Search

Political scientists have studied state democracy for decades using sophisticated methods for conceptualization and measurement to evaluate the explanatory power of various theories. They have paid little attention, however, to democracy in nonstate political systems. This paper fills this gap by characterizing democracy in college student government and investigating the factors affecting the levels of students’ union democracy (SUD) in Chilean colleges. Utilizing concepts from political science and sociology, the study identifies different dimensions of SUD with data from 162 campuses in 2018. The dimensions are aggregated to build an index of democracy for students’ unions. Although the majority of Chilean university students attended colleges with democratic unions, our findings reveal a deficit in democratic student representation in most institutions. The article also draws from the comparative politics, trade union democracy, and higher education literatures to explore the factors that vary by institution that could explain differences in levels of SUD. Ordered logistic regression analyses suggest that SUD is associated with institutional quality, membership in inter-university organizations, and student body size and socioeconomic makeup. The results increase our understanding of the features, status, and correlates of democracy beyond the state.

The objective of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of forest cover loss patterns and the protection role of Indigenous peoples in the forests of Araucanía, Chile. Previous research indicated lower rates of forest cover loss in land managed by Indigenous peoples; however, this was primarily focused on tropical forests. This paper focuses on the temperate forests in the region of Araucanía and hypothesizes that there will be a similar trend, with lower rates of deforestation in areas owned by Indigenous peoples. A logistic regression model was used which included multiple underlying drivers that have shown to impact deforestation rates. The results of this study corroborated the hypothesis that lands owned by Indigenous peoples have lower rates of deforestation, and that protection status, agricultural function, and railway proximity have a strong influence on forest clearing, while slope, elevation, and proximity to urban areas demonstrated a minimal impact.

The digitalization of justice is emerging worldwide partially due to the most common narrative surrounding digital government being; more efficient, cost-effective, and democratic. In an in-depth case study of the Chilean courts’ implementation of technologies during COVID-19, we questioned the dominant narrative of e-justice as “better justice” by borrowing from digital government literature and highlighting implications to e-justice principles. Derived from thirty-one (31) interviews with key stakeholders from the Chilean judiciary system, we provided evidence on how the e-justice principles are challenged by the implementation of digital technologies by court systems in Chile. The paper showed risks to justice work and due process in two main ways: bypassing traditional media scrutiny and limited governance of ready-to-use technologies in remote work, online hearings and the use of social media in judicial communications.This paper advances our understanding of the relationship between justice, digital technology, and government.

Abstract Background Around 18% of the population in Chile has disabilities. Evidence shows that this population has greater healthcare needs, yet they face barriers to accessing healthcare due to health system failures. This paper aims to assess the inclusion of people with disabilities in health policy documents and to explore the perceptions of key national stakeholders regarding the policy context, policy processes, and actors involved. Methods A policy content analysis was conducted of 12 health policy documents using the EquiFrame framework, adapted to assess disability inclusion. Documents were reviewed and rated on their quality of commitment against 21 core concepts of human rights in the framework. Key national stakeholders (n = 15) were interviewed, and data were thematically analysed under the Walt and Gilson Policy Analysis Triangle, using NVivo R1. Results Core human rights concepts of disability were mentioned at least once in nearly all health policy documents (92%). However, 50% had poor policy commitments for disability. Across policies, Prevention of health conditions was the main human rights concept reflected, while Privacy of information was the least referenced concept. Participants described a fragmented disability movement and health policy, related to a dominant biomedical model of disability. It appeared that disability was not prioritized in the health policy agenda, due to ineffective mainstreaming of disability by the Government and the limited influence and engagement of civil society in policy processes. Moreover, the limited existing policy framework on disability inclusion is not being implemented effectively. This implementation gap was attributed to lack of financing, leadership, and human resources, coupled with low monitoring of disability inclusion. Conclusions Improvements are needed in both the development and implementation of disability-inclusive health policies in Chile, to support the achievement of the right to healthcare for people with disabilities and ensuring that the health system truly “leaves no one behind”.

Extractivist archaeological practices have been carried out in the Atacama Lickanantay territory, Antofagasta region, northern Chile, ever since the 19th century, excluding or denying the voice and/or participation of members of the local indigenous community. However, the beginning of the 21st century saw a change in this sense bringing new experiences of collaboration between Atacameños and archaeologists. Our goal is to reflect on the definitions and applications of collaborative methodologies in archaeological projects, through discussion focusing on the global, through the national and finally the local, from where we approach a particular collaborative project. The research, conducted between early 2021 and mid 2024, studies the history of the collection and patrimonialization of indigenous bodies in the Atacameño Lickanantay territory, and socializes this information among the local communities. Based on this work, we conclude that all research in the territory must involve and be authorized by the Atacameño communities. Also, we consider that the Atacameños should stop being the object of research and instead become researchers who lead or collaborate in the studies within their communities and in their territory. The originality of this paper lies precisely in the fact that it brings a global discussion of contemporary archaeology to a concrete case

Objective/context: This paper examines the open legal primary rule in Chile for the selection of the presidential candidate, established in 2012 through Law 20640. This rule contains elements shared with similar legislation in the region as well as specific characteristics. Methodology: Through a case study, we will investigate the results and consequences of the application of primaries on the three occasions they were implemented (2013, 2017, and 2021). We will review the formal changes adopted and the political events that occurred in the interim, considering the main variables that typically intervene in electoral events of this nature, drawn from the existing debate and literature. Conclusions: The case of Chile shows that the combination of an open legal primary system with voluntary internal voting, incomplete simultaneity, and the absence of stable political groupings produces effects that do not align with either the general aspirations for the implementation of primaries or the theoretical purposes outlined by the ideologists of Chilean legislation. Originality: This study contributes to the emerging literature addressing open legal primaries in their dual aspect, both as a nomination mechanism and as an electoral rule

Disasters triggered by extreme natural events are increasing yearly, especially those related to climate hazards. Globally, these events generate huge losses, causing millions of people to fall into poverty. Estimating these damages and losses accurately is crucial for public policies. However, existing methodologies are biased towards immediate effects and do not consider secondary effects or other impacts associated with welfare. Although in Chile the effects of disasters result in a relatively low number of victims and material damages considering the country's level of disaster risk, it is urgent to better understand the effects of disasters on the population. This paper proposes a model for analyzing post-disaster secondary effects in Chile, related to the welfare of the population in the medium term. By considering time series of administrative information related to different dimensions of welfare, it is possible to shed light on the long-term effects of these events on the population, including those not usually contemplated by post-disaster recovery policies. The study concludes with a discussion of possible actions aimed at ensuring a comprehensive recovery of the communities.

