A Political Ecology of Responsible Indigenous Mining: Dilemmas, Disputes and Challenges in the Shuar Community of Congüime in the Ecuadorian Amazon

Desde 2016, la comunidad indígena Shuar de Congüime en la Amazonía ecuatoriana tiene la concesión para extraer oro en su territorio mediante su empresa comunitaria Exploken Minera. Con su misión de una minería socio-ecológicamente responsable, invirtiendo los ingresos en la comunidad y sin usar químicos o metales pesados, este modelo único se contrasta con la extracción minera transnacional e ilegal en territorios indígenas. Con inspiración teórica y metodológica de la ecología política, justicia ambiental y el post-desarrollo, así como la conceptualización de utopías reales, este estudio etnográfico trata de las experiencias de gobernanza y justicia socioambiental de la empresa comunitaria y los dilemas, disputas y desafíos que emergen en la comunidad con esta nueva situación. El resultado indica que varios desafíos estructurales siguen sin resolverse. Si bien las experiencias de responsabilidad socioecológica de Exploken constituyen una opción ante el extractivismo destructivo y considerando la mejora de las condiciones de vida de muchas familias Shuar, surgieron nuevas tensiones sociales en Congüime, incluso transformaciones de las estructuras de poder socialSince 2016, the Shuar indigenous community of Congüime in the Ecuadorian Amazon has held the gold mining concession in its territory through the community company Exploken Minera. With its mission of socially and ecologically responsible mining, investing the incomes in the community and without using chemicals or heavy metals, this unique model contrasts with transnational and illegal mining in indigenous territories. The present ethnographic study, which draws theoretical and methodological inspiration from political ecology, environmental justice, post-development and the conceptualization of real utopias, deals with the experiences of socio-environmental governance and justice of the Shuar mining company, and the dilemmas, disputes and challenges that emerge in the community in this unprecedented situation. The result indicates that structural challenges remain unsolved. While Exploken's experiments in socio-ecological responsibility constitute an alternative to destructive extractivism, and considering the improved living conditions enjoyed by many Shuar families, new social tensions have emerged in Congüime, including transformations of social power structure

Una ecología política de minería indígena responsable: Dilemas, disputas y desafíos en la comunidad Shuar de Congüime de la Amazonía ecuatoriana

Since 2016, the Shuar indigenous community of Congüime in the Ecuadorian Amazon has held the gold mining concession in its territory through the community company Exploken Minera. With its mission of socially and ecologically responsible mining, investing the incomes in the community and without using chemicals or heavy metals, this unique model contrasts with transnational and illegal mining in indigenous territories. The present ethnographic study, which draws theoretical and methodological inspiration from political ecology, environmental justice, post-development and the conceptualization of real utopias, deals with the experiences of socio-environmental governance and justice of the Shuar mining company, and the dilemmas, disputes and challenges that emerge in the community in this unprecedented situation. The result indicates that structural challenges remain unsolved. While Exploken's experiments in socio-ecological responsibility constitute an alternative to destructive extractivism, and considering the improved living conditions enjoyed by many Shuar families, new social tensions have emerged in Congüime, including transformations of social power structuresDesde 2016, la comunidad indígena Shuar de Congüime en la Amazonía ecuatoriana tiene la concesión para extraer oro en su territorio mediante su empresa comunitaria Exploken Minera. Con su misión de una minería socio-ecológicamente responsable, invirtiendo los ingresos en la comunidad y sin usar químicos o metales pesados, este modelo único se contrasta con la extracción minera transnacional e ilegal en territorios indígenas. Con inspiración teórica y metodológica de la ecología política, justicia ambiental y el post-desarrollo, así como la conceptualización de utopías reales, este estudio etnográfico trata de las experiencias de gobernanza y justicia socioambiental de la empresa comunitaria y los dilemas, disputas y desafíos que emergen en la comunidad con esta nueva situación. El resultado indica que varios desafíos estructurales siguen sin resolverse. Si bien las experiencias de responsabilidad socioecológica de Exploken constituyen una opción ante el extractivismo destructivo y considerando la mejora de las condiciones de vida de muchas familias Shuar, surgieron nuevas tensiones sociales en Congüime, incluso transformaciones de las estructuras de poder socia

In the Lands of Oligarchs : Ethno-Politics and the Struggle for Social Justice in the Indigenous-Peasant Movements of Guatemala and Ecuador

