Suchergebnisse

This publication is the result of an initiative to promote an exchange between Brazil and African countries on lessons learned about the role of community forestry as a strategic option to achieve the goals of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+). The initiative was supported by the World Bank with funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and coordinated by the Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS) with support from the National Forestry Agency International (ONFI). Representatives of five countries from the Congo Basin (Cameroon, Gabon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Republic of Congo) and Madagascar participated in this initiative. This publication organizes information, analyses and conclusions on issues relevant to the design and implementation of REDD+ strategies. The findings do not represent an official position of any of the institutions or governments involved. In fact, the material presented here aims to stimulate further discussions, as the REDD+ debate is still unfolding and could benefit greatly from technical exchanges among the various ongoing initiatives. This publication has the following sections: (i) a conceptual approach to community forestry and REDD+; (ii) the key issues of REDD+ in connection with community forestry in Africa; (iii) how REDD+ and forest carbon (FC) are being developed in Brazil; and (iv) conclusions.

This country note for Armenia is part of a series of country briefs that summarize information relevant to climate change and agriculture for three pilot countries in the Southern Caucasus Region, with a particular focus on climate and crop projections, adaptation options, policy development and institutional involvement. The note series has been developed to provide a baseline of knowledge on climate change and agriculture for the countries participating in the regional program on reducing vulnerability to climate change in Southern Caucasus Agricultural systems. This note for Armenia was shared with the government and other agricultural sector stakeholders and used as an engagement tool for a national awareness raising and consultation workshop, held in Yerevan in April 2012. Feedback and comments on the note from this consultation process have been incorporated into this updated version in collaboration with the Armenian Ministry of Agriculture.

The Atlas of Urban AI, conceived as the flagship project of the Global Observatory of Urban Artificial Intelligence (GOUAI), has established itself as the largest and most comprehensive openly accessible repository of ethical urban artificial intelligence initiatives worldwide. Building on the research conducted, this report analyses the cases included in the Atlas and provides a comprehensive view of best practices and trends characterising the global evolution of urban AI.







