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This study analyses the emblematic experience of an indigenous group in Brazil, the Pataxó, who was able to set up and exercise strong control over an indigenous tourism project: the Jaqueira Reserve. Based on document analysis, interviews, and observations, we show how the Jaqueira Reserve was consolidated not only as a strongly autonomous initiative but also as constituent of a greater quest for autonomy (to craft aspired livelihoods conducive to cultural revitalization and environmental protection). The Pataxó experience shows that indigenous tourism can be an instrument in greater indigenous struggles, and as such can develop not only despite marginalization but also against it.

This article analyzes the experiences of the small Shuar community of Kenkuim (Congüime) in the Ecuadorian Amazon that since 2016 carries out gold mining through the communitarian company Exploken Minera. The case is unique in South America, not only for being the only example of indigenous mining granted formal state concession, but also for its green profile, without the usage of chemicals or heavy metals. Within a setting of expanding extractivism conditioned by global capitalism and a theoretical framework of a decolonial and postcapitalist approach to sustainability, this ethnographic study deals with the expressions of resistance and adaptation of the Kenkuim community and how socio-cultural, ecological, and economic values are articulated by Shuar actors in relation to the new indigenous mining project. The results indicate that this mining experiment constitutes a meaningful alternative to destructive extractivismin line with decolonial and postcapitalist reasoning., En este artículo, se analizan las experiencias de la pequeña comunidad Shuar de Kenkuim (Congüime) en la Amazonía ecuatoriana que, desde 2016, lleva a cabo la extracción de oro mediante la empresa comunitaria Exploken Minera. El caso es excepcional en Sudamérica, no solo por ser la única minería indígena con una concesión estatal formal, sino también por su perfil verde, sin el uso de productos químicos o metales pesados. Dentro del contexto de un creciente extractivismo condicionado por el capitalismo global y un marco teórico de una aproximación decolonial y poscapitalista a la sostenibilidad, en este estudio etnográfico se tratan las estrategias de resistencia y adaptación de la comunidad Kenkuim y cómo los valores socioculturales, ecológicos y económicos son articulados por los actores Shuar respecto al nuevo proyecto minero indígena. Los resultados indican que este experimento constituye una alternativa significativa frente al extractivismo destructivo y como un proyecto coherente con las lógicas decoloniales y poscapitalistas.

This study departs in a decolonial understanding of the Indigenous ethical-philosophical conceptualization of the Good Life: Sumak Kawsay/Buen-vivir. We argue that we need toview this concept as integrated by cultural, socio-economic and ecological dimensions, separate but interrelated values and identities that sometimes clash. One of our arguments likewise emphasizes that the class perspective is sometimes subordinated in the debates on Buen-vivir and therefore we pay special attention to the element of social justice, which is also central in decolonial theory on the capitalist colonial matrix of power and the strategies to disconnect from these structures of domination and marginalization. We view the indigenous contribution of Buen-vivir as a decolonial discourse and project. For the understanding of different interpretations and expressions of Buen-vivir, we must likewise consider particularities of indigenous peoples in terms of varying ethnic-cultural identity, that is, the relative and situational comprehensions of indigeneity. Methodologically, we should emphasize decades of ethnographic fieldwork, as well as critical reading of the debate on Sumak Kawsay/Buen-vivir and the theoretical contributions in the field of decolonial thought., El punto de partida del presente estudio está en una comprensión decolonial de la conceptualización ético-filosófica indígena de la Buena Vida: Sumak Kawsay/Buen-vivir. Argumentamos que debemos analizar este concepto como integrado por dimensiones culturales, socioeconómicas y ecológicas; valores e identidades separados pero interrelacionados que a veces chocan entre sí. Se enfatiza, entre nuestros argumentos, que la perspectiva de la clase a veces está relativamente subordinada en los debates sobre Buen-vivir y por lo tanto prestamos atención particular al elemento de justicia social, el cual también es central en la teoría decolonial sobre la matriz colonial capitalista de poder y las estrategias para desconectarse de estas estructuras de dominación y marginalización. Consideramos que la contribución indígena del Buen-vivir más que todo debe verse como un discurso y proyecto decolonial. Para la comprensión de las diferentes interpretaciones y expresiones de Buen-vivir, también debemos considerar particularidades de los pueblos indígenas en términos de variaciones en la identidad étnico-cultural, es decir, las comprensiones relativas situacionales de la indigeneidad. Metodológicamente, debemos enfatizar décadas de trabajo de campo etnográfico, así como la lectura crítica del debate sobre Sumak Kawsay/Buen-vivir y las contribuciones teóricas en el campo del pensamiento decolonial.

Based on a case study from rural Mozambique, we stress that ecosystem services research may be enriched through gendered livelihood approaches, particularly in terms of experienced ecosystem services. Ecosystem services studies have been accused of being gender blind. We argue for the value of open narratives that are attentive to the gender dynamics underpinning the production and reproduction of livelihoods. By focusing on the experienced gender dimension of ecosystem services, livelihood perspectives fulfill the normative role of providing a people-centered means to assess the values of the environment “from below” and can therefore constitute an entry point to a holistic understanding of by whom, how, when, and why the environment is experienced as valuable. Our findings stress the dynamism and plurality of experienced ecosystem services (i.e., they vary across groups and time and cross-cut material and immaterial dimensions), as well as the asymmetrical gendered and fundamentally cultural relations that they enable. Accounting for the experienced gender dimension of ecosystem services is critical to contextualize the environment in people’s lifeworlds and to make understandings of ecosystem services representative of, and instrumental to, people’s voices and agendas. We show how such enriched, diverse, bottom-up ecosystem services perspectives form an essential foundation (together with ecological research) for resisting applications of reductionist top-down categories assumed to represent general local values., Som manuskript i avhandling. As manuscript in dissertation.

This text problematizes the perceptions and visions held by leading spokespersons of the indigenous movement regarding the challenges and dilemmas related to the advancement of the Plurinational State and the intercultural society in post-2008 Ecuador. From a constructivist viewpoint, the study emphasizes that different factions of the indigenous movement nurture varying connotations of the tension-ridden plurinationality-interculturality nexus, depending on their historical relationship with the territory and the nature of their ethnocultural identity. Theoretically drawing on theories of deliberative democracy and indigeneity-territoriality, the article constitutes a synthesis of previous debates on the subject, backed up by years of ethnographic work in the field. A central finding indicates a relative consensus that Plurinational Ecuador must be built on inclusion and cross-ethnic co-operation. However, according to the interviewees, harmonious interculturality will not materialize without the grassroots-led practical implementation of the Plurinational State., En este texto se problematizan las percepciones y visiones de los voceros del movimiento indígena respecto a los desafíos y dilemas relacionados con el avance del Estado Plurinacional y la sociedad intercultural en el Ecuador post-2008. Con una aproximación constructivista, el estudio destaca que diferentes facciones del movimiento alimentan diversas connotaciones sobre el nexo complejo de plurinacionalidad-interculturalidad, dependiendo de su relación histórica con el territorio y la naturaleza de su identidad étnico-cultural. Teóricamente basándose en teorías de la democracia deliberativa y la indigeneidad-territorialidad, el artículo constituye una síntesis de debates anteriores sobre el tema, respaldado por años de trabajo etnográfico. Un hallazgo central indica un consenso relativo de que el Ecuador Plurinacional debe basarse en la inclusión y la cooperación interétnica. Sin embargo, según los entrevistados, la interculturalidad armoniosa no se materializará sin la implementación práctica del Estado Plurinacional desde las bases.