The primary goal of this paper is to present a distributive proposal for reinterpreting Solow’s residual and apply it within the Chilean context. We argue that Solow’s residual can only indirectly capture technological phenomena. This critique draws upon the contribution of Felipe and McCombie (2020), who contend that production functions merely reflect an identity account. Hence, the so-called Total Factor Productivity (TFP) mirrors the dynamic of real wages and the rate of profit. We adopt a descriptive approach to estimate and decompose the Solow residual growth for the Chilean economy, to discern the origins of distributional changes between 1985 and 2019. A key patterns is that throughout almost the entire period, the dynamic of the Solow residual is closely intertwined with fluctuations in the profit rate. Additionally, we decompose the profit rate to highlight that the decline in the Chilean economy’s profit rate stems from both distributional and technological factors.

Unprecedentedly large areas were burned during the 2016/17 and 2022/23 fire seasons in south-central Chile (34-39°S). These seasonal-aggregated values were mostly accounted for human-caused wildfires within a limited period in late January 2017 and early February 2023. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive analysis of the meteorological conditions during these events, from local to hemispheric scales, and formally assess the contribution of climate change to their occurrence. To achieve this, we gathered monthly fire data from the Chilean Forestry Corporation and daily burned area estimates from satellite sources. In-situ and gridded data provided near-surface atmospheric insights, ERA5 reanalysis helped analyze broader wildfire features, high-resolution simulations were used to obtain details of the wind field, and large-ensemble simulations allowed the assessment of climate change's impact on extreme temperatures during the fires. This study found extraordinary daily burned area values (>65,000 ha) occurring under extreme surface weather conditions (temperature, humidity, and winds), fostered by strong mid-level subsidence ahead of a ridge and downslope winds converging towards a coastal low. Daytime temperatures and the water vapor deficit reached the maximum values observed across the region, well above the previous historical records. We hypothesize that these conditions were crucial in exacerbating the spread of fire, along with longer-term atmospheric processes and other non-climatic factors such as fuel availability and increasing human-driven ignitions. Our findings further reveal that climate change has increased the probability and intensity of extremely warm temperatures in south-central Chile, underscoring anthropogenic forcing as a significant driver of the extreme fire activity in the region.

This paper critically analyses the non-incorporation of the principle of non-refoulement in the Chilean Immigration and Aliens Law 21.325 of 20 April 2021. It was published in the context of migratory pressures within the Latin American region, deriving mainly from the Venezuelan socio-political crisis. It was also published after the recommendations given by the CMW in the last two periodic reviews of 2011 and 2021 to update the previous version dictated during the Pinochet dictatorship. As a state party to the core international human rights treaties and the American Convention on Human Rights, an urgent claim existed in Chile to adapt its migration law. Following a heated debate in 2019, the parliament eliminated the recognition of the principle of non-refoulement contained in the draft law arguing it was already recognised in refugee legislation. Instead, they identified a ‘complementary protection’. This paper examines whether this decision breaches human rights standards, particularly the obligation to adopt legislative measures to give effect to the principle of non-refoulement. It begins by analysing the principle of non-refoulement in international refugee law. Then, it turns into identifying the human rights obligations emanating from the principle of non-refoulement. Finally, the paper applies this standard to law 21.325. The paper concludes that not incorporating the principle of non-refoulement into law 21.325 constitutes a breach of Chile’s human rights obligations, facing the risk of incurring international responsibility.

The purpose of this paper is to delve into the ethical aspects experienced by the healthcare team when they receive the directive to limit therapeutic effort or a do-not-resuscitate order. From an interpretative, qualitative paradigm with a content analysis approach, a process based on three phases was conducted: pre-analysis in which categories were identified, the projection of the analysis, and inductive analysis. During 2023, interviews were conducted in the clinical setting of a high-complexity hospital in Chile with 56 members of the healthcare teams from critical and emergency units, from which four categories emerged: a) the risk of violating patients’ rights by using do-not-resuscitate orders and limiting therapeutic effort; b) the gap in the interpretation of the legal framework addressing the care and attention of patients at the end of life or with terminal illnesses by the healthcare team; c) ethical conflicts in end-of-life care; and d) efficient care versus holistic care in patients with terminal illness. There are significant gaps in bioethics training and aspects of a good death in healthcare teams facing the directive to limit therapeutic effort and not resuscitate. It is suggested to train personnel and work on a consensus guide to address the ethical aspects of a good death.

This paper describes how we use volcanic stratigraphy archives, called ‘sediment plates’ or ‘epoxy plates’, primarily as a communication tool to raise hazards and risk awareness in Chaitén, Chile. The epoxy plates (and associated audiovisual contents) were created through a transdisciplinary collaboration between social and physical volcanologists, and the Museo de Sitio de Chaitén - dedicated to preserve the memory of the 2008 volcanic disaster. The main objectives of this work are to (i) highlight the value of epoxy plates, as a risk education tool, based on the case of Chaitén; and (ii) enable the replication and adaptation of the method in other socio-cultural and environmental contexts. We see the epoxy plates as aesthetic objects that make science accessible to the public in a new way at the local museum, revealing the unknown volcanic history of the area. This is important because the local community tends to consider the 2008 eruption as a unique and exceptional event, which inherently biases their risk awareness, as volcanological studies report various eruptions of Chaitén. We detail the stages of the project and possible methodological improvements that could be useful to actors involved in geoheritage, geotourism, research and education.

The Chilean Mediterranean basins have undergone processes of replacement of native vegetation by intensive uses of the territory linked to agribusiness. The following paper analyzes changes in land use and their relationship with territorial planning with a focus on disaster risk management in the Puangue basin in Central Chile. A multi-temporal analysis of land uses was carried out (1986-2019) and it was contrasted with the zoning indicated in the Santiago Metropolitan Regulatory Plan (PRMS, in Spanish). The result is that all native vegetation coverage has decreased on the surface. Furthermore, areas with PRMS restrictions, such as mountain ranges, are occupied by intensive agriculture, human settlements, and other non-agrarian uses. It is concluded that changes in land use and the replacement of native vegetation, without adequate territorial planning, can increase the risk of disasters and that adequate supervision of territorial planning instruments is necessary.