The study explores how struggles for social justice by Guatemalan and Ecuadorian indigenous peasant movements are affected by ethno-politics (the strategic political use of ethnicity), by using a comparative historical approach incorporating structural change and strategic agency. The analysis revolves around the partly enduring, partly changing oligarchic structures. The choice of the countries rests primarily upon the composition of their respective oligarchic classes. In Guatemala, the despotic agrarian oligarchs have dominated for much of the past century; whereas in Ecuador, the oligarchy was divided into an agrarian and a modernist fraction. Scholars often locate ethnic politicisation in Latin America within the context of a shift from ‘national popular’ and ‘corporatist’ political orders toward political and economic liberalisation. This shift supposedly unleashed ethnic identities which were previously subordinated by the way indigenous communities were politically incorporated. This study shows that dramatic openings for ethnic politicisation in the 1990s occurred where corporatism had been weak and oligarchic structures persisted. But the elites were unable to use ethnicity as a tool for hegemonic control. Due to the oligarchic legacy, class discourses could not be prevented from being reproduced, and ethnic ones were politicised in a way that is dysfunctional to the elites’ effort to politically disarm the rural poor. Another finding is that the persisting influence of the agrarian oligarchy made the Guatemalan movement more focused on the land struggle and more unwilling/unable to integrate into the political arena prescribed by those in control of the state. In Ecuador, the demise of the agrarian oligarchy and the rise of a strong neo-liberal fraction constituted the context within which the movement moved away from the land struggle. It accessed the ethno-political spaces more firmly but resembled the Guatemalan movement in keeping its strategy of mass mobilisation

In the Lands of Oligarchs : Ethno-Politics and the Struggle for Social Justice in the Indigenous-Peasant Movements of Guatemala and Ecuador

The study explores how struggles for social justice by Guatemalan and Ecuadorian indigenous peasant movements are affected by ethno-politics (the strategic political use of ethnicity), by using a comparative historical approach incorporating structural change and strategic agency. The analysis revolves around the partly enduring, partly changing oligarchic structures. The choice of the countries rests primarily upon the composition of their respective oligarchic classes. In Guatemala, the despotic agrarian oligarchs have dominated for much of the past century; whereas in Ecuador, the oligarchy was divided into an agrarian and a modernist fraction. Scholars often locate ethnic politicisation in Latin America within the context of a shift from ‘national popular’ and ‘corporatist’ political orders toward political and economic liberalisation. This shift supposedly unleashed ethnic identities which were previously subordinated by the way indigenous communities were politically incorporated. This study shows that dramatic openings for ethnic politicisation in the 1990s occurred where corporatism had been weak and oligarchic structures persisted. But the elites were unable to use ethnicity as a tool for hegemonic control. Due to the oligarchic legacy, class discourses could not be prevented from being reproduced, and ethnic ones were politicised in a way that is dysfunctional to the elites’ effort to politically disarm the rural poor. Another finding is that the persisting influence of the agrarian oligarchy made the Guatemalan movement more focused on the land struggle and more unwilling/unable to integrate into the political arena prescribed by those in control of the state. In Ecuador, the demise of the agrarian oligarchy and the rise of a strong neo-liberal fraction constituted the context within which the movement moved away from the land struggle. It accessed the ethno-political spaces more firmly but resembled the Guatemalan movement in keeping its strategy of mass mobilisation

Dilemas e desafios na construção do Estado plurinacional : Territorialidade, Indigeneidade e Diálogo Deliberativo Intercultural no Equador

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.</p

Reflexiones Decoloniales Sobre Sumak Kawsay Y Justicia Social

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

Interculturality from Below : Territoriality and Floating Indigenous Identities in Plurinational Ecuador

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

Interculturality from Below : Territoriality and Floating Indigenous Identities in Plurinational Ecuador

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

Livelihood alterations and Indigenous Innovators in the Ecuadorian Amazon

This article approaches livelihood alterations in Indigenous communities of the Ecuadorian Amazon as means of adaptation and resistance to socio-environmental impacts brought along by the expansion of global capitalism. The cases comprise collective Indigenous endeavors in typically capitalist sectors - tourism and mining - illustrated by the experiences of Kichwa community tourism in Shiripuno in the central Amazon, and sustainable mining in the southern Amazonian Shuar community of Congüime (Kenkuim). The aim is to unravel these emerging livelihood strategies in relation to Indigenous ethno-cultural identity. Methodologically, we rely on comparative and ethnographic work in the field with Indigenous actors, and on a theoretical framework anchored in the concepts of innovators, cultural boundary changes (Fredrik Barth), social fields of force (William Roseberry), and intercultural regimes (Fernando Galindo and Xavier Albó). In both empirical cases - Indigenous-controlled tourism and mining - communities are framing their ethnic identity to engage with, and positively reposition themselves in relation to the wider society. We hold that these endeavors must be comprehended as highly innovative, and that indigeneity and cultural boundaries can be strengthened by socio-cultural changes toward livelihoods previously considered as “unauthentic” or “non-Indigenous”. We also argue that these new livelihood orientations have (purposely) altered gender relations within the communities in benefit of women. Additionally, our cases suggest that cultural strengthening and gender empowerment, among other positive outcomes, requires a nuanced apprehension of indigeneity as a partly floating concept and instrument gaining ground amid the increasing interconnectedness of ancient traditions and capitalist modernity