Title
Participatory mapping for strengthening environmental governance on socio-ecological impacts of infrastructure in the amazon: Lessons to improve tools and strategies
Date Issued
01 December 2021
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Mere-Roncal C.
Carrero G.C.
Zambrano A.M.A.
Loiselle B.
Gutierrez F.V.
Luna-Celino V.
Arteaga M.
Bongiolo E.S.
Tomasi A.S.
Van Damme P.A.
Zapata D.E.L.
Broadbent E.N.
University of Florida
Publisher(s)
MDPI
Abstract
The Amazon region has been viewed as a source of economic growth based on extractive industry and large-scale infrastructure development endeavors, such as roads, dams, oil and gas pipelines and mining. International and national policies advocating for the development of the Amazon often conflict with the environmental sector tasked with conserving its unique ecosystems and peoples through a sustainable development agenda. New practices of environmental governance can help mitigate adverse socio-economic and ecological effects. For example, forming a “community of practice and learning” (CoP-L) is an approach for improving governance via collaboration and knowledge exchange. The Governance and Infrastructure in the Amazon (GIA) project, in which this study is embedded, has proposed that fostering a CoP-L on tools and strategies to improve infrastructure governance can serve as a mechanism to promote learning and action on factors related to governance effectiveness. A particular tool used by the GIA project for generating and sharing knowledge has been participatory mapping (Pmap). This study analyzes Pmap exercises conducted through workshops in four different Amazonian regions. The goal of Pmap was to capture different perspectives from stakeholders based on their experiences and interests to visualize and reflect on (1) areas of value, (2) areas of concern and (3) recommended actions related to reducing impacts of infrastructure development and improvement of governance processes. We used a mixed-methods approach to explore textual analysis, regional multi-iteration discussion with stakeholders, participatory mapping and integration with ancillary geospatial datasets. We believe that by sharing local-knowledge-driven data and strengthening multi-actor dialogue and collaboration, this novel approach can improve day to day practices of CoP-L members and, therefore, the transparency of infrastructure planning and good governance.
Volume
13
Issue
24
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Ciencias políticas Ciencias ambientales
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85121585361
Source
Sustainability (Switzerland)
Resource of which it is part
Sustainability (Switzerland)
Source funding
Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Sponsor(s)
Acknowledgments: We dedicate this paper in gratitude to the life and legacy of our dear friend, esteemed colleague and passionate conservationist, Dennis Edgar Lizarro Zapata. We sincerely thank all the participants in each mosaic, including all the government, non-profit organizations, academia and indigenous or community representatives, for providing valuable contribution to this research. We would like to thank each mosaic coordinator Leddy Cecilia Sanjinez (Bolivia), Ney Maciel (Brazil), Maryi Adriana Serrano (Colombia) and Frida Sanchez (Peru) for helping in the logistics and organization of the workshops. We thank the faculty, students, and participants of the GIA project for their support in different ways throughout the process. Finally, we thank the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation for their support and funding and the University of Florida for authorizing this research.
Sources of information: Directorio de Producción Científica Scopus