This paper explores a set of narratives that the writer, educator and feminist leader Amanda Labarca published in the first quarter of the 20th century, namely the novel En tierras extrañas (1915), the short novel La lámpara maravillosa and the collection of stories Cuentos a mi señor (both 1921). We are interested in inscribing this corpus of Labarca’s work mainly in the criollismo, thought of as the Latin American and Chilean literary sensibility of the first half of the 20th century. With this, we contribute to the studies that have set out to explore one of Labarca’s most unknown areas: her literature. Specifically, it traces the spirit that runs through these texts, emphasizing the typification of discourses, characters and social contexts that allow sustaining the proposal of analyzing this prose from the point of view of criollismo. Indeed, the results show the presence of several characteristics of this trend, such as the presence of the peripheral or marginal element, the traveler as protagonist or the enhancement of local customs. It is concluded that Labarca’s lyrics dialogue with the proposals of Chilean criollismo, although they are also inspired by other aesthetic and ideological proposals of her time.

Objective/Context: This paper studies the first Chilean school newspapers led by women and the role of high school students as mediators of scientific knowledge at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. The analysis is part of the expansion and modernization of the press and publishing industry, as well as the influence of positivism and the educational reforms that were implemented in Chile during that period, a context in which the ruling class considered scientific knowledge, both its development and access to it by the population, as a priority. Methodology: The article is based on the studies of historians of science who have understood audiences as active agents in generating new knowledge, problematizing categories such as expert, amateur and layman, and examining the types of relationships they sustained. This theoretical perspective is applied to analyzing the magazines of four women’s high schools that took advantage of the valid study plans to access the university in the period and is complemented with other sources, such as prospectuses and relevant administrative documents. Originality: The study makes visible the role of women in science and, specifically, Chilean schoolgirls in this context, which have not been studied from the perspective presented here. Conclusions: Despite the lack of attention given to this population group in terms of scientific contribution, it is shown that high school students were active readers, disseminators and producers of knowledge, managing magazines, generating networks and circulating the knowledge beyond the walls of their educational establishments.

Abstract Background The development of agricultural value chains in developing countries has been the focus of much international interest, prompting the exploration of technology adoption strategies. These strategies hinge upon a multitude of factors like farmer characteristics, farm structure, location, organizational and institutional elements, as well as information-related factors. Purpose In this study, we delve into the influential social and productive factors that underpin technology adoption among small horticultural producers in Chile. Design/methodology/approach Data pertaining to the five primary horticultural crops in Chile—namely, corn, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and onion—were collected, considering their respective cultivated areas. A comprehensive evaluation of 13 technologies encompassing cultural practices, crop improvement, and irrigation was conducted. The methodological approach comprised two stages. Initially, an ordered probit model was employed to analyze the adoption intensity of cultural practices, crop improvement, and irrigation. Subsequently, a Kruskal–Wallis test was utilized to compare the means across technology adoption groups. Results The findings reveal a positive correlation between technology adoption intensity and the level of education, composition of the family nucleus, and investment intensity. Moreover, the production system’s location emerged as the most critical determinant for technology adoption. Conclusions The factors under scrutiny furnish direct and indirect evidence of their impact on the productivity and competitiveness of agricultural value chains. Thus, this paper significantly contributes to comprehending the role of technology adoption in designing and executing rural development strategies within developing countries.

This paper reflects on health reparation practices in the context of neoliberal hegemony and long-lasting impunity. It builds on an ethnographical approach (2019-2022) to four health reparation initiatives created by users and workers of a state reparation program together with civil organizations in the South of Chile. It states that the way these initiatives deal with the damage produced by state violence (1973-1990) point toward an alternative horizon for health reparations, which may also counter today’s authoritarian orientations.

This paper presents a review of the literature regarding the State intervention in economic development, establishing a typology that identifies three basic forms: guardian, facilitator, and entrepreneur. These forms differ according to market levels and areas of intervention and in relation to how much they adapt or challenge their given comparative advantages. From this typology, two cases of economic growth guided by exportation and trade opening with different economic outcomes are analyzed (Finland and Chile from the sixties and seventies, respectively, until the mid-nineties). Thus, this paper traces the evolution of state intervention in the countries, and identifies the differences that led to such different economic performance.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) linked to the 2030 Agenda have been widely accepted by public and private companies, with many choosing to incorporate them within the framework of their social responsibility initiatives. This research article aims to find out how the SDGs are reflected in corporate sustainability reports and in which business activities they stand out the most. To this end, using a sequential explanatory methodology, the authors analyzed 12 sustainability reports issued in 2021 by large companies in Colombia, Chile, and Ecuador to verify their alignment with the SDGs. The reports showed evidence of a diverse range of programs associated with at least three SDGs, thus highlighting the importance of fulfilling not only the needs based on each company’s field of expertise but also those of its audiences and the community in general. The most prevalent SDGs were “decent work and economic growth” (SDG 8) and “gender equality” (SDG 5), followed by “responsible consumption and production” (SDG 12). This paper contributes to a growing interest among academia in the research on sustainability communication evidenced in annual reports.

This paper analyzes the possibilities and the historiographic value of a choral-biographical approach to the history of the Royal Army of the Border of Chile during the 17th Century. It justifies, in the first place, the validity and opportunity of such approach. In the second place, it exposes one of the main problems for its application: many of the sources for Chilean military history in colonial times come from instances of power (political, religious, military) within a process of moral, social, and cultural organization of the soldiery, thereby blurring the normative system and values of the soldiers themselves. Consequently, the historiography of the Chilean army has favored a social approach and a longue durée timeframe, paying, therefore, more attention to social and economic structures than to individual trajectories. Finally, the paper exemplifies two ways for an alternative reading of the sources: reading between the lines and against the author's concept system; and normalize trivial, perhaps exceptional, details to bring to light practices, social dynamics, and identification processes. These are just two examples, among others, that point towards the possibility of give back an historical agency to the soldier and understand its construction from a collective dimension, halfway between the individual and the institutional.

While there is growing literature regarding the impact of the gig economy in countries of the Global North, the way it operates in Latin America and the Caribbean remains underexplored. This article describes platform work in Chile, especially in the context of COVID-19, which has highlighted the essential role of geographically tethered digital platforms in facilitating essential goods and services in times of social distancing and quarantine. While the gig economy has provided employment for those outside traditional labor markets, its supposedly ‘collaborative’ employment structures obscure the different costs of precarity and informality transferred from platforms to workers (Ravenelle, 2019). Based on 35 interviews with gig workers using the Fairwork framework to evaluate working conditions in the gig economy, this article examines digital labor relations, both on paper and in reality; the conditions and limitations gig workers face daily; and their perceptions regarding such platforms. We discuss the contradictory experiences felt by platform workers, dependent on the platform in some ways, and independent in others. We argue that the inherently contradictory conditions and circumstances of platform work have become even more salient for gig workers in the context of COVID-19: risks increasingly fall on workers as platforms continue to stress their ‘choice’ to do so. This article reveals that the nature of the linkage between platform and worker is eminently a labor relationship, with clearly established elements of worker dependence.