This chapter deals with an inevitable form of subjectivity in field-oriented research on and with ethnically defined peoples in Latin America. It asks whether ethnographers can enter a research field marked by historical injustices and highly asymmetric power struggles without losing the standpoint of value-free outsiders. We argue that scholars in the field are not disconnected from local cultural and institutional settings, they cannot expect to conduct fieldwork without a substantial degree of subjectivity. Theoretically, a distinction is made between fieldwork and work in the field, emphasizing the often-dual position of researchers: as scholars and activists. We argue that an activist stance is sometimes necessary, though stressing that the primary position must always be that of the scholar, particularly in those highly conflictive fields which often characterise the societal periphery of the Global South. Ethnographers are not merely spectators. Interpretations and conclusions will be affected by the passions and ideological positions encountered in the field. Moreover, ethnographers frequently enter the field with worldviews determined beforehand, a predisposition that may generate misunderstandings, exaggerations or even prejudice. Methodologically, the text draws on decades of fieldwork on indigenous peoples´ struggles and conflicts in Bolivia, Ecuador and Guatemala. The text problematizes the intricate intersection between objectivity and research, on the one side, and trust and subjectivity, on the other. The authors conclude by stressing the importance of upholding an “objectivity” that does not clash with the basic premises of a communal narrative rooted in historical experiences and structural perceptions of the world. Situational and relational subjectivity is thus inevitable, but that does not imply that the ambition of academic objectivity must be sacrificed. Such objectivity should not be conflated with “neutrality”, lexically speaking.

Purpose: Mekong Delta's shrimp farming contributes to socio-economic development but tends to reduce the mangrove area. On the one hand, NGOs advocate balancing ecology and economy, while on the other hand, the Vietnamese government supports intensifying shrimp production. The latter strategy increases shrimp diseases and marginalises smallholders. To influence the opinions, knowledge and behaviour of shrimp farmers, we developed and tested a serious board game. Approach: Through several iterations, we designed a realistic board game mimicking local shrimp farming. Then, after conducting three sessions of gameplay with farmers in three sites, we assessed how this gameplay influenced players. We used a semi-experimental set-up by collecting data on the day of the gameplay, and on two further time-points. Findings: After the gameplays, farmers reported to have learned about the risks of monoculture-intensive-shrimp system and the advantages of hybrid systems. Likert ratings showed that players adopted innovations faster and, in case of shrimp diseases, consulted commercial service-providers less, but with other farmers more. They confirmed to have learned that the best strategy for them would be to adopt hybrid systems, i.e. intensify part of the area of mixed-mangrove or improved-extensive shrimp farms. Theoretical implications: Realistic board games can create opportunities for social learning and training of groups which are not always easy to reach. Practical implications: Board games can support transfer of knowledge and skills to farmers, and can develop their critical thinking. Creation: The findings that board games are effective in the context of a top-down extension systems offer value opportunities.

Marine spatial planning (MSP) has emerged as a radical approach to achieving sustainable development objectives at sea. While critics challenge its avowed radicalness, often through highlighting dominative processes, more insidious mechanisms of restricted agency remain under-elaborated, as are the productive power and potential of planning. This paper offers a more robust and balanced reading of MSP/power. First, drawing on Haugaard, we read MSP as providing actors with dispositional power to act in concert, thus entailing a move from the risks of ‘resource rush’ to structuring, which facilitates predictability and promotes agency. However, MSP’ing may also restrict agency when (1) powerful actors misuse opportunities for concerted action to pursue sectoral goals; (2) planning fantasies and the planner’s cognitive limitation sustain dominative power-relations; and (3) in setting the boundaries of MSP, bias is mobilized in favor of vested interests. We thus deploy Foucault’s notion of freedom, to analyze the relationship between ‘steering’ and resistance subjectivities, and his concept of parrhesias to consider to what extent, an ethico-political planner may contribute towards more equitable processes and outcomes. We conclude that besides the planner, the state as the ultimate authority in MSP must intervene substantively to minimize differentials in the distribution of actors’social resources., Som manuskript i avhandling. As manuscript in dissertation.

The local implications of large-scale land acquisitions (LSLAs), commonly referred to as land grabs, are at the center of an exponential production of scientific literature that only seldom focuses on gender. Our case study aims to contribute to filling this analytical gap. Based on structured interviews and focus groups, we investigate local experiences in the lower Limpopo valley in Mozambique, where a Chinese investor was granted 20,000 hectares in 2012. Our findings show that land access in the affected area varied prior to land seizure due to historical land use differences and after land seizure mainly due to non-universal compensation. Furthermore, we show that as farming conditions deteriorate, a trend toward both the feminization of smallholder farming and the feminization of poverty is consolidated. Succinctly, as available land becomes increasingly constricted, labor is allocated differently to alternative activities. This process is by no means random or uniform among households, particularly in a context in which women prevail in farm activities and men prevail in off-farm work. As men disengage further from smallholder farming, women remain directly dependent on fields that are smaller and of worse quality or reliant on precarious day labor in the remaining farms. We contend that the categories female-headed and male-headed households, although not inviolable, are useful in explaining the different implications of LSLAs in areas in which gender strongly substantiates individuals’ livelihood alternatives. © 2018 The Author(s), Fieldwork for the study entitled “Large-scale land acquisitions aggravate the feminization of poverty: Findings from a case study in Mozambique” was funded by the Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography, and the foundation Forskraftstiftelsen Theodor Adelswärds Minne.

