São Paulo is one of the four states of
Brazil´s
Southeast
region.
Its area of 250.000 square kilometers corresponds to approximately half of the size of Spain.
With 11 million inhabitants (19 million in the Greater São Paulo area), its capital,
the city of
São Paulo,
is the largest metropolitan area in the southern hemisphere.
The State of São Paulo contains the largest quantity of
Atlantic
Rainforest
/ (
Mata Atlântica)
in Brazil of which about 900.000 hectars are
fully
protected by about 35
conservation units
(see
map).