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Brazil was successful in diversifying its export package from the 1960s to the beginning of the twenty-first century. However, this performance has been more ambiguous over the last decade. This study explores the literature on the impact of export diversification on economic growth and the determinants of successful diversification. More specifically, it analyzes the dynamics of Brazilian export diversification between 2003 and 2013. The results suggest that, overall, exports momentarily concentrated in 2004, 2008 and 2012, but rejoiced from a diversification spike in 2005. Southern and Southeastern states are found to have more diversified exports, but Central-West and Northeastern states have experienced higher diversification rates since 2006. Via a dynamic panel data analysis, using System General Methods of Moments estimation method, including all Brazilian states, past diversification performances, education, patents per capita, credits and public investments are found to be significant determinants of Brazilian export diversification.

This paper analyzes the economic impacts in the municipality of Mariana from the Fundão Dam rupture occurred at the end of 2015. The central hypothesis is that economic dependence on the mineral extraction sector makes this municipality more vulnerable to adverse shocks affecting this productive sector, compromising its job recovery capacity. In order to calculate the impacts of this disaster, datas on formal employment estimated through the Synthetic Control Method were used. The results showed that, although Mariana and its synthetic version show similar formal employment trajectory in the pre-shock period, Mariana recovered employability in the second year after the dam rupture, unlike the control group. However, this result is not due to the recovery of formal employment based on sustainable economic diversification strategies, but essentially by dependence of the mining activity and the post-disaster remediation actions that has been gradually implemented in order to recover affected areas.