1. Introduction Artificial intelligence (AI) stands as one of the most transformative forces of our era, carrying the promise to reshape our societies. Unsurprisingly, this phenomenon has captured the attention of governments worldwide, and local governments are no exception. A recent survey reveals a strong interest among mayors in exploring the use of AI tools to enhance public service delivery and address critical urban challenges such as traffic congestion, infrastructure upgrades, public safety and climate change mitigation. This keen interest is not merely theoretical: nearly 70% of the surveyed mayors reported testing this technology, albeit with only a minority actively deploying it. Therefore, the tangible impact of AI on urban areas is indisputably significant. However, the enthusiasm surrounding the adoption of "urban AI" is tempered by an equal level of caution in embracing algorithmic tools. This caution stems from the potential impact of AI systems on rights, as well as the significant social risks and environmental costs associated with the increasing reliance of our societies and governments on AI systems. Furthermore, urban AI applications operate within specific policy contexts, thus wielding distinct political influence. Cities are political arenas where local governments have the authority to make decisions that impact millions of lives. It is no coincidence that the EU AI Act categorises certain common uses of AI systems in urban environments as either high-risk or limited-risk, making it imperative to scrutinise the interconnections between algorithmic systems and their ethical and political implications. In essence, there is an urgent requirement for cities to acquire knowledge on the ethical deployment of AI. And this is precisely the mission that the Atlas of Urban AI aims to accomplish. Conceived as the flagship project of the Global Observatory of Urban Artificial Intelligence (GOUAI), the Atlas offers a curated collection of over 200 initiatives from 70 cities around the globe, establishing itself as the most comprehensive openly accessible repository of urban artificial intelligence worldwide. Building on the research conducted, this report seeks to analyse the cases included in the Atlas to provide an overall view of best practices and trends characterising the global evolution of urban AI. Specifically, the report addresses the following questions: In which regions do local governments exhibit greater engagement in deploying AI systems with an ethical focus? What ethical principles do cities most frequently apply, and why? How are these principles operationalised and which ones tend to be overlooked? At what stage of implementation are municipalities in their deployment of AI technology? Are most projects already operational or is the emphasis still primarily on discussing pilot projects? What characterises the urban AI ecosystem for local governments, and who are their main partners? Is urban AI exclusive to larger cities? The report is structured into four sections. The first section provides methodological insights into the research process behind the curation of the Atlas, including information on the criteria used to select the cases featured in it. The second section is more theoretical and aims to clarify the concept of "urban artificial intelligence". It also reflects on the relationship between urban settings and artificial intelligence technologies and highlights distinguishing features that differentiate urban AI from other types of algorithmic systems. The third section presents key trends in urban artificial intelligence from the analysis of the Atlas. Finally, the fourth section explores the local regulation of AI and identifies policy initiatives undertaken by cities globally to ensure the ethical deployment of algorithmic systems. 2. Methodological noteGOUAI's Atlas of Urban AI was built on extensive desk research, involving the systematic gathering of data from various publicly accessible sources. These include official city reports, government websites, urban development agencies, technology company reports, smart city newspapers and other related online platforms. To a lesser extent, interviews and surveys with city officials and other relevant stakeholders were also conducted. The research, initiated in 2021, is still in progress and remains open to receiving additional cases via an online survey.Projects included in the database were required to meet four specific criteria, namely: (1) an explicit alignment with GOUAI's ethical principles;1 (2) direct or indirect involvement and/or support of the city government; (3) a clear focus on urban AI (i.e. with identifiable applications in an urban context); and (4) a documented record of planning, implementation or active development.Although this report and the extensive research supporting the Atlas strive to be thorough, the authors recognise possible omissions in their efforts to capture every case in the Atlas. This is due to significant limitations encountered during the data collection process. The main challenge stemmed from the heavy reliance on public sources, given that many cities do not actively promote their urban AI projects or provide easily accessible project information. This lack of promotion and transparency constitutes a key barrier to obtaining comprehensive and current data. Moreover, even when cities do disclose information about their projects, the ethical implications and considerations are often unclear or insufficiently documented. This ambiguity makes it difficult to assess certain projects' alignment with GOUAI's ethical principles, resulting in the exclusion of some potential best practices.By the same token, the overall data collection from primary sources was hindered by a low and sporadic response rate from city officials. Their limited availability and capacity to respond to data inquiries was a barrier to qualitative data collection. Even when city officials were willing to share information, they frequently encountered difficulties related to internal communication. This issue reflects the complexity of coordinating and disseminating information within city administrations. 3. The concept of "urban artificial intelligence"Artificial intelligence is inherently connected with urban life. For one thing, urban spaces serve as tangible and prominent settings where AI is visibly present. Cities also function as testing grounds for new AI forms and are where some of its social and environmental impacts, in terms of both opportunities and risks, are most felt (Galceran-Vercher and Rodríguez Pérez, 2024). Furthermore, the functioning and development of AI require a variety of resources, many of which are closely tied to urban settings. In essence, cities can be described as microcosms through which AI observes and comprehends the wider world. More specifically, cities provide four crucial types of resources (Cugurullo et al., 2023b):Urban spaces: AI requires physical environments to act upon, and these are frequently urban. Examples include roads, buildings, parks, streets, etc.Access to activities: Urban settlements encapsulate a growing proportion and diversity of activities worldwide. Consequently, if an AI application is to partake in social interactions, participate in economic transactions, play a role in political processes or contribute to global environmental changes, it must interact with urban systems.Data for machine learning: Most AI systems presently enhance their intelligence through machine learning processes, which entail extensive data usage. Urban areas, characterised by dense populations, serve as significant hubs for diverse human activities, making them crucial producers of data. However, the importance of cities lies not only in the sheer volume of data they generate but also in the quality of the data. Urban spaces produce real-time data, which is highly detailed and particularly beneficial for machine learning applications.Infrastructures and facilities: Cities also offer other key facilities such as electrical grids, server farms, etc. The concept of "urban artificial intelligence" seeks to underscore the relationship between algorithmic systems and urban contexts, encompassing the built environment, infrastructures, places, people and their social practices (Luusua et al., 2023). This can be defined as any system that employs data derived from the urban environment and processed through algorithms, yielding practical applications in the socio-spatial dynamics of the city (Popelka et al., 2023, p. 14). Broadly speaking, the urban incarnation of AI systems has taken four distinct forms (Cugurullo et al., 2023a): autonomous vehicles, urban robots, city brains and urban software agents.Some important features distinguish urban artificial intelligence from other forms of artificial intelligence (Popelka et al., 2023). Firstly, the intricacy of the city: numerous interconnected sectors contribute to the functioning of urban areas. The Atlas of Urban AI categorises AI initiatives into seven such sectors: social services, governance and urban services, environment and resources, mobility, infrastructures and urban planning, economy and business, security and resilience. Similarly, many stakeholders partake in urban life: from the private sector to civil society organisations or grassroots communities. The second feature is the fact that urban AI operates within a specific policy context. Cities are political arenas where local governments possess the authority to make decisions that impact the lives of millions. Consequently, urban artificial intelligence applications wield a distinct political influence. Moreover, it is precisely the recognition of this political dimension that has led to the Atlasprioritising the compiling of cases where local governments are directly or indirectly involved, at least in the first stage of the research. The final feature of urban AI is its hybrid nature: urban AI cannot exist solely in the digital realm. Conversely, it necessitates the materiality and infrastructural components of physical urban systems. As argued, the added value and distinctive nature of GOUAI's Atlas of Urban AI lies in its emphasis on use cases with ethical considerations. This is important because the widespread deployment of AI systems in urban areas, connected to their impact on our everyday urban experiences and the process of city-making, is giving rise to numerous ethical concerns. Consequently, there is a growing need to examine the interconnections among artificial intelligence, the physicality of urban spaces, individual lives and the ethical and political aspects inherent to urban AI. In this respect, it is noteworthy that certain common uses of AI systems in urban environments have been categorised by the EU AI Act as either high-risk or limited-risk (Table 1). This implies that certain safeguards such as testing, documentation, transparency or notification duties must be implemented to mitigate potential harmful effects.







4. Trends overviewa. Europe and North America: strongholds of ethical AI?Some 80% of the initiatives documented in the Atlas of Urban AI are located in North America and Europe, followed by 10% in Asia; 8% in Latin America and the Caribbean; and 1% in the MENA region. This uneven distribution (Figure 1) raises the question: is urban AI predominantly associated with the Global North? Indeed, a large part of the technