by Eduardo Gudynas – When Evo Morales’s Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) gained control of Bolivia’s government, it unleashed expectations of structural changes on several fronts, from the reform of the state to a new constitution, from new economic regulations to the direct political participation of indigenous and campesino organizations. The notable initial changes and the […]
by Eduardo Gudynas – One of the most original environmental initiatives in recent years, coming from Ecuador, sought to leave oil in the ground to preserve the Amazonia and its indigenous peoples. It was an idea emerging from civil society that took on concrete form in 2007, under the first government of Rafael Correa, and […]
by Eduardo Gudynas – Extractivism is the appropriation of huge volumes of natural resources or their intensive exploitation, most of them exported as raw materials to global markets. It seems to have gone unnoticed that by this definition the major extractivist in South America is Brazil. This is not always recognized. When we talk of […]
by Eduardo Gudynas – In Latin America strategies are still being advanced focused on mining, hydrocarbons and monoculture, despite the fact that this means repeating the role of suppliers of raw materials and of civic resistance. This extractive mode of being is expressed both in conservative and progressive governments. But as the latter hope for […]
The Latin American economy based on exploitation of natural resources does not create social well-being and is unsustainable in the context of climate change, says Uruguayan ecologist Eduardo Gudynas, lead researcher at the Latin American Centre for Social Ecology (CLAES). Interview by Milagros Salazar. Gudynas, who was in Lima to lead a workshop with the […]
The so-called extractivism, which includes mineral and oil exploitation, has a long history in Latin America. Current exports have been nourished by extractivist activities. Extractivism has continued to play a key role in national economies. It has also occupied a place at the center of powerful struggles because of its economic, social, and environmental impacts. […]
The government of Ecuador has presented a novel proposal to not exploit the oil reserves of the Yasuní National Park. The economic benefits of exporting crude oil are limited compared to the social, economic, and environmental costs of extracting oil from the Amazon, with its enormous ecological and cultural diversity. The report Leaving the Oil […]