Lectures 6-9 Flashcards
(62 cards)
What are the key geological features of the Atacama Desert?
The desert includes the Cordillera de los Andes, saltpans, high-altitude lagoons, hot springs, geysers, and volcanoes.
Where is the Atacama Desert located, and why is it significant?
The Atacama Desert is located along the Pacific coast of South America, spanning Chile, Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina. It is significant as the driest place in the world, with an average annual rainfall of 0.004 inches.
Who are the Atacameño people, and how have they historically interacted with the desert environment?
The Atacameño people are indigenous to the desert and have lived in small oases, maintaining a close relationship with the environment through traditional practices.
What is the Socio-Ecological Systems (SES) approach, and why is it important for sustainability?
The SES approach recognizes the interconnectedness of social and ecological systems, emphasizing interactions between people, resources, and ecosystems. It is important because it addresses the complexity of sustainability challenges.
How does Political Ecology contribute to understanding San Pedro de Atacama’s challenges?
Political Ecology examines the influence of power relations, economic structures, and political processes on resource access and decision-making, shedding light on the unequal impacts of environmental changes in the region.
What role does Environmental Justice play in analyzing San Pedro de Atacama?
Environmental Justice focuses on the equitable distribution of environmental benefits and burdens, ensuring marginalized communities are not disproportionately impacted by environmental decisions and changes.
How did the arrival of Spanish colonizers disrupt the Atacameño way of life? (San Pedro de Atacama Case Study)
The arrival of the Spanish disrupted the nature-culture nexus, leading to the decline of indigenous languages and practices and forcing many Atacameños to abandon traditional agriculture.
What were the environmental and social impacts of mining-driven exploitation between 1830 and 1920? (San Pedro de Atacama Case Study)
Mining exploitation displaced Atacameño communities, eroded traditional practices, and led to their economic marginalization as they became proletariats working in mines.
How did the dictatorship era (1973–1990) affect resource exploitation in the region? (San Pedro de Atacama Case Study)
The dictatorship intensified resource extraction without regard for environmental protection or indigenous rights, exacerbating ecological degradation and social inequalities.
What were two key laws introduced in Chile during the 1990s, and what were their purposes?
- Environmental Law (1994): Created CONAMA to oversee environmental protection.
- Indigenous Law (1993): Established CONADI to coordinate indigenous policy and address historical injustices.
How did indigenous communities benefit from land and water rights restitution? (Chile)
In Chile, the restitution of land and water rights to Indigenous communities has brought both positive impacts and challenges.
Positive Impacts:
- Empowerment: Indigenous people gained a renewed societal role, control over resources, and legal recognition (e.g., 1993 Indigenous Law).
- Sustainability : They contribute to protected area management and ecotourism, aligning nature and culture.
- Economic Benefits: Opportunities in tourism and strengthened governance of resources.
Challenges:
- Skill Gaps: limited management skills hinder self-governance.
- Exclusion Issues: Some governance structures exclude conservation agencies and researchers.
- Resource Exploitation: Selling water rights to private companies raises ecological concerns.
- Disrupted Connections: Historical mining activities weakened cultural ties to nature.
- Power Imbalances: Mining companies may exploit weaker governance structures.
In summary, while restitution empowers Indigenous communities, it also introduces challenges like equity, management, and conflicting stakeholder interests, as seen in the Atacama Desert.
What opportunities and challenges has ecotourism brought to San Pedro de Atacama?
Opportunities: Economic growth and a potential alternative to mining.
Challenges: Unequal benefit distribution and barriers preventing Atacameños from fully participating in the tourism industry.
How did the return to democracy influence indigenous identity in the region? - san atacama
It encouraged the return of indigenous people to the desert, revitalizing their cultural identity and practices, partly fueled by the rise of ecotourism.
What governance challenges have indigenous communities faced in managing land and water resources?
Challenges include limited management experience, conflicts with archaeologists, and ecological concerns over actions like selling groundwater rights.
How do power dynamics between newcomers and indigenous communities shape San Pedro de Atacama?
While newcomers dominate economically, particularly in tourism, indigenous communities hold more formal decision-making power, creating tension over resource use and governance.
What does the San Pedro de Atacama case study reveal about socio-ecological systems?
It highlights their fragility, particularly under pressures like mining and tourism, and the need for sustainable governance.
How has modernization and neoliberalism impacted the region?
These forces have prioritized economic growth at the expense of social and ecological well-being, creating a need for alternative development models.
Why is governance in the region considered incoherent?
Governance involves conflicting priorities and interests among government agencies, indigenous communities, and private businesses, leading to inconsistencies and competition.
What are the primary perspectives and approaches to Sustainable Development (SD)?
The diverse perspectives and approaches to SD include:
- Socio-centered: Social sustainability, governance, and social innovation.
- Socio-political: Political Ecology, Environmental Justice, Degrowth.
- Economic: Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES), market-based instruments.
- Systemic: Socio-ecological systems approaches, systems resilience.
How does Political Ecology contribute to understanding SD challenges?
Political Ecology examines the role of power relations and inequalities in shaping environmental governance and outcomes.
Why are nature conservation and governance often conflictive?
Conflicts arise due to:
- Diverse perceptions and framings of nature.
- Different governance types, such as global arrangements (SDGs, IPCC), community-based conservation, and private-sector initiatives.
- Competing priorities and values among stakeholders.
What is the shift from government to governance?
It involves mobilizing market forces for sustainability through public regulation, sparking debates over weak sustainability and the commodification of nature.
What criticisms are associated with market-based governance?
Critics argue it prioritizes economic solutions over social and ecological considerations, often neglecting non-economic values.
What are Ecosystem Services (ES), and how are they categorized?
According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA), ES are the benefits humans derive from ecosystems. They are categorized as:
- Provisioning: Food, water, fiber.
- Regulating: Flood control, disease regulation.
- Supporting: Soil formation, photosynthesis.
- Cultural: Recreation, aesthetic enjoyment, spiritual fulfillment.