Over-fishing and eutrophication (too much nutrients) are among the most severe threats to the ecosystems of the Baltic Sea and the ecosystem services they provide. Despite the well-known fact that effective and sustainable management requires cooperation – among as well as within states – appropriate frameworks that work have not yet been constructed and successfully applied. This report summarises findings from a research project on cooperation for sustainable marine governance of the Baltic Sea carried out between 2013 and 2018. Three aspects of central relevance for the understanding of regional cooperation in environmental governance are distinguished: interests, knowledge and management. It is shown that it is not enough to design cooperative arrangements that make the group of users, stakeholders or states better off than without such an arrangement. It is furthermore required that all actors have individual interests to participate, and that free-riding on others’ contributions can be controlled. When this is not the case, effective abatement of eutrophication is not likely to be forthcoming, even though aggregated benefits from such measures are larger than expected costs. Knowledge often play important roles in marine environmental governance, not least in relation to so-called epistemic communities, that is, groups of experts that share a common understanding of the environmental problem at hand, and how to address it. It is shown that the coherence of the epistemic group can be a crucial factor influencing its impact. In both abatement of eutrophication and management of fish stocks, these expert groups have been somewhat divided, which has limited their impact. Modes of management can influence cooperation and outcomes in ways that can be difficult to predict. Although environmental taxes and subsidies are powerful policy instruments in contemporary governance, they must be carefully crafted to fit into exiting norms and contexts to be effective. It is s

Approaching land grabbing as a site of politics wherein power functions in the challenge and/or stabilization of agrarian socioecological injustices, we capture agrarian relations in Cameroon in 2 fundamental ways. Drawing on Laclauian insights, we discuss power as a “counter‐hegemonic” practice, to characterize the resistance strategies of local NGOs, in terms of their articulated discourses around the socioecological effects of land grabs, on the one hand, and the political possibilities that this articulatory practice opens, in terms of (trans)nationalizing resistance across social identities and space, on the other hand. Here, the analysis adopts a Foucauldian‐inspired critique with strong commitments towards agrarian socioecological justice, in a context where policies to protect democratic access to land are absent. Second, framed as a hegemonic/governmental “form of rule,” we capture how state and diplomatic actors sought to override dissent and stabilize the contentious land deal. We also show how a moment of presidential “nondecision,” characterized by a hyper‐centralized bureaucracy conjoined with these hegemonic forces to disempower local administrative and judicial leverage, thereby fostering corporate power. The article thus contributes to debates on state and corporate powers, as well as the strategies of, or possibilities and constraints for resistance “from below” to irradiate and structure into a compelling force.

The EU MSP Directive is an example of a so-called new generation directive, which gives Member States room foradaptation to national contexts. The main objective in this article is to identify and analyse potential obstacles toeffective and efficient planning caused by the diversity among national MSP frameworks that the Directive'sbroad regulatory boundaries have led to. It is shown that planning approaches can differ substantially betweenneighbouring countries, which can make it challenging to coordinate across national borders. Divergence betweennational MSP frameworks can also emerge from how political, jurisdictional and, administrative systemsand traditions are organised in different Member States. It is shown that neighbouring countries can divergesubstantially in how the ecological, economic and social dimensions of sustainability are balanced, which canmake transnational coordination challenging. Furthermore, it is shown that stakeholder consultations differamong Member States in terms of, for example, who were invited, how the consultations were undertaken, andthe role they play in relation to political decision-making. Because of these, and other differences in how MSPframeworks are being developed in the Member States, it is suggested that regional integration should bepromoted with discretion. From this perspective, it seems reasonable to embrace diversity, while simultaneouslypromoting the adaptive management of coordination problems at lower levels, when, or if, they emerge or canbe foreseen. Thus, increased integration of national MSP frameworks should be viewed as an instrument toreduce concrete efficiency losses, rather than as an intrinsic good.

BaltSpace

While there is growing critique emerging to address social sustainability in marine/maritime spatial planning (MSP), overwhelmingly attention has been on governance, economic and environmental aspects. This chapter redresses this by proposing a conceptual framework to elucidate key features of social sustainability in MSP. The ambition is to both note the existing critique of MSP and go beyond it by more clearly and comprehensively articulating how social sustainability could be conceived in MSP, as well as how this framework could be applied to analyse MSP practice. Key features of social sustainability elaborated are: deepening democratic decision-making, inclusion of socio-cultural values and knowledge, equitable distribution and social cohesion. Finally, the chapter concludes by nominating strategies to give greater visibility to social sustainability as a key MSP concern., This work was the result of (1) the BONUS BALTSPACE project and was supported by BONUS (Art 185), funded jointly by the EU, Swedish Research Council FORMAS and other Baltic Sea national funding institutions and (2) research funding from The Foundation for Baltic and East European Studies., BONUS BALTSPACE project

This article develops an integration framework to analyse MSP practices across several Baltic Sea Region cases studies as well as cases studies from Australia (Great Barrier Reef) and the US (Rhode Island). While integration has been universally adopted as a policy principle to strive for, there is confusion about what it means, how to do it and what it implies in different MSP contexts. The task set here was not to fix a singular meaning to integration and what work it should do in MSP, but to better understand particular uses of the concept and their purposes in MSP practices. To do we consider existing literature to develop a five-part analytical framework, which includes cross-border, policy/sector, knowledge, stakeholder and temporal integration dimensions. The framework was applied to the several cases and usefully illustrated a variety of integration-related MSP questions, challenges and responses. Furthermore, we argue that an analytical focus on the multidimensionality of integration can help shed light on the various ‘balances’ related to sustainability commonly sought after in MSP – between environmental protection and maritime development; between strategic decision-making and participation; between scientific and experiential knowledge; on current problems and a concern for the future, among others., BALTSPACE

Community consultation prior to large-scale land acquisitions (LSLA) is a cornerstone that justifies the portrayal of projects as partnerships or land grabs. This study focuses on one of the countries most targeted by LSLA in the last decade, namely, Mozambique. We examine the legal and theoretical bases that support community consultations and analyse their corresponding everyday practices in Mozambique. The article argues that, although the existence of these participatory forums is inspired by normative ideals of popular deliberation, the prevailing practices in these spaces are diametrically opposed to deliberative foundations and values. As shown in this study, this mismatch between theory that is institutionalized in legal frameworks and practice derives largely from the interplay of hierarchical relations anchored in, inter alia, formal and customary ethnically based realms, gender disparities, and livelihood orientations. A core argument of the article is that any attempt to ameliorate these practices must consider critical insights regarding the centrality of enhancing social equality and inclusion in participatory spaces —challenges that are immense in places marked by deep structural inequalities., Fieldwork supported by the Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography, and the foundation Forskraftstiftelsen Theodor Adelswärds Minne.

The EU Maritime Spatial Planning Directive (MSP Directive) from 2014 is an example of a so-called new generation directive, which gives Member States room for adaptation to national contexts. Because of this larger room for adaptation, transposition becomes a process of designing domestic policy frameworks that fulfil the broad requirements of the Directive, rather than a simple and linear implementation procedure. However, allowing Member States to design marine spatial planning frameworks that fit domestic contexts, have thus far meant that regional coherence suffers. Although the pivotal role of transnational coordination is emphasised in the Directive, it does not stipulate how to set up such coordination, and the Member States have not yet been able to achieve much of self-organising in this area.A closer look is in this report taken on four policy-dimensions that are emphasised in the MSP Directive: Planning approach, Organisation, Sustainability, and Stakeholder inclusion. Based on in-depth case studies carried out in the BALTSPACE research project on MSP frameworks in Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden, examples of coordination and coherency challenges are described and discussed for each dimension.It is shown that planning approaches can differ substantially between neighbouring countries, which can make it challenging to coordinate across country borders. Even though they share the same (EU) regulatory pressures, Latvia and Lithuania, for example, are developing national MSP frameworks based on quite different conceptual foundations. Whereas Latvia has taken the Ecosystem Approach as a point of departure for constructing a new MSP framework, Lithuania has instead chosen to adapt existing functional zoning approaches to management of maritime areas. Such diversity may be possible to explain because of differing domestic contexts, but may nevertheless lead to coordination problems when coordination is needed.Divergence between national M, BALTSPACE

