Günter Mertins: Uma história em distintos espaços e escalas geográficas

The work of professor Günter Mertins has anacknowledged legend in the geography of Germany and Latin America. Even though his initial graduation on the area of sport, Mertins had a deep interest to understand the geographic space construction, so that he finished the geography bachelor graduation as well.He became interested into area of the urban dynamics analyzis. From 1964 after his Ph.D studies, he started his research in Colombia, during this time he developed a partnership with the professor Bähr, which resulted in a model of Latin American cities. Mertins played also an important role in the academic background of several Latin and German students. This article aims to discuss the contribution, whichHerrMertins left to the geographic science of Latin America, especially his pioneering to establish the Unibral Program in Brazil and Germany – exchange program for under graduation students from both country. The methodology was literature review about his life e most significant work and his own reports. Günter Mertins achieved the office of university professor in some country of Latin America. He also contributed with a generation of post-graduated students. In Brazil, he stood out with leading the Unibral Program by a partnership with the Federal University of Pernambuco and the University of Marburg. During this program, 22 students did the exchange in Brazil and in Germany from 6 to 12 months, they did internship and research in the abroad country. Currently the majority-graduated participants are working within geography studies some as master or PhD students and other as universities professors. O trabalho do professor Günter Mertins tem um reconhecido legado nas geografias da Alemanha e da América Latina. Mesmo tendo uma formação inicial na área de educação física, Mertins tinha um profundo interesse em entender a formação do espaço geográfico, neste sentido concluiu posteriormente a graduação em geografia. As análises das dinâmicas urbanas passaram a ser o foco de sua inquietação acadêmica. A partir de 1964, após defender seu doutorado em geografia, o professor iniciou seus estudos na Colômbia e por meio de uma parceria com o professor Bähr desenvolveu um modelo das cidades latino-americanas. Além dos trabalhos acadêmicos, Mertins teve um representativo papel na formação universitária de estudantes latinos e alemães. Este artigo tem o objetivo de discutir a contribuição que HerrMertins deixou nas ciências geográficas da América Latina, sobretu