Este artículo analiza el efecto del sexo, el cuidado exclusivo y las necesidades de conciliación en la calidad del empleo global y en sus dimensiones objetivas y subjetivas. A partir de datos de la Encuesta nacional de empleo, trabajo, salud y calidad de vida de los trabajadores y trabajadoras en Chile 2009-2010 (ENETS), elaboramos índices multidimensionales de calidad del empleo válidos y confiables. Las estimaciones del modelo indican que ser mujer, cuidador único y con necesidades de conciliación tiene efectos negativos sobre la calidad del empleo, pero con intensidades distintas. Además, los factores personales y laborales otorgan heterogeneidad a la medición de las dimensiones objetivas y subjetivas, lo que evidencia la importancia de una medición diferenciada.

This paper analyses the backgrounds of LGBT+ migrants living in Chile, and considers the various types of violence they experience at the intersection of vectors of differentiation: national origin, sexual orientation–gender identity and socioeconomic position, as well as markers of ethnicity and racialisation. The results show that many LGBT+ migrants leave their place of origin not only because of social and economic factors, but also due to the discrimination and violence they experience due to their sexual or gender identity, which is known as sexile. These forms of violence occur throughout their migrant experience in ways that vary but are nevertheless constant. In the context of migrant reception in Chile, the presence of these people poses a double threat to the State’s hetero(cis)patriarchal order, on the one hand, and the national order, on the other, straining the conventional idea of ​​citizenship.

This paper reports on a comparative study between the structures, regulation and challenges of small and medium size businesses (SMEs) in Australia and two Latin American jurisdictions – Chile and Cuba - with the object of exploring ways in which SME-propitious ecosystem can be configured in an unprecedented crisis situation. It examines the legislation, bodies and regulation in place which deal with SME issues, including consumer protection, and the differing contextual considerations, taking cognizance of the challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, the paper explores ways in which SMEs can be assisted and advised of their legal rights, including the provision of clinical and advisory support at a university level, and considers the steps taken by governments in mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. To compare practices and learn from them the research utilizes three case studies and contrasts the issues faced in an emerging economy such as Cuba with more established frameworks such as Chile and Australia, both OECD countries.

In accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations, the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is the main management tool used to identify and prevent the impact of productive activities on the environment and human health and promote compensation measures. Metallic mining is the main productive sector in Chile. In 2021, Chile was the highest global producer of copper, the second-highest producer of molybdenum, and the third-highest producer of silver. Other types of non-metallic mining, such as siliceous aggregates, iodine, and hydrocarbons, are also notable. Mining activity requires robust and flexible environmental legislation. This paper analyzes the performance of the Chilean EIA system regarding mining projects entered into the system as Environmental Impact Declarations (EIDs) for low-incident projects and Environmental Impact Studies (EISs) for high-incident projects. The 2867 mining projects submitted to the Chilean EIA system as EIDs (91.8%) and EISs (8.2%) between 1994 and 2019 were compiled. For a proper performance evaluation, a representative sample of 68 projects (61 EID and 7 EIS) was studied through a principal coordinate analysis using eleven indicators widely used in the EIA scientific literature. The results do not show significant differences between the EID and EIS projects or remarkable differences regarding the increasing restrictions introduced by the successive regulatory periods SD30, SD95, and SD40. Based on the observed weaknesses, four opportunities for improvement are proposed focused on creating a simplified sanctioning procedure, upgrading the form of delivery of the project monitoring information, early citizen participation, and incorporating the climate change variable into the projects. This paper extends the methodology introduced in previous papers to evaluate the performance of the Chilean EIA system in mining projects, seeking also to offer a feasible methodology to other countries with a similar socio-economic context or other productive sectors potentially impacted by the degradation of land and renewable natural resources.

In response to inequality in access to genomics research, efforts are underway to include underrepresented minorities, but explicit (and enforcing) guidelines are mostly targeted toward the Global North. In this work, we elaborate on the need to return scientific results to indigenous communities, reporting the actions we have taken in a recent genomic study with Mapuche communities in Chile. Our approach acknowledged the social dynamics perpetuating colonial hierarchies. We framed genetic results to empower indigenous knowledge and communities’ history and identities. A fundamental step in our strategy has been sharing the results with the communities before publishing the scientific paper, which allowed us to incorporate community perspectives. We faced the challenge of translating genetic concepts like admixture, emphasizing the distinction between identity and biology. To reach a broad and diverse audience, we disseminated the study results to single community members, cultural representatives, and high schools, highlighting the importance of the history of the region before the European contact. To facilitate results dissemination, we prepared didactic material and a report in Spanish written in non-specialized language, targeting a wider Latin American readership. This work illustrates the benefits of discussing scientific findings with indigenous communities, demonstrating that a collaborative and culturally sensitive approach fosters knowledge sharing and community empowerment and challenges power dynamics in genetic research. Bridging the gap between academia and indigenous communities promotes equity and inclusion in scientific endeavors.

This paper investigates the impact of internet voting for draft policy proposals in the framework of Open Government Partnership, on the whole ecosystem of open government in Chile and Colombia. The research objective is, to identify the impact of i-voting for policy proposals on voters, civil society organizations, government authorities and open government overall, taking into account public transparency, civic participation and public accountability. Methodologically, this international comparison of case studies has employed a mixed methods approach including the analysis of applied reports, legislation, social media and expert interviews. It was found that in Chile and Colombia, the i-voting for policy proposals helped bridge remote parts of the countries and thus, make democratic participation more inclusive. Ultimately, the non-binding consultative i-voting for draft open government policies in both countries empowered civil society, working in the open government domain to advocate sectoral policies to be introduced by the government.