This article analyzes how transmodernity has been expressed in the Plurinational State of Bolivia since 2009. It specifically focuses on the complexities involved in the reconstruction of the State and the road towards an intercultural society based on the constitutional acknowledgment of the values and praxis of plurinationality. This historic moment —with the reconstruction of the State and society based on the beliefs, traditions, epistemologies and ontologies of the indigenous peoples— symbolizes a particular social time and is the result of the silent survival of pre-colonial cultures which, over centuries, gradually transformed themselves alongside and in interaction with modernity, thus evolving into transmodern cultures. The establishmentof the Plurinational State has also legitimized the indigenous ethical-philosophical concept of SumaQamaña-Vivir Bien (“To Live Well”), which refers to a harmonious relationship between humans and Natureand is enshrined as a socio-political-cultural guideline and alternative to the logics of eurocentrism, anthropocentrism, individualism and capitalism. Methodologically, the study is based on years of ethnographic fieldwork in Bolivia and a critical reading of previous studies of such subjects., Este artículo analiza cómo se expresa la transmodernidad en el Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia desde 2009, enfocando, de manera particular, las complejidades relacionadas con la refundación del Estado y la construcción de una sociedad intercultural, basada en el reconocimiento constitucional de los valores yprácticas de la plurinacionalidad. Este momento histórico —con la reconstrucción del Estado y la sociedad desde las creencias, tradiciones, epistemologías y ontologías de los pueblos indígenas— simboliza un tiempo social específico, producto de la silenciosa sobrevivencia de culturas precoloniales que se transformaron gradualmente a lo largo de los siglos, y en interacción con la modernidad misma, volviéndose culturas transmodernas. Con la declaración del Estado Plurinacional, asimismo, se ha establecido la conceptualización indígena ético-filosófica del Suma Qamaña-Vivir Bien, sobre las relaciones armoniosas entre seres humanos y naturaleza, como visión socio-político-cultural y una alternativa a las lógicas eurocentristas, antropocéntricas, individualistas y capitalistas. Metodológicamente, el estudio se basa en una lectura crítica de publicaciones anteriores y varios años de trabajo etnográfico en Bolivia.

El objetivo principal del presente texto es examinar y problematizar la politización de la indigeneidad mediante el enfoque analítico en los encuentros y diálogos interculturales, y más específicamente de los Kichwas de Cotacachi y Otavalo, localidades tradicionalmente marcadas por las estructuras sociales excluyentes y racistas. Dentro del marco de la democracia deliberativa intercultural y las estructuras de oportunidades políticas, se analizarán las alianzas sociopolíticas de diferentes agrupaciones de ciudadanos y colectivos indígenas, que anteriormente estuvieron excluidas de las esferas públicas, y que confrontan nuevos desafíos y dilemas una vez que emergen como autoridades políticas a nivel local. ¿Cómo se reflejan las complejidades identitarias y de las alianzas interculturales en los procesos político-electorales locales de Cotacachi y Otavalo desde las perspectivas de los actores indígenas? Teóricamente y metodológicamente, la presente etnografía del Estado enfoca concretamente en el las transformaciones de los vínculos entre las poblaciones indígenas de Cotacachi y Otavalo y el Estado, asimismo considerando los diálogos y alianzas interculturales del movimiento indígena en las dos localidades. Estos procesos asimismo conllevan modificaciones de la indigeneidad, considerando que el grupo étnicamente definido siempre se autoidentifica en relación con otra categoría étnica, es decir: ¿Qué pasa con la identidad étnicamente definida cuando el movimiento colectivo llega a la posición de autoridad del Estado? Esta aproximación se sostiene metodológicamente en trabajo etnográfico en el campo, con una gran cantidad de entrevistas, conversaciones informales y observaciones participativas durante períodos en Cotacachi y Otavalo entre 2004 y 2018, así como una lectura crítica de publicaciones de los temas. Asimismo, hasta cierto grado se utiliza una aproximación metodológica comparativa, pero hay que aclarar que no se ofrecerá una comparación completamente sistemáti

This article problematizes the empowerment of Venezuelan women of the popular sec­tors, who previously were marginalized in terms of gender, ethnicity and class. More specifically, the study focuses on the protagonist role of women in the Community Cou­ncils during 2006-2013. An additional interrelated aim of the study is to question the myth of Venezuela as the least racist country of Latin America. Theoretically, the study connects to an old debate of Leftist academia, namely on how to deal with the identi­tarian elements of class, ethnicity and gender in a broader socio-political setting. This viewpoint is contrasted with the theoretical-methodological framing of intersectionality, which considers the relationships between different identitarian elements at individual and collective level. The article shows that gender, class and ethnicity are intimately and complexly intertwined among the protagonists, and that these identity bases cross each other in local political situations. A further argument is that, generally, class-based identity appears to be superior to those of gender and ethnicity in socio-political settings. Methodologically, the study is based on critical reading of previous literature and, above all, ethnographic fieldwork in Venezuela between 1996 and 2013, including participa­tory observation and hundreds of interviews with actors involved in these political and socio-cultural processes., Este artículo problematiza el empoderamiento de las mujeres venezolanas de los secto­res populares que antes eran marginadas en términos de género, etnicidad y clase. Más específicamente se enfoca el caso de la presencia y el rol de las mujeres en los Conse­jos Comunales entre 2006 y 2013. Un objetivo complementario subyacente es también cuestionar seriamente el mito sobre Venezuela como “el país menos racista” de América Latina. Teóricamente, el estudio conecta a un viejo debate teórico e ideológico de la academia global izquierdista de cómo abordar los elementos identitarios de clase, género y raza/etnicidad en un contexto político-social más amplio. Esta perspectiva se contrasta con el marco teórico-metodológico de la interseccionalidad sobre las relaciones entre diferentes elementos identitarios en los individuos y colectivos. El estudio muestra que estas bases identitarias - género, clase y etnicidad - están íntimamente y complejamente entrelazados entre los protagonistas, y estos elementos identitarios se cruzan en los nive­les locales de la política. Otro argumento es que la identidad definida por clase tiende a ser superior a la del género y la etnicidad en contextos socio-políticos. Metodológica­mente, el estudio se basa en la lectura crítica de publicaciones anteriores, y sobre todo de trabajo etnográfico en Venezuela entre 1996 y 2013, incluso observaciones participativas y centenares de entrevistas con las actoras y los actores involucrados en estos procesos políticos y socio-culturales.

