Una nueva geografía de América Latina: ¿un «descubrimiento» geográfico?

The article deals with the basic contradictions which exist between the macroeconomic climate and territorial and social development in Latin America; contradictions that have become evident during recent years in which orthodox implementation of neo-liberal policies has been witnessed. The geographical effect has been the emergence of two different kinds of countries within the same political or natural territory: on the one hand a prosperous one with western forms and, on the other, one characterized by poverty and a more diverse identity. This results in a new geographical configuration of the economic, physical, human and environmental areas in Latin America. Such changes are difficult to detect armed with geographical knowledge alone, since they are in themselves a direct result of the adjustment and stabilising strategies of neoliberal economies.