The constructed infrastructure that has made cities more livable to their human inhabitants not always has benefited the overall ecosystems, which has leading to some fragile land covers being the most affected (i.e., grasslands, wetlands, etc.). In this article, it is analyzed the relationship between the natural landscape and the highway “Ruta del Canal Pargua” in Puerto Montt, Chile. A comparison was performed/implemented based on a Land Use Land Cover Change (LULCC) analysis from a year before the construction of the highway (2012) to the most updated available image (2021). Three field spots were selected to observe the wetland’s landscape visual qualities, landscape natural features, and road management (2022). The results showed that anthropic interventions have been continuing to transform the natural features of wetland’s landscape, especially the native roadside vegetation, and noise pollution. This change was promoted by the lack of management of the highway in its surroundings, and, by the intrusive LULCC. This paper also discusses the persistent lack of ecological management for highways in southern Chile and sparks the conversation about the necessity to include an ecological perspective in road infrastructure design in Chile that could be replicated in Latin America.

Identifying the clinical needs to evaluate and manage the treatment and monitoring of cancer patients is a multidimensional challenge in healthcare institutions. In this regard, electronic health records (EHRs) are beneficial for managing clinical information; however, EHRs focused exclusively on patients with cancer have not been sufficiently adopted. In Chile, the need for oncology EHR has only been briefly addressed, resulting in insufficient updated and systematized information on oncology patients. In this paper, we propose the design of an oncology EHR that manages critical variables and processes for the treatment and monitoring of patients with cancer in Chile. We used a systematic methodology to design a software architecture oriented to focus groups and interviews to elicit the requirements and needs of stakeholders. We created and described an EHR design that considers four modules that group and manage the main variables and processes that are critical for treating and monitoring oncology patients. Enabling and designing a treatment and monitoring registry for cancer patients in Chile is essential because it allows for the evaluation of strategic clinical decisions in favor of patients.

After numerous mobilizations during 2019, the health crisis at the beginning of 2020 led to the implementation of multiple restrictive measures, limiting or prohibiting travel and gatherings in the public space in several Latin American countries. The severity of these measures and the choice of designating armed actors for their enforcement suggest that social and political struggles have come to a halt. Based on Chilean, Guatemalan and Venezuelan cases, selected for their great disparities, this paper argues that the health situation plays only a marginal role in the evolution of mobilization dynamics. More broadly, the pandemic does not seem to imply any fundamental upheaval in the evolution of social movements.

ne consequence of Chile’s socalled “estallido social” (social outburst) of October 2019 was the erosion of the hegemonic ideological canon, in other words, of neoliberalism as a paradigm of modernity. That several currents of opinion have since (re)emerged within conservative Chilean intellectual thought reflects not only this loss of ideological hegemony, but also shows an ability to react and adapt to a setting in which this belief system is under threat. This paper analyses some of these currents, taking four authors as paradigmatic examples: Axel Kaiser (liberalism), Pablo Ortúzar (corporatism), Hugo Herrera (social Christianity) and Alexis López Tapia (nationalism). Of particular interest are their readings of the nature of the outburst, the political displacements provoked, the ideological and conceptual tensions that emerged, as well as the continuities and departures in terms of social imaginaries, traditions, practices and ideas.

The evolution of regionalism in Latin America has historically been greatly influenced by changes in governments and their ideological programs. In this article, looking at the courses of the administrations of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, Ivan Duque in Colombia, Sebastian Piñera (second term, 2018-2022) in Chile, Mario Abdo Benítez in Paraguay, it is proposed to examine transformations in integration against the backdrop of increased influence of right-wing forces in regional alignments in the mid-2010s to the early 2020s. Analyzing foreign policy steps, rhetoric, content of conceptual documents, the authors focus on the peculiarities of the national views of various right forces on integration initiatives. The paper concentrates on the decline of Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), creation of Forum for the Progress and Integration of South America (PROSUR) and Lima Group, activities of the Pacific Alliance and Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) in the context of the demand for flexible and pragmatic integration “without politicization.” The authors come to several conclusions which show ambiguity of the right turn impact on the integration landscape in Latin America. First, although the rise of liberal-conservative forces has reformatted philosophy, key ideas of integration, participation in multilateral groups remains important for governments that seek to solve pressing problems and expand their own reputational and political capital with its help. Second, despite the fluidity of electoral dynamics, which may soon put an end to the dominance of the right, they have raised a number of issues of long-term relevance in the context of the future path of integration associations in the region. The contribution of the work is explained by its appeal to the very factor of ideology in the development of Latin American integration, detailed analysis of specific country experiences and new conclusions based on it.

Introduction/objective: This paper explored the relationship between liquidity risk and stock returns in the Chilean stock market, using three measures of liquidity risk widely used in other research and three measures to which the free float variable is added. Methodology: The analysis is performed using panel data regression for the period 2010-2019, the sample considers 46 Chilean companies with a total of 5,509 monthly observations. Results: These show a relationship between profitability and liquidity risk, but only for two of the measures used. Liquidity risk measures based on free float do not show results in this line. Conclusions: This work is another indication that financial risks are difficult to classify in a specific model and liquidity risk is no exception. All the previous evidence, as well as this research, indicates that liquidity risk can be measured and captured by different indices and models. Resumen Introducción/objetivo: este artículo exploró la relación entre el riesgo de liquidez y la rentabilidad de las acciones en el mercado bursátil chileno, utilizando tres medidas de riesgo de liquidez ampliamente utilizadas en otras investigaciones y tres medidas recientes a las que se suma la variable de capital flotante. Metodología: el análisis se realiza mediante regresión de datos de panel durante el período 2010-2019, la muestra considera 46 empresas chilenas con un total de 5509 observaciones mensuales. Resultados: se observa una relación entre la rentabilidad y el riesgo de liquidez, pero solo para dos de las medidas utilizadas. Las medidas de riesgo de liquidez basadas en capital flotante no muestran resultados en esta línea. Conclusiones: este trabajo, es un indicio más de que los riesgos financieros son difíciles de encasillar en un modelo específico y el riesgo de liquidez no es una excepción. Según la evidencia esta investigación señala que el riesgo de liquidez puede ser medido y capturado por diferentes índices y modelos.

Chile is currently facing a major drought that has caused several problems, most of them concentrated in terms of the availability of water for both human consumption and irrigation for agriculture. Under such conditions, the main instrument the government has at hand to assign water for agricultural use is the Water Scarcity Decree (WSD), which, among other aspects, allows for the extraction of underground water. However, this practice requires an important investment from the agricultural producer, making it only affordable by relatively larger producers. Therefore, under the current climatic conditions and a generalized lack of water, larger agricultural producers are the ones who benefit the most from the establishment of a WSD and thus have the incentives to use their political power to pressure for its issuing. Whereas conventional wisdom suggest that this is indeed the case, there is no previous evidence trying to link the size of agricultural exploitations and the likelihood of the establishment of a WSD. In the paper we use the share of large exploitations at the municipality level, as a measure that can proxy for local political power, and the establishment, the number, and duration of WSD within any given year. Consistent with the hypothesis, our results show that areas dominated by larger producers/exploitations are more likely to be declared as water scarce, to have more decrees in a year, and to have them in place for longer periods of time, even after controlling for socioeconomic characteristics and climatic conditions, such as precipitations and water flow.

