Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous Livelihoods
This paper examines the threats to Indigenous water rights and territories in the Andean countries. It analyzes how water and water rights are embedded in Indigenous territories, and how powerful actors and intervention projects tend to undermine local societies and indigenous livelihoods by develop...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
University of Western Ontario
2012-11-01
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| Series: | International Indigenous Policy Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1075&context=iipj |
| _version_ | 1819207942397755392 |
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| author | Rutgerd Boelens Bibiana Duarte Rossana Manosalvas Patricio Mena Tatinana Roa Juana Vera |
| author_facet | Rutgerd Boelens Bibiana Duarte Rossana Manosalvas Patricio Mena Tatinana Roa Juana Vera |
| author_sort | Rutgerd Boelens |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper examines the threats to Indigenous water rights and territories in the Andean countries. It analyzes how water and water rights are embedded in Indigenous territories, and how powerful actors and intervention projects tend to undermine local societies and indigenous livelihoods by developing large-scale water infrastructure. Three cases illustrate the encroachment process. In Colombia, the Embera Katio people’s water territory is colonized by a large-scale hydropower development project. In Ecuador, large-scale drinking water development for megacities aims the water belonging to the Oyacachi community’s indigenous highland territory. In Peru, communal water rights of the Colca Valley indigenous peasantry are under threat because of large-scale irrigation development. As the cases show, Indigenous peoples and communities actively contest the undermining and subordination of their water and territorial rights through a myriad of multi-scalar livelihood defense strategies. The challenges that indigenous peoples face to defend their water-based livelihoods are, however, enormous and growing every day. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T05:31:30Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b84ea60d1f334f0891201275ce31d653 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1916-5781 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T05:31:30Z |
| publishDate | 2012-11-01 |
| publisher | University of Western Ontario |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Indigenous Policy Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-b84ea60d1f334f0891201275ce31d6532022-12-21T17:58:28ZengUniversity of Western OntarioInternational Indigenous Policy Journal1916-57812012-11-01335Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous LivelihoodsRutgerd BoelensBibiana DuarteRossana ManosalvasPatricio MenaTatinana RoaJuana VeraThis paper examines the threats to Indigenous water rights and territories in the Andean countries. It analyzes how water and water rights are embedded in Indigenous territories, and how powerful actors and intervention projects tend to undermine local societies and indigenous livelihoods by developing large-scale water infrastructure. Three cases illustrate the encroachment process. In Colombia, the Embera Katio people’s water territory is colonized by a large-scale hydropower development project. In Ecuador, large-scale drinking water development for megacities aims the water belonging to the Oyacachi community’s indigenous highland territory. In Peru, communal water rights of the Colca Valley indigenous peasantry are under threat because of large-scale irrigation development. As the cases show, Indigenous peoples and communities actively contest the undermining and subordination of their water and territorial rights through a myriad of multi-scalar livelihood defense strategies. The challenges that indigenous peoples face to defend their water-based livelihoods are, however, enormous and growing every day.http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1075&context=iipjwater rightspoliciespoliticshydraulic megaprojectsIndigenous territorieslivelihoodscultureneoliberalismsocial mobilizationAndean region |
| spellingShingle | Rutgerd Boelens Bibiana Duarte Rossana Manosalvas Patricio Mena Tatinana Roa Juana Vera Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous Livelihoods International Indigenous Policy Journal water rights policies politics hydraulic megaprojects Indigenous territories livelihoods culture neoliberalism social mobilization Andean region |
| title | Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous Livelihoods |
| title_full | Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous Livelihoods |
| title_fullStr | Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous Livelihoods |
| title_full_unstemmed | Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous Livelihoods |
| title_short | Contested Territories: Water Rights and the Struggles over Indigenous Livelihoods |
| title_sort | contested territories water rights and the struggles over indigenous livelihoods |
| topic | water rights policies politics hydraulic megaprojects Indigenous territories livelihoods culture neoliberalism social mobilization Andean region |
| url | http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1075&context=iipj |
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