A convergência estratégica em Arranjos Produtivos Locais: uma análise sobre a cooperação entre atores em rede em duas regiões cafeeiras

The development of new local clusters in Brazil is a very important subject in both Brazilian economic and social current scenarios. Geographical Indications (GI) arise with the objective of protecting and valuing typical products and services. These clusters that seek origin recognition need to develop aspects related to local governance and the coordination of diverse relationships and interests. The objective of this paper was to study a consolidated cluster in coffee production, the “Cerrado Mineiro” in search of strategic aspects that explain its success, and, through an action research, to reproduce the strategic categories found in the “Cerrado Mineiro” in the strategic articulation of the construction of the GI of “região Oeste da Bahia”. The results confirm the validation of the theoretical model of strategic convergence for clusters, which is defined as a series of actions and practices of interrelated social actors through a network in a cluster, which have common interests and objectives defined in the (1) organizational (structural), (2) historical and (3) actions to develop and promote a product or service. The process of convergence is not static, it is performative, it modifies the structures of governance and coordination. Understanding the dynamics of these phenomena through different strategic practices would be valuable for future studies, both in coffee and in other GIs.