The depletion of freshwater sources by indiscriminate industrial actions is one of the direct causes of the current water crisis. One of the emblematic cases of this problem is the Atacama Desert, a unique hyper-arid zone in which an extensive copper industry depletes its scarce freshwater reserves. This territory, occupied for millennia by indigenous groups, is experiencing a water crisis that threatens its very subsistence. This paper uses the ethnographic method and the Water Justice framework to approach the everyday and often invisible issues of this crisis within the Mamiña community. This Quechua community holds an ambivalent position in front of the copper mine project because of its control of the water rights, the economic interests of some of their members, and the role of the Aymara minority. We suggest that researchers in this field pay more attention to the communities’ internal diversity and its relations with the copper industry to understand how the water crisis is detached from its biophysical conceptions to be socioculturally constructed. HIGHLIGHTS The water crisis in the Atacama Desert is not only related to its natural conditions of biophysical scarcity.; An investigative approach focused on the sociocultural dimension could better show the everyday interactions of current water problems.; The interweaving of sociocultural practices and discourses with the conditions of the environment are key cornerstones to understanding how the water crisis is constructed.; The hyper-arid conditions of the desert and the scarce information on indicators hide the environmental damage that occurs in it.;

Objective/Context: This paper studies the role of the Chilean state during the great drought of 1967-1969 as a mediator between human beings and nature. Institutional adaptations and the effort to improve the infrastructure were elements of continuity with respect to previous droughts, but there were novelties as well, such as attempts to pursue weather modification and the artificial melting of glaciers. The support of technologies and scientists operating from peripheral state institutions was essential for these purposes. All the above took place in the context of the Cold War when the predominant environmental imaginaries made human intervention look favorable and necessary for the modernization of countries. Methodology: Diverse primary sources were used, such as ministerial documents, decrees, bulletins, and reports of different state institutions that allowed understanding the logic of state management during the water crisis. Similarly, research in national and international press helped identify how imaginaries about the environment were expressed and disseminated publicly, which tended to validate novel efforts to control nature. Originality: This is an original study for Latin America, which addresses the early appearance of science and technology in the efforts of what today would be known as geoengineering: mainly through the observation of new actors, which expanded the traditional forms of mediation between humans and nature, led by the state, concerning climate crises. Conclusions: In the 1960s, optimism grew for the human capacity to control and manipulate water resources by appealing to ways other than those previously known, associated with infrastructure development. Expert knowledge was placed at the service of peripheral institutions of the state to promote these changes with lasting consequences. The human desire to control nature at all costs was validated, which helps explain the temporal projection of experiments with artificial rain and glacier control to the present day in Chile.

Abstract In this paper, we estimate the causal relationship between protected areas and poverty in Chile from 1982 to 2002. Chile is part of the coalition of countries committed to protecting 30% of the planet by 2030; a decision that implies increasing the number of protected areas in the country. As a result of this decision, grows the national debate about the potential impacts of protected areas on the economy and society. By estimating the causal effect of protected areas on poverty, we aim to contribute to this debate in Chile. We use panel data and a quasi-experimental approach to estimate the causal effect. We find that establishing a protected area covering at least 17% of a unit’s terrestrial area causes a reduction of 0.216 standard deviations in the poverty index. This result is not sensitive to arbitrary implementation choices. Additionally, we show that the effect is driven by the Patagonia region, the part of Chile with the largest amount of new protected areas during the time frame of this study. Besides showing the benefits of protected areas to society, we hope the findings presented here might also be used to attract new investments and financial support to protected areas currently underfunded in Chile.

This paper explores editorials and opinion columns published in four Chilean mainstream newspapers and analyzes how China is represented within the context of Chinese economic advances in the region and the contextual narratives surrounding bilateral relations. Through a content analysis of editorials and opinion pieces of elite media between 2018 and 2021, this study allows an understanding of how China and its growing influence are perceived locally. Ultimately, despite an overall alignment with China’s public diplomacy centered around an economic-commercial dimension, there are still nuances in how China is represented in Chilean op-eds.

ABSTRACT – This paper seeks to understand the undergoing digital transformations of the Chilean media system, based on the gaps, challenges, and opportunities that are currently facing the industrial and commercial organization of native digital media in Chile. In the Chilean case, the emergence of native digital media was developed with the new media business models in a context of a crisis of traditional modes of media financing. To study this process, we propose a descriptive-exploratory study focusing on six paradigmatic cases based on a campaign of semi-structured interviews (12) and a platform biography (6) to gather information on the structures, dynamics, and evolution of business models in the journalistic sites of these digital native media. Semi-structured interviews with founders/owners (FD) and monetization managers (MM), allow us to understand the reasons and objectives that underpin these transformations. Our sample is composed of six Chilean native digital media, which are legally registered in the relevant national information system in the Chilean public sphere (Reuters, 2022). The results of this analytical exercise show the tensions that occur in the business model’s five key dimensions: sustainability, innovation, associativity, community building, and journalistic added value. Towards the end, we list the study’s limitations and the understanding of the development of digital native media in Chile. RESUMO – Este artigo procura entender as transformações digitais que o sistema de notícias chileno está passando, com base nas lacunas, desafios e oportunidades que estão atualmente enfrentando as organizações industriais e comerciais da mídia digital nativa no Chile. No caso chileno, o surgimento da mídia digital nativa se deu com os novos modelos de negócios de mídia em um contexto de crise dos modos tradicionais de financiamento da mídia. Para estudar este processo, propomos desenvolver um estudo descritivo-explicativo centrado em seis casos paradigmáticos, baseado em entrevistas semi-estruturadas (12) e uma plataforma de biografia (6), para reunir informações sobre as estruturas, dinâmicas e evolução dos modelos de negócios nos sites jornalísticos destes meios de comunicação nativos digitais. Entrevistas semi-estruturadas com fundadores/proprietários (FD) e gestores de monetização (MM), nos permitem compreender as razões e objetivos que sustentam estas transformações. Nossa amostra é composta por seis mídias digitais nativas chilenas, que estão legalmente registradas no sistema nacional de informação de relevância na esfera pública chilena (Reuters, 2022). Os resultados deste exercício analítico mostram as tensões que ocorrem em cinco dimensões-chave do modelo de negócios: sustentabilidade, inovação, associatividade, construção de comunidades e valor agregado jornalístico. Ao final listamos as limitações do estudo e a compreensão do desenvolvimento da mídia digital nativa no Chile. RESUMEN – Este trabajo busca comprender las transformaciones digitales que está experimentando el sistema informativo chileno, a partir de las brechas, desafíos y oportunidades que enfrenta actualmente la organización industrial y comercial de los medios nativos digitales en Chile. En el caso chileno, el surgimiento de los medios nativos digitales se desarrolló con los nuevos modelos de negocio de los medios en un contexto de crisis de los modos tradicionales de financiación de los medios. Para estudiar este proceso, nos proponemos desarrollar un estudio descriptivo-explicativo centrado en seis casos paradigmáticos, basado en entrevistas semiestructuradas (12) y una plataforma de biografías (6), para recabar información sobre las estructuras, dinámicas y evolución de los modelos de negocio en los sitios web periodísticos de estos medios nativos digitales. Las entrevistas semiestructuradas a fundadores/propietarios (FD) gestores de monetización (MM), nos permiten comprender las razones y objetivos que sustentan estas transformaciones. Nuestra muestra está compuesta por seis medios digitales nativos chilenos, que están legalmente registrados en el sistema nacional de información de relevancia en la esfera pública chilena (Reuters, 2022). Los resultados de este ejercicio analítico muestran las tensiones que se producen en cinco dimensiones clave del modelo de negocio: sostenibilidad, innovación, asociatividad, construcción de comunidad y valor añadido periodístico. Hacia el final se enumeran las limitaciones del estudio y la comprensión del desarrollo de los medios nativos digitales en Chile.