Small-scale fisheries (SSF) in the Global South are increasingly subjected to the internationalisation of food systems. Guided by a feminist political ecology approach, we examine how gender relations and power structures within SSF are changing through policy interventions and market linkages. Chilean women working in SSF have traditionally been unregistered direct producers. Since the early 2000s, however, women have formally entered as fishers within this hitherto male-dominated space. Today, women constitute almost a quarter of artisanal fishers in Chile. While women have become more visible, among others, in their engagement in territorial use rights in fisheries (TURFs), little research attention has been paid to women’s roles within SSF. We redress this shortfall by examining the struggle to obtain TURFs by an all-women seaweed gatherers union in Coliumo (Bio-Bio Region, Chile). Using participatory research tools, we describe key gendered interactions and events over a local struggle for resources. Our findings show how closely related episodes of cooperation and conflict were involved in realising TURFs, which included differently-gendered relationships. While the women implicated in formalising fishing entitlements accrued individual benefit and enhanced their collective standing, the conflict left a deep scar among women in the community.

Despite the increasing attention given to marine spatial planning and the widely acknowledged need for transnational policy coordination, regional coherence has not yet improved a great deal in the Baltic Sea region. Therefore, the main objectives in this article are: (a) to map existing governance structures at all levels that influence how domestic marine spatial planning policy strategies are formed, (b) to identify specific challenges to improved regional cooperation and coordination, and (c) to discuss possible remedies. Based on data from in-depth case studies carried out in the BONUS BALTSPACE research project, it is shown that, despite the shared goal of sustainability and efficient resource use in relevant EU Directives, action plans and other policy instruments, domestic plans are emerging in diverse ways, mainly reflecting varying domestic administrative structures, sectoral interests, political prioritisations, and handling of potentially conflicting policy objectives. A fruitful distinction can be made between, on the one hand, regulatory institutions and structures above the state level where decision-making mechanisms are typically grounded in consensual regimes and, on the other hand, bilateral, issue-specific collaboration, typically between adjacent countries. It is argued that, to improve overall marine spatial planning governance, these two governance components need to be brought together to improve consistency between regional alignment and to enhance opportunities for countries to collaborate at lower levels. Issue-specific transnational working groups or workshops can be one way to identify and act upon such potential synergies., Marine Spatial Planning in the Baltic Sea Region – Integrating Scales, Sectors and Knowledge, Towards sustainable planning of Baltic marine space (BONUS BALTSPACE)

The agri-pastoralist communities of the semi-arid region of Chile, with their unusual common land ownership, have not escaped economic neo-liberalism. The general pattern of insatiable demand of land for agricultural production, mining, energy generation and real-estate development has become a challenge for these communities. How are these processes affecting the traditional practices of these localized agri-food systems, based on rain-fed-agriculture, pastoralism and the fading practice of transhumance? In this article, we look at how the Huentelauquén Agricultural Community in the Canela Commune has dealt with, reacted to, and been affected by regional economic shifts geared towards market liberalization. In particular, we analyze the structural changes in the community in regard to alienation of the commons and changes in land tenure. Qualitative interviews were conducted with key informants in this setting. To provide a richer contextual setting, this article draws on several other empirically-based works on the commons’ emergence and evolution, land commoditization and local struggles for livelihoods. Our study shows that a community can adopt different strategies when dealing with powerful sectoral development that can involve resistance as well as positioning that seeks to find favorable terms of engagement. Our findings highlight that processes affecting the traditional commons are resulting in the re-appropriation and re-occupation of the land. This is resulting in social differentiation, weakening of the community’s social bonds, depeasantization and further degradation of an already vulnerable ecosystem. In sum, these shifts are posing an existential threat to this form of traditional agri-pastoralism.

This chapter develops an analytical framework, drawing on the multidimensional role of integration, to explore how the Ecosystem Approach (EA) is variously conceived and practiced in marine spatial planning (MSP) in the Baltic Sea region (BSR). This framework is used to examine how EA practices reflect differing conceptions of sustainable development (SD) in Baltic marine and coastal areas. This work intersects with several of the other chapters on marine planning in this volume by explicitly exploring links between EA and SD through examination of in-depth BSR case studies. Results reveal that EA principles for MSP developed at the international level (HELCOM/VASAB) and in some national MSP settings (e.g. Latvia), combined with a common assumption of ecological limits to development, largely acknowledge a wide definition of EA as a governance approach building on societal choice and diverse knowledge inclusion (as seen e.g. in the Malawi principles). However, looking at more specific guidelines and MSP practices, there is a significant gap between espoused principles and the practical implementation of EA in BSR MSP, especially regarding social aspects of sustainability such as participation, social inclusion and knowledge pluralism. While work on ecological services in EA looks promising as a means of developing joined-up thinking between ecological and economic interests, it is uncertain whether this approach can deliver on EA’s social sustainability ambitions. We conclude the chapter by discussing ways that could strengthen the social pillar in MSP as a form of governance to bridge the gap between EA principles and practice., Baltspace

The aim of the book is to make visible the history and aspirations of the Union of Independent Workers of Artisanal Fishermen, Shore Harvesters and Seaweed collectors, Caleta Coliumo − which in spite of its masculine name is composed only of women. In doing so the authors hope to contribute to supporting the Union’s ongoing struggle to secure productive livelihoods and contribute more widely to coastal sustainability in the region. These are goals that we think should involve partnerships between scientists, fishing organizations and local, regional and national authorities. The book is also a contribution to the general discussion on the Áreas de Manejo y Explotación de Recursos Bentónicos (AMERB) and especially to the entry of women into fishing in Chile. More particularly, this book focuses on the experience of women in Coliumo, in southern Chile (Bío-Bío region), who in the heat of the struggle for coastal resources with fishermen from an adjacent fishing cove, organized themselves and were successful in applying for and obtaining exclusive use rights in coastal marine areas under the system of Territorial Rights of Use for Fishing (TURFs). Gaining entitlements to TURFs soon evolved into a new struggle for resources, this time among women aligned with different fishing unions in Coliumo. The outcome of this struggle was the creation of a second TURFs, again governed only by an all-women fishing union. This demonstrated once again, that in addition to the women’s role as seaweed collectors, they were able to effectively exercise their recently acquired negotiation and managerial skills. These were capacities that even local fishermen came to admire. What began as a conflict with fishermen from another cove, became an avenue where two all-women fishing unions became managers of two TURFs entitlements in the village. The women’s capacities to effectively manage their TURFs entitlements and related resources has resulted in increases in income and enhanced standing

Co-creation of a sustainable fisheries future through TURFs. A comparison between Vietnam, Chile and South Africa.

Ecuador in times of the Rafael Correa government constitutes a prime example of the paradox of environmental conflict, in which all involved actors claim to represent the true vanguard concerning safeguarding of the environment and human conditions. The country presents the ecologically most progressive constitution in the world and also incorporates far-reaching recognition of indigenous peoples’ rights. Notwithstanding, the economy remains reliant on extractivism and the government argues that the revenues of extractive industries benefit the common good. Anchored in a distinction between environmentalism and ecologism, this article identifies and problematizes dominant narratives among the actors of the contentious discursive scenarios, and analyses how the state and its ecological-indigenous opposition aim to position themselves within the political conflict. The central questions are: How are eco-progressive politics perceived, defined and expressed in this setting of an intercultural and plurinational society economically reliant on natural resource extraction? Which values, interests and ontological assumptions are at stake and how are these expressed in the discursive struggle? The research is based on several years of ethnographic fieldwork, combined with critical reading of the previous literature and discourse analysis. The article contributes to politico-environmental debates in Ecuador and beyond and shows that environmental struggle is entangled in broader political disputes conditioned by global economic structures. It likewise communicates with debates on argumentative discourse and illustrates that the same core arguments can constitute the argumentative basis of rivalling actors in political struggles, thus emphasizing the centrality of the contextual framing amid ontological divides in contentious discursive settings.

