT. THE CASE OF EL RAVAL IN BARCELONA

Sergio Moreno Redón and Sergi Martínez i Rigol, University of Barcelona, Spain

 The main subject of this communication is to highlight the social and economic transformations in el Raval, a neighborhood of Barcelona. These transformations are related to a more general changes into the city, within the international city competition, and as adaptation to the global economic system dynamics. So, the main objective is, firstly, to clarify the social, economic and cultural contemporary changes through dynamics in retail shops. These are considered as relative indicators of those changes in application of the geographer Milton Santos’ theory. According Santos the local studies allow to understand and explain the global scale (Santos, 1996) and vice versa. Secondly, we want to show a new redefinition of the positions and contents of centerperiphery relationships inside our cities. The study case, el Raval, like many other European cities central districts, although is a social and cultural marginal periphery it has been beneficed by its central location. Currently has been "recovered" by some processes of gentrification (Martinez, 2000) or Centrification (Carreras, in press). These processes, are not natural transitions and they are creating some contradictions and social conflicts that require their analysis and comparison with other international cases. Moreover, in the case of el Raval these processes coincide with other social changes, especially those arising from the arrival of African and Asian immigrants and also the international tourists.