Postmodern forms and tendencies that appeared in Chilean architecture in the 1970s not only overlapped with Augusto Pinochet’s neoliberal dictatorship that lasted from 1973 to 1990 but also are closely connected to the political and economic vision fostered by the dictatorship. Postmodern forms found in banks, hotels, and other commercial buildings and spaces populating Chilean cities in the seventies and eighties aided the government’s political agenda as they helped to normalize painful neoliberal reforms and create an image of prosperity and progress. Moreover, in projects such as the Plaza de la Constitución in Santiago de Chile (1980–1982) and the Congreso Nacional de Chile in Valparaíso (1988–1990), postmodern aesthetics and philosophy were used to project an image of an open democratic country. In these realizations, postmodern tropes such as the symbolic potential of architectural form and references to architectural tradition were used to fabricate a vision of history and society desired by the Pinochet government. Simultaneously, the same architectural currents embraced by Pinochet for propagandistic purposes were utilized by Chilean architects who considered themselves opposed to the dictatorship. This can be seen in the work of CEDLA (Centro de Estudios de la Arquitectura, Center for Architectural Studies), an independent collective of Chilean architects established in 1977 in Santiago de Chile. The members of CEDLA promoted a version of a politically and socially engaged postmodernism that could counter the neoliberal agenda of Pinochet. This paper discusses both ways in which postmodernism was interpreted in Chile during the dictatorship. Investigating Chilean postmodernism helps us rethink the dominant portrayal of postmodernism as politically indifferent or conservative and as part of Jameson’s ‘cultural logic of late capitalism’.

IntroductionAs a result of the increasing number of multilateral agreements that Chile has signed, different sectors of consumption have become sources of emissions. In this context attempts to implement guidelines to address this issue have been made. Nevertheless, international policies such as sustainable development goals (SDG) 11–12 often generate dissonance in national and local administrations and have been approached by different instruments to reduce the effects of emissions, mostly focused on the private industrial sector.MethodsThis article focuses on four of the most polluted cities in south-central Chile (Coronel, Temuco, Valdivia, and Osorno). Key agents (ministries, regional government, municipalities, and civil society) from three levels of policy development were selected at three scales (national, regional, and local) and interviewed considering three thematic axes: knowledge of carbon footprint areas (housing, heating, food, mobility, and energy), institutional governance, and adaptive changes due to COVID-19.ResultsThe results show that in Chile, there is a multiscale climate governance led by the Ministry of the Environment (national level), followed by the regional and local levels. Citizens are then left with few capacities, which is negatively viewed. In relation to the carbon footprint and COVID-19, it can be observed that the topic of energy was more addressed at the national and regional levels. Food and energy, followed by heating and then mobility were addressed at the communal level and in civil society.DiscussionDecision-making strategies and policies were discussed in this paper.

In recent years, a new discipline known as Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) has emerged, which has followed the growing trend experienced by Artificial Intelligence over the last decades. There are, however, important gaps in the adoption of XAI in hydrology research, in terms of application studies in the southern hemisphere, or in studies associated with snowmelt-driven streamflow prediction in arid regions, to mention a few. This paper seeks to contribute to filling these knowledge gaps through the application of XAI techniques in snowmelt-driven streamflow prediction in a basin located in the arid region of north-central Chile in South America. For this, two prediction models were built using the Random Forest algorithm, for one and four months in advance. The models show good prediction performance in the training set for one (RMSE:1.33, R2: 0.94, MAE:0.55) and four (RMSE: 5.67, R2:0.94, MAE: 1.51) months in advance. The selected interpretation techniques (importance of the variable, partial dependence plot, accumulated local effects plot, Shapley values and local interpretable model-agnostic explanations) show that hydrometeorological variables in the vicinity of the basin are more important than climate variables and this occurs both for the dataset level and for the months with the lowest streamflow records. The importance of the XAI approach adopted in this study is discussed in terms of its contribution to the understanding of hydrological processes, as well as its role in high-stakes decision-making.

U.S. per-capita chile consumption and foreign imports have increased over the last twenty years while domestic production has fallen. To maintain market share, U.S. chile producers must increase crop revenues and/or decrease production expenses. A better understanding of U.S. consumer preferences relative to chile attributes can provide direction for U.S. chile producers. This paper utilizes a discrete choice experiment within an online survey to gain insights into long-green chile pepper attributes desired by consumers. The results suggest that survey participants prefer fresh long-green chile produced in the United States. Participants also preferred milder long-green chile and value quality inspections. Organic production was preferred to hydroponically produced long-green chile, but a statistical difference between organic and other production practices was not observed. Understanding these preferences may allow producers to better position themselves to remain competitive in the long-green chile market.