This study deals with the tensions and contradictions between resource governance, welfare policies, and the constitutionally recognized rights of nature and the indigenous peoples in Bolivia and Ecuador. We have identified a certain reductionism in current debates on these issues and propose a more systematic analytical focus on class and the class-ethnicity duality, as expressed in historical and contemporary indigenous struggles, and also confirmed via our ethnographic material. Drawing on the double bind as expressed in Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 wherein the protagonists face situations in which they do not have any choice to achieve a net gain, this article centres on how national governments have to choose between the protections of rights – in this case ethnic and environmental rights – and welfare provision financed by extractive revenues. From the perspective of ecologically concerned indigenous actors, the Catch-22 is articulated in the choice or compromise between universal welfarism on the one hand, and ethno-environmental concerns on the other hand. The article draws primarily on ecosocialist arguments and on indigenous-culturalist perspectives on Good Life (Sumak Kawsay or Vivir Bien). A central finding is the existence of awareness among involved actors – oppositional movements and government authorities – that the Catch-22 quandary and joint class-ethnic concerns are unavoidable ingredients in their discourses, struggles, and understandings of Good Life.

How science and policy interact has been a major research focus in the International Relations (IR) tradition, using the epistemic community (EC) concept, as well as in the alternative perspective of Science and Technology Studies (STS). Should science be autonomous and as apolitical as possible in order to ‘speak truth to power’, as suggested by EC or should the inevitable entanglement of science and politics be accepted and embraced so as to make advice more conducive to negotiating the explicit travails of political decision-making as suggested by STS? With this point of departure, we compare similarities and differences between science–policy interactions in the issue areas of eutrophication and fisheries management of the Baltic Sea. To examine how knowledge is mobilised, the concepts of ‘uncertainty’ and ‘coherence’ are developed, drawing on both EC and STS thinking. We then reflect on the explanatory value of these approaches in both cases and discuss how a separation of science and policy-making in the pursuit of achieving scientific consensus leads to ineffectual policies. Drawing on STS thinking, we urge for a re-conceptualisation of coherence in order to accommodate a more reflexive practice of science–policy interactions.

Existem diferentes interpretações e posturas sobre a plurinacionalidade e a interculturalidade dos atores indígenas. Problematizar-se-á como se expressam essas posições internamente, dentro da organização, e como se expressam externamente. Refere-se a este segundo processo externo como o diálogo deliberativo intercultural. O objetivo principal do presente texto é analiticamente problematizar os desafios e dilemas associados ao projeto de Estado Plurinacional a partir da perspectiva dos povos indígenas. Na estrutura teórica se destacam as contribuições sobre democracia deliberativa em sociedades divididas e/ou multiétnicas. A pergunta investigativa principal é: Como se refletem as complexidades do processo de implementação do Estado Plurinacional e Intercultural nos discursos dos atores envolvidos? O projeto plurinacional se inseriu contextualmente em uma relação complexa entre a territorialidade e a autoidentificação étnica. Enfatizamos a centralidade da territorialidade na indigeneidade e como estratégia nos processos organizativos e discursivos das organizações indígenas. Nessas disputas discursivas sobre a territorialidade, diferentes grupos indígenas se posicionam segundo sua relação histórica com a sociedade branco-mestiça. De tal maneira se constroem temporalidades diferentes desde a territorialidade. Metodologicamente, além da leitura crítica da literatura existente sobre o tema central do estudo, a presente investigação tem como base o trabalho etnográfico no Equador no qual se realizaram centenas de entrevistas entre 2001 e 2016 com políticos, intelectuais e porta-vozes das organizações indígenas., With the promulgation of the 2008 Constitution, Ecuador is formally a Plurinational and Intercultural State, the result of a process that had gained increasing societal legitimacy after decades of struggle by the indigenous peoples. After 2008, a central challenge for the indigenous organizations concerns the implementation of the principles and values of the Plurinational State. Different positions and interpretations are expressed among indigenous political actors. We problematize how they are expressed inwards, that is within the organization, and outwards, towards the surrounding political society. We refer to the second process as the intercultural deliberative dialogue. The main objective of the text is to analytically problematize the challenges and dilemmas associated with the Plurinational State project from the perspectives of the indigenous peoples. The theoretical framework draws on the literature on deliberative democracy in divided and/or multiethnic societies. The principal research question is: How are the complexities of implementing the Plurinational State reflected in the discourses of the actors involved? The plurinational project was contextually inserted in a complex relationship between territoriality and ethnic self-identification. We emphasize the centrality of territoriality for indigeneity and as an organizational and discursive strategy of the indigenous organizations. In discursive disputes about territoriality, different indigenous groups position themselves according to their historical relationship with the white-mestizo society. In this light, different temporalities of territoriality are constructed. This research is based on critical reading of the thematic literature and ethnographic work in Ecuador, including hundreds of interviews between 2001 and 2018 with politicians, intellectuals, and spokespersons of the indigenous organizations., Published in February 2019.

