Doca Linear Park: Reconnecting Belém with Its Waterways Through Urban Regeneration

Doca Linear Park in Belém do Pará is a groundbreaking urban regeneration project by Natureza Urbana, redefining the relationship between the city and its waterways. Situated along the historic Igarapé das Almas — now a 1.2 km-long canal running through the central median of Avenida Visconde de Sousa Franco — the park restores Belém’s long-lost hydric identity. Historically, the Reduto basin was shaped by water networks, but successive urban interventions buried these waterways under fragmented infrastructure, diminishing both environmental quality and community life.

Belém, built atop rivers, igarapés, and wetlands, has suffered from repeated urban planning strategies that prioritize roads and vehicles over natural landscapes. Areas around the canal were previously marked by a lack of shade, minimal permeability, and few public spaces, leaving residents disconnected from their natural surroundings. Doca Linear Park addresses these challenges by reintroducing water into daily urban life, creating a multifunctional space for recreation, sports, and community gatherings.

With the global spotlight of COP30, Doca Linear Park serves as a lasting urban legacy, showcasing how cities can reconcile nature and urban development. The park transforms the canal into a continuous, accessible corridor, integrating green infrastructure, landscape revitalization, and cultural memory into a holistic design. Visitors now experience leisure, contemplation, and recreation along elevated walkways, shaded gardens, playgrounds, kiosks, bike paths, dog parks, and sports areas — all designed for comfort, safety, and universal accessibility.

Inspired by Indigenous thinker Ailton Krenak, the project places water at the center of the urban experience: "May these rivers, which are much older than us, grant us wisdom and instruct us on how to improve our existence..." The canal has been reintegrated into Belém’s daily life, expanding its ecological, social, and symbolic significance.

Ecologically, the park employs innovative strategies to improve biodiversity and water quality. Native species were planted to strengthen local ecosystems, and nature-based solutions were implemented to filter debris and urban waste entering the canal. Community engagement played a crucial role, with residents, schools, and local organizations participating in the design and programming to ensure the park reflects the real needs of the neighborhood.

As part of a larger urban revitalization initiative, which includes sanitation and drainage improvements, Doca Linear Park benefits around 500,000 people, quickly becoming a vibrant hub and new identity marker for Belém. By transforming a degraded canal into ecological and social infrastructure, the project exemplifies sustainable urban regeneration, reconnecting the city with its waters and establishing a model for environmentally sensitive development in the Amazon region.

All the photographs are works of Manuel Sá, Leonardo Finotti