Brazil holds the second-largest global reserve of rare earths amid competition between China and the US

Oppo demonstrated interest in the Brazilian market by obtaining certification for another accessory, specifically a powerful power bank.

This accessory, identified by model code PBSV05, has a typical capacity of 12,000 mAh. It supports fast charging up to 100W using Oppo/Realme/OnePlus SuperVOOC technology, in addition to offering 45W for USB-PD compatible devices from other brands (this capacity is also used to recharge the power bank itself).

The National Telecommunications Agency issued the certificate for this product on Wednesday, the 21st.

Although not a new release, the item had already been made available globally in 2024 and received a special Year of the Horse edition in China in January. Its design is characterized by a division between plastic (usually white) and a section that appears to be anodized aluminum, usually silver, although there are variations in other countries.

Internally, the device features three nominal 4,100 mAh cells, which enables the high charging speed. It has two USB ports: one USB-A and one USB-C, the latter being used both to charge devices via a USB-C cable and to recharge the power bank. The packaging will include a USB-A to USB-C cable.

The manufacturing of this model is the responsibility of Aohai Technology, located in Dongguan, China. This same model is also sold in certain nations under the OnePlus brand, featuring a black plastic part, but it is the same product.

Currently, there is no information available regarding the product's arrival date in Brazil or its price. As a comparative reference, the Samsung 10,000 mAh and 25 Watt power bank is being sold for R$ 141.55 upfront in the online store.

China, the world leader in the automotive sector and the main vehicle exporter, is reforming its urban planning using a concept implemented by Curitiba since the 1970s: Transit-Oriented Development (TOD). This model aims to reduce dependence on private automobiles for daily commutes.

This paradigm gained prominence in the country over the last two decades and has been elevated to a national strategy in the plans of the Communist Party and the State Council for transport. Such plans require the integration of stations with the urban fabric and the reservation of adjacent areas for new developments. In Beijing, for example, it is mandatory that at least 60% of the area within a 500-meter radius of stations features mixed-use zoning.

The essence of the TOD proposal lies in concentrating housing, offices, commercial establishments, schools, and other services near train and subway stations. By reducing the need for long car journeys, the goal is to mitigate congestion and pollutant emissions, as well as control unplanned urban sprawl.

This method contrasts with traditional planning, which historically prioritized large avenues, parking lots, and neighborhoods distant from city centers, making the car essential for almost all activities. In contrast, TOD promotes the integration between different modes of transport, including intermodal stations, pedestrian paths, and bike lanes.

Other cities such as Copenhagen, Denmark, and Tokyo, Japan, have used this approach for decades, but the Paraná capital is among the global pioneers.

The idea emerged during a period of rapid population growth; the city's population nearly doubled in the 1960s, rising from 361,000 to 624,000 inhabitants. To prevent uncontrolled expansion, the master plan approved in 1966 stipulated that Curitiba should grow in straight lines radiating from the center, defining the so-called structural axes.

Architect Jaime Lerner was the one who materialized this plan, having assisted in the creation of the municipal planning institute and being appointed mayor in 1971. In 1974, he inaugurated exclusive bus lanes, a precursor to the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) system.

At that time, Lerner reported that the prevailing understanding was that cities with a million inhabitants would require a subway. However, Curitiba chose to structure its growth around the bus system. Along these axes, the city government permitted the construction of taller buildings, bringing housing, commerce, and offices close to the lanes. Previously, in 1972, Rua XV de Novembro had already been closed to cars, establishing the country's first pedestrian walkway.

Currently, the city has over 80 km of bus lanes, which accommodate 65% of public transport users, and approximately 200 global municipalities have adopted solutions inspired by the Curitiba experience.

China is applying this concept on an unprecedented scale, although there is a distinction compared to Curitiba: in the Chinese case, the central axis of the model is the tracks, supported by a vast network comprising thousands of kilometers of metro and high-speed rail lines.

By the end of 2025, 58 Chinese cities had urban rail systems, totaling 382 lines and over 13,000 kilometers, according to data from the China Metro Association. These systems recorded 33 billion trips that year.

In Shenzhen, new neighborhoods are being developed under the aegis of TOD. Xiong'an, a city planned virtually from scratch about 100 km from Beijing, integrated the concept from its conception.

It is important to note that this new model does not imply that China will abandon vehicles, given that the automotive industry remains crucial to its economy. The change lies in the function of vehicles in the cities, which begin to share space with public transport.

This month's thematic review of Brazil explores the intersection of architecture and urban development with issues such as housing construction, education, public spaces, and mobility across the country.

The selection includes information on an indigenous village in Marica recognized by UN-Habitat for its approach to adequate housing; editorial articles analyzing university campuses and planned cities as structures for collective life; and projects ranging from an airport expansion with a wooden structure to a commercial building in São Paulo interacting with public space, and a landscape-formed residential house.

It also covers a proposed design for the new Itaú Cultural headquarters on Avenida Paulista, international recognition for two Brazilian landscape projects, and a national diagnosis indicating persistent gaps in pedestrian infrastructure and road safety.

Recognition of Indigenous Village in Brazil by UN-Habitat for Adequate Housing Approach

The UN-Habitat Parchment of Honor Award 2026 was granted to Aldeia do Espraiado – Tecoa Ara Hovi in Marica, Rio de Janeiro state, as part of an international selection of initiatives aimed at ensuring adequate housing and sustainable urban development.

This settlement is the first indigenous village in Brazil created by a municipality. It provides a permanent home to the Guarani Mbya community, whose 13 families moved there in early 2025. Previously, they lived in a state park without land legalization or access to basic services, but now the community has traditional homes, a bilingual school, a medical post, a cultural center, a communal kitchen, and water supply.