Reindeer herding (RDH) is a livelihood strategy deeply connected to Sami cultural tradition. This article explores the implications of two theoretical and methodological approaches for grasping complex socio-environmental relationships of RDH in Subarctic Sweden. Based on joint fieldwork, two teams – one that aligns itself with political ecology (PE) and the other with social-ecological systems (SES) – compared PE and SES approaches of understanding RDH. Our purpose was twofold: 1) to describe the situation of Sami RDH through the lenses of PE and SES, exploring how the two approaches interpret the same empirical data; 2) to present an analytical comparison of the ontological and epistemological assumptions of this work, also inferring different courses of action to instigate change for the sustainability of RDH. Key informants from four sameby in the Kiruna region expressed strong support for the continuation of RDH as a cultural and economic practice. Concerns about the current situation raised by Sami representatives centered on the cumulative negative impacts on RDH from mining, forestry and tourism. PE and SES researchers offered dissimilar interpretations of the key aspects of the RDH socio-economic situation, namely: the nature and scale of RDH systems; the ubiquitous role of conflict; and conceptualizations of responses to changing socio-environmental conditions. Due to these disparities, PE and SES analyses have radically divergent socio-political implications for what ought to be done to redress the current RDH situation., L'élevage de rennes (RDH) est une stratégie de subsistance étroitement liée à la tradition culturelle sami. Cet article explore les implications de deux approches théoriques et méthodologiques pour saisir les relations socio-environnementales complexes de RDH dans la Suède Subarctique. Sur la base du travail sur le terrain, deux équipes - une qui s'harmonise avec l'écologie politique (PE) et l'autre avec les systèmes socio-écologiques (SES) - ont comparé les approches PE et SES pour comprendre le RDH. Notre but était double: 1) décrire la situation de Sami RDH à travers les lentilles de PE et SES, en explorant comment les deux approches interprètent les mêmes données empiriques; 2) présenter une comparaison analytique des hypothèses ontologiques et épistémologiques de ce travail, en déduisant également différentes voies d'action pour instaurer un changement pour la durabilité de RDH. Les informateurs clés de quatre sameby dans la région de Kiruna ont fortement soutenu la poursuite de RDH en tant que pratique culturelle et économique. Les préoccupations concernant la situation actuelle soulevée par les représentants de Sami ont été centrées sur les effets négatifs cumulatifs sur le RDH des activités minières, forestières et touristiques. Les chercheurs de PE et de SES ont proposé des interprétations différentes des aspects clés de la situation socioéconomique de RDH: la nature et l'échelle des systèmes RDH; Le rôle omniprésent du conflit; Et les conceptualisations des réponses à l'évolution des conditions socio-environnementales. En raison de ces disparités, les analyses PE et SES ont des implications socio-politiques radicalement divergentes pour ce qui devrait être fait pour remédier à la situation actuelle de RDH., El pastoreo de renos es una estrategia de sustento profundamente arraigada en la tradición cultural del pueblo sami. Este artículo explora las implicancias de dos enfoques teóricos y metodológicos, para comprender las complejas relaciones socio-ambientales de esta actividad socioeconómica en el sub-ártico de Suecia. Basados en un trabajo de campo conjunto, dos equipos - uno que se alinea con la ecología política (PE) y el otro con los sistemas socio-ecológicos (SES) - realizan un estudio comparativo, con el doble propósito de: 1) describir la situación actual del pastoreo de renos, explorando como se interpretan los mismos datos empíricos desde ambos enfoques (PE y SES); 2) presentar una comparación analítica de los supuestos ontológicos y epistemológicos de este trabajo, infiriendo también diferentes cursos de acción para fomentar el cambio hacia un pastoreo de renos más sustentable. Los informantes clave de cuatro comunidades sami de la región de Kiruna expresaron su firme respaldo a la continuación del pastoreo de renos como práctica cultural y económica. Sus preocupaciones sobre la situación actual se centraron en los impactos negativos acumulados de la minería, la silvicultura y el turismo sobre esta actividad socioeconómica ancestral. Los investigadores de PE y SES ofrecieron diferentes interpretaciones de los aspectos clave de la situación del pastoreo de renos; a saber: la naturaleza y la escala del sistema; el papel omnipresente de los conflictos; y las conceptualizaciones de las respuestas a las cambiantes condiciones socio-ambientales. Debido a estas disparidades, los análisis de PE y SES tienen implicaciones sociopolíticas radicalmente divergentes sobre lo que se debería hacer para remediar la actual situación del pastoreo de renos del pueblo sami.

Ecuador en tiempos del gobierno de Rafael Correa constituye un caso perfecto de la paradoja político-ambiental, que trata de conflictos en los cuales todos los actores – autoridades del Estado y opositores ecologistas e indígenas – se auto-identifican como los verdaderos defensores del ambiente y las condiciones humanas. Por un lado, Ecuador tiene la Constitución más progresista del mundo en cuanto a la protección de la naturaleza y entre las más radicales en el reconocimiento de los derechos de los pueblos étnicamente definidos. Por otro lado, la economía desarrollista basada en extractivismo se ha mantenido durante el período y el gobierno argumenta que los ingresos derivados del extractivismo son utilizados para el bien común (bienestar social). Basándose en varios años de trabajo etnográfico en Ecuador, la lectura crítica de publicaciones temáticas y el análisis de discursos públicos, documentos políticos y datos recogidos a través de observación participativa, el artículo identifica y problematiza las narrativas dominantes entre los diferentes actores de los escenarios discursivos contenciosos, y también analiza cómo las autoridades estatales y sus opositores buscan posicionarse hacia el otro en relación al extractivismo y a las preocupaciones ecológicas. ¿Cómo se perciben, definen y expresan las políticas ambientales (progresistas) y las preocupaciones ecológicas por parte de los diferentes actores?, Ecuador in times of the Rafael Correa government constitutes a perfect example of the politico-environmental paradox, which deals with conflicts in which all involved actors –State authorities as well as ecologist and Indigenous opposition - claim to represent the true vanguard concerning safeguarding of the environment and human conditions. On the one hand, Ecuador presents the most progressive Constitution in the world regarding the protection of nature and it also incorporates far-reaching recognition of Indigenous peoples. On the other hand, the developmentalist economy based on extractivism has continued during the period and the government argues that the revenues of extractive industries benefit the common good (welfare reforms). Based on several years of ethnographic fieldwork in Ecuador, combined with critical reading of previous literature and analysis of public discourses, political documents and material obtained through participatory observation, this article identifies and problematizes the dominant narratives among the actors of the contentious discursive scenarios. It also analyzes how State authorities and their adversaries aim at positioning themselves towards the other in relation to extractivism and ecological concerns. How are (progressive) environmental politics and ecological concerns perceived, defined and expressed by different actors?, Rights of Nature – Nature of Rights. Neo-Constitutionalism and Ethno-Ecologist Resistance in Bolivia and Ecuador. Funded by the Swedish Research Council Formas (2013-2016).

Historically, indigenous peoples have been marginalized and oppressed in the Bolivian political economy. During the presidency of Evo Morales, and under the 2009 Constitution, political, economic, social and cultural decolonization has become the central project for the transformation of the State and society. On the one hand, the new Constitution has been classified as one of the most progressive in the world with respect to ethnically defined rights; the indigenous ethical-philosophical principles of Suma Qamaña/Vivir Bien, referring to the harmonious relationship between individuals and nature, have been incorporated into the Constitution. On the other hand, these rights collide with broader social rights (defined by class) and also the rights of the State to extract and market natural resources (especially hydrocarbon extraction and mining) under the banner of redistributive justice, social reforms and the common good. This collision is defined in this study as the paradox of extractivist developmentalism. The article is based on an ethnographic work and problematizes the extractivist dilemma and the tensions between ethnic rights and class rights, thus contributing to debates about indigeneity and the challenges and dilemmas of decolonizing projects., Históricamente, los pueblos indígenas fueron marginados y oprimidos en la economía política boliviana. En tiempos de Evo Morales en la presidencia y con la Constitución de 2009, la descolonización política, económica, social y cultural ha llegado a ser el proyecto central de la transformación del Estado y la sociedad. Por un lado, la nueva Constitución ha sido clasificada como una de las más progresistas del mundo en relación con los derechos étnicamente definidos. Los principios indígenas ético-filosóficos del Suma Qamaña/Vivir Bien, acerca de la relación armónica entre individuos y naturaleza fueron incorporados en la Constitución. Por otro lado, estos derechos colisionan con los derechos sociales más amplios (definidos por clase), e igualmente, con los derechos del Estado de extraer y comercializar los recursos naturales (en especial hidrocarburos y minería) bajo la bandera de la justicia redistributiva, reformas sociales y bien común, que en este estudio se define como la paradoja del desarrollismo extractivista. Este artículo se basa en un trabajo etnográfico y se problematiza el dilema extractivista y las tensiones entre derechos étnicos y derechos de clase. De esta manera, se aporta a los debates sobre la indigeneidad y la los desafíos y dilemas de proyectos descolonizadores., Rights of Nature - Nature of Rights. Neo-Constitutionalism and Ethno-Ecologist Resistance in Bolivia and Ecuador