Purpose: This paper analyzes the causal relationship between innovation and long-term per capita economic growth in Chile and Mexico for the period 1996-2015. Design/methodology: This study uses six innovation indicators, were assessed using Granger`s test of causality: number of patents filed by resident and non-residents, spending on research and development (R&D), R&D activities, high tech exports and scientific and technical articles. Results: The study found evidence of one-way and two-way causality between innovation and per capita economic growth. Both countries face the challenge of improving the environment to attract enough FDI (foreign direct investment). Implications: Latin America is a diverse region. According to the 2017 Global Innovation Index, Chile ranked nº 46 while Mexico ranked nº 58, the two countries generally ranked as the most innovative in Latin America. Originality/value: It is important to note that all these innovation indicators are strongly related to per capita economic growth. Limitations / Implications: Politicians and academics interested in this topic should know that the two-way relationship between innovation and per capita economic growth does not necessarily reflect the whole situation. Practical implications: More variables such as education and policy continuity should be studied to improve estimates.

As a part of the EIS-COVID project on the access and use of information during the COVID-19 pandemic in Chile, the objective of this paper was to ascertain how people’s informational environment was constructed during the first stage of the pandemic. It discusses the results of a qualitative study of people belonging to risk groups for COVID-19: people over 18 and under 65 with chronic diseases (hypertension and diabetes) and people 65 and over. Ninety semi-structured interviews were conducted in the Metropolitan and Valparaíso regions between September 2020 and January 2021. The results reveal the problematic nature of the information overload encountered by these groups and the strategies they used to navigate it: a) information avoidance; b) content corroboration and active search for reliable sources; and c) differentiated media use.

This paper is a commentary on ‘Decarbonizing the Chilean Electric Power System: A Prospective Analysis of Alternative Carbon Emissions Policies’ –an article published by Babonneau et al. in the Energies Journal. On the one hand, our aim is to point out and discuss some issues detected in the article regarding the literature review, modelling methods and cost assumptions, and, on the other hand, to provide suggestions about the use of state-of-the-art methods in the field, transparent and updated cost assumptions, key technologies to consider, and the importance of designing 100% renewable multi-energy systems. Furthermore, we end by highlighting suggestions that are key to modelling 100% renewable energy systems in the scientific context to contribute to expanding the knowledge in the field.

The second round of the Presidential elections in Chile marked a swing in the local political scenario. The coalition led by Gabriel Boric secured an unprecedented victory under the premise of delivering long-awaited reforms to a financially volatile, structurally fragile and deeply unequal economic structure. This paper sheds light on these three aspects of the Chilean economy, showing that its external and internal fragility feeds back on the excessive specialization and heterogeneity of the productive sectors, which in turn influence income and wealth distribution. It is argued that, in order to carry out an effective progressive agenda, the newly elected government should avoid yielding to the “discreet charm” of the Chilean bourgeoisie and its core principles – which includes fiscal prudence, minimum government intervention and financial liberalization.

Who benefits when economic costs to the pursuit of higher education are diminished? Can such reforms advance the educational trajectory of historically marginalized groups, including women and indigenous people, or are historic social inequalities replicated in the use of new opportunities? The 2016 Ley de Gratuidad in Chile presents a unique opportunity to examine who benefits and how when the state provides a policy guaranteeing free higher education at participating universities. Given the systematic biases and cultural norms faced by women and indigenous people in Chile and the broad design of the state-led policy, the educational reform constitutes an important test of the extent to which lowering costs can facilitate education across an economically and socially diverse population. Leveraging data from two waves of a household survey, this paper finds that educational attainment, measured in the number of years of schooling achieved by respondents, is significantly higher for those who receive such a benefit, consistent with the design and intent of the policy. More surprisingly, these increases in years of education occur for women and indigenous people, even though no programmatic element emphasizes these groups. The results suggest that state financing is significantly associated with promoting higher education in the population and that women, the poor, and indigenous people are significant beneficiaries of this effect despite the social and cultural barriers in the country.

Green hydrogen is gaining increasing attention as a key component of the global energy transition towards a more sustainable industry. Chile, with its vast renewable energy potential, is well positioned to become a major producer and exporter of green hydrogen. In this context, this paper explores the prospects for green hydrogen production and use in Chile. The perspectives presented in this study are primarily based on a compilation of government reports and data from the scientific literature, which primarily offer a theoretical perspective on the efficiency and cost of hydrogen production. To address the need for experimental data, an ongoing experimental project was initiated in March 2023. This project aims to assess the efficiency of hydrogen production and consumption in the Atacama Desert through the deployment of a mobile on-site laboratory for hydrogen generation. The facility is mainly composed by solar panels, electrolyzers, fuel cells, and a battery bank, and it moves through the Atacama Desert in Chile at different altitudes, from the sea level, to measure the efficiency of hydrogen generation through the energy approach. The challenges and opportunities in Chile for developing a robust green hydrogen economy are also analyzed. According to the results, Chile has remarkable renewable energy resources, particularly in solar and wind power, that could be harnessed to produce green hydrogen. Chile has also established a supportive policy framework that promotes the development of renewable energy and the adoption of green hydrogen technologies. However, there are challenges that need to be addressed, such as the high capital costs of green hydrogen production and the need for supportive infrastructure. Despite these challenges, we argue that Chile has the potential to become a leading producer and exporter of green hydrogen or derivatives such as ammonia or methanol. The country’s strategic location, political stability, and strong commitment to renewable energy provide a favorable environment for the development of a green hydrogen industry. The growing demand for clean energy and the increasing interest in decarbonization present significant opportunities for Chile to capitalize on its renewable energy resources and become a major player in the global green hydrogen market.

In this paper, we solved an ambulance location problem with a multi-objective framework considering the case of the study of Emergency Medical Service (EMS) of Antofagasta (Chile). Nowadays, in Antofagasta, the ambulances are located in bases that are not necessarily the optimal location achieving an estimated 67% of coverage under the 8 min not meeting the requirements dictated by the Chilean Ministry of Health. We used a multi-objective model considering mean response time, maximum response time, and the demand not covered. The model is solved using an iterative ε-constraint method to generate a Pareto set of efficient solutions. We considered historical data from the years 2015 and 2016 to generate the demand and emergency nodes with a clustering algorithm. The results show improvements on all criteria of the multi-objective model, where we highlight a potential increment on coverage within 8 min from 67 to 99%. In order to test the new policy in a real setting, a pilot plan is proposed, which reaches 89% of coverage within 8 min.