The initiative, developed with the community's participation, combines municipal investment with traditional building methods, linking housing provision to land security, cultural continuity, and access to vital services.

From Educational Spaces to Planned City

An editorial article examining how 10 Brazilian universities are rethinking learning space explores how university architecture in Brazil goes beyond the classroom, shaping relationships between learning, collective life, and the city.

Using the example of the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism at the University of São Paulo, designed by Vilanova Artigas and Carlos Casaldi in 1961, the analysis covers ten projects that view the campus as a space for interaction and urban integration.

Examples include the Unisinos campus in Porto Alegre, developed by the AT Arquitetura bureau, which occupies an entire block, and the Unileão educational pavilions in Juazeiro do Norte, by the Lins Arquitetos Associados bureau, where new buildings connect existing structures through gardens and recreational areas.

The study also addresses how Latin American planned cities, such as Brasília, Fordlandia, and Ciudad Guayana, embody ambitions to transform society and establish new ways of life.

The article compares two contrasting Brazilian examples: Fordlandia, Henry Ford's attempt in the late 1920s to recreate the American industrial urban environment in the Amazon, and Brasília, the new capital conceived as part of a national modernization project.

While the imported building models and imposed routines of Fordlandia faced difficulties adapting to local environmental and worker living conditions, the monumental plan of Brasília, by Lucio Costa, and its civic architecture designed by Oscar Niemeyer, took physical form as a vision of Brazil's future.

Projects Worth Noting

In Ribeirão Preto, the Bacco Arquitetos Associados bureau rethinks the Doutor Leite Lopes State Airport through an expansion that merges industrial construction, wood engineering, and passive ecological strategies.

The 10,840 square meter intervention includes the existing terminal with a new structure made predominantly of laminated timber beams (MLC), introducing a material rarely used in Brazilian airport infrastructure. Prefabricated elements allowed for rapid assembly of the structure, minimizing disruption to the terminal's continuous operation, and the open wooden structure reduces the need for additional finishing materials.

The project also encompasses the surrounding airport master plan, which foresees future hotel and commercial developments while preserving the existing runway. Furthermore, cross-ventilation, natural lighting, water mirrors, and vegetation are used to combat the hot climate.

In São Paulo, at the intersection of Brigadeiro Faria Lima Avenue and Rua Jerônimo da Veiga, the Jeronimo Faria Lima building, spanning 20,500 square meters and designed by Perkins&Will São Paulo, demonstrates how a commercial enterprise can interact with its surrounding public space.

Unlike a traditional office tower, this project includes a lowered area with a café, relaxation zones, and co-working spaces on the first underground level, drawing pedestrian traffic inside the building. A pedestrian bridge connects this area to the main lobby, ensuring a gradual transition between public and private spheres. Two superimposed volumes of the building are separated by a green floor that breaks the vertical profile of the tower, while vegetation spreads across terraces and access areas.

In Jacareí, Vale do Paraíba, São Paulo state, the Casa Rouxinol residential house by the Sergio Sampaio Archi + Tectônica bureau responds to a 50-meter slope, views of the Jaguari River reservoir, and over 300 cataloged trees.

The 440 square meter residential structure is organized into three superimposed levels, allowing the rooms to open onto the surrounding landscape and minimize impact on the slope and existing vegetation. The cubic form of the building follows a structural span of 3.80 meters, organized in a 9x9 modular grid, using laminated timber beams and columns supported by steel pylons. The project also integrates photovoltaic energy generation systems, solar water heating, and underground biodigesters.

In Focus

Estúdio Módulo was selected to design the new Itaú Cultural headquarters on Avenida Paulista, one of São Paulo's main cultural and public corridors. The proposal, developed by partners Marcus Vinicius Damon, Guilherme Bravin, and Érica Tomasoni, integrates exhibition galleries, theater, auditorium, workshops, and educational installations in a sequence of interconnected spaces, gardens, and terraces.

A public plaza organizes access to the building, and terraces frame views of the avenue. The facade combines white louvers with colorful interior surfaces that filter natural light and create a changing view as visitors move along the street. The project is inspired by Brazilian Concrete Art while exploring the connection between cultural institutions and public life.

The Brazilian landscape bureau Licuri received two awards at the CITY'SCAPE Award 2026 in Milan for projects that treat landscape as ecological infrastructure and as public space. The Viva Energia Park, located within Vivapark Porto Belo, in Santa Catarina, received the first joint prize.

The park is designed around two artificial lakes that help retain water and control flooding, combining preserved vegetation, native Atlantic forest species, pedestrian paths, gardens, and recreation areas. Its landscape design also includes specialized relaxation zones that encourage interaction with natural elements.

The Náutico de Araraquara Club in São Paulo received a special mention and the FSB Forum Italy Sport&Play Special Award. Its 664-hectare area includes diverse gardens, preserved Cerrado vegetation, and over 400 species of trees and shrubs.

The 2026 Pedestrian Accessibility and Mobility Diagnosis in Brazil, published by the Caminhabilidade Institute, collects data on pedestrian infrastructure, road safety, urban planning, and social inequality to support public policy.

The report, compiled in partnership with the National Secretariat of Urban Mobility of the Ministry of Cities, shows that nearly four out of ten daily trips are made exclusively on foot. However, 14.8% of the population lives on streets without sidewalks, and 64.6% live on roads where sidewalks have obstacles. The diagnosis contributes to the development of the National Urban Mobility Plan (PlanMob Brasil), advocating for pedestrian accessibility as a strategic component of urban mobility policy.