El interés de la academia por investigar sobre el término del Sumak Kawsay ha despegado a partir de su incursión en la Constitución del Ecuador en 2008. Su cuestionada traducción como Buen-Vivir ha despertado diversos debates epistemológicos y ontológicos. En la actualidad, son tres las corrientes de pensamiento que estudian al paradigma emergente del Buen-Vivir: indígena-culturalista, postdesarrollista-ecologista y socialista-estatista. Cada una de ellas ha interpretado de diferente manera los saberes indígenas relacionados con el Sumak Kawsay, lo que ha dado lugar a varios cuestionamientos, entre ellos, un posible extractivismo epistémico en el uso y contenido del término Buen Vivir. Además, en la práctica, la inclusión del Buen-Vivir en la Constitución ecuatoriana de 2008 y el reconocimiento de los derechos de la naturaleza ha dado lugar a una serie de críticas y dilemas político-ambientales debido a las políticas públicas neo-extractivistas implementadas por el gobierno de Rafael Correa. El presente capítulo tiene como objetivo ahondar y enfatizar varios de los debates intelectuales sobre el Sumak Kawsay y el Buen-Vivir, así como identificar algunos dilemas y desafíos en la implementación práctica de los principios y valores de estas visiones., Rights of Nature - Nature of Rights. Neo-Constitutionalism and Ethno-Ecologist Resistance in Bolivia and Ecuador

In rural Mozambique, as in other African countries, large-scale land acquisitions are on the rise. This process is usually portrayed by host governments and investors as comprising win–win deals that can simultaneously boost agricultural productivity and combat poverty. This article focuses on one such investment, a large-scale Chinese land acquisition in the lower Limpopo valley, where attempts to modernise agriculture have occurred since colonial times. Based on an analysis of primary quantitative and qualitative data, this study explores livelihoods in the targeted area and local experiences and views regarding land loss and its implications. Our findings reveal a top-down process enabled by disregard for sound legislation, whereby land dispossession was followed by ‘take-it-or-leave-it’ opportunities that were unsuited to the most land-dependent livelihoods, particularly those of single-headed households. As the modernisation of the region is once again attempted through the promotion of large-scale agriculture, important historical continuities prevail. This study adds critical evidence to the discussion on the local development potential of land deals in Mozambique and other areas marked by similar democratic deficits.

This report is part of the BONUS BALTSPACE project and is focused on challenges for policy and sector integration in Baltic Sea marine spatial planning (MSP). The main objectives have been to identify concrete coordination problems, to analyse why they have emerged and to discuss possible remedies. It is based on selected aspects extracted from case studies carried out in this project related to the development of regional MSP approaches in Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden and on an additional case study on the HELCOM-VASAB Working Group on MSP. To facilitate the analysis of vertical policy interactions between institutions at different levels as well as of horizontal interactions over sector and country borders, an analytical framework was constructed. This framework consists of two main components; (a) institution-driven coordination where institutions such as global treaties, the EU, regional organisations, and state authorities provide boundaries for decisions taken at lower levels and (b) benefit-driven coordination capturing horizontal coordination across sector and country borders., Towards sustainable planning of Baltic marine space (BONUS BALTSPACE)

Developing integrative decision-making underpinned by a diverse knowledge base is seen as essential to meet marine spatial planning’s (MSP) sustainable development aspirations. In contributing to a better understanding of how this might be achieved, this report considers knowledge integration challenges drawing on several MSP empirical cases across the Baltic Sea Region. Each case-study, involves Baltic Sea states at different stages of developing national marine spatial plans. At the Baltic-wide level, HELCOM-VASAB has interpreted the Ecosystem Approach in MSP as relying heavily on an evidence-base informed by natural scientific and expert knowledge. The results of the report show that challenges arise when trying to apply scientific knowledge to MSP events or processes for a number of reasons such as, incomplete data and associated substantial uncertainty or because stakeholders contest the policy interpretation of the data. This raises questions of how to assess or evaluate the quality and comprehensiveness/sufficiency of scientific and stakeholder knowledge or input into MSP decision-making, particularly in highly politicised, conflictual contexts, such as the integration of parts of the fishing sector in MSP in Poland. MSP in German territorial waters provides a positive example, where science and stakeholder knowledge input have been integrated in decision-making through informal and formal processes. This case exhibits evidence of social learning where authorities have reflected on previous experiences and invested in actively nurturing the meaningful participation of a wide variety of stakeholders (to form a community of practice) over an extended period of time. The key findings of the report call for more attention to be paid to ways that scientific and stakeholder knowledge can be fruitfully incorporated in MSP, through initiatives such as: the development of knowledge evaluation measures; drawing more actively on social science expertise to help facilita, Towards sustainable planning of Baltic marine space (BONUS BALTSPACE)

Towards sustainable planning of Baltic marine space (BONUS BALTSPACE)

This Deliverable elaborates an evaluation design for MSP that responds to a growing call for a more nuanced and critical conceptualisation and implementation of MSP as complex sites of governance. Here we posit that such an evaluation design should be based on 'sustainability of governance' in MSP. Furthermore, that such an evaluation approach should be built on good governance principles of participation, coordination, openness and collaboration in governance processes with the aim to strengthen MSP on both democratic and functionality grounds. To advance this position, we elaborate the relationship between integration as a concept that can be used to examine the sustainability of governance in practice. The conceptual framework is then used to structure a discussion of illustrative examples of the relationship between integration and sustainability of governance across several Baltic Sea case-studies. The results of these case studies are then framed in a discussion on aspects that need to be considered when designing an evaluation process for MSP. Points highlighted here are the need to adopt a deliberative and reflexive approach that draws on a wide body of evidence in evaluation. A set of clustered evaluative criteria (CEC), referring to practices deemed to be desirable for sustainability of MSP governance, are proposed to guide or direct an evaluation process. The CEC were derived through an assessment of what is deemed important in the relevant literature as well as through consideration of the experience of the Baltic cases. The CEC could be seen as indicators of integration that relate to aspects of sustainability of governance in MSP, as well as, in more instrumental terms to support problem-solving aimed at improving MSP coherence. The evaluation design outlined here would require to be tested and trialled in MSP settings to assess its saliency and refine its usability in practice., Towards sustainable planning of Baltic marine space (BONUS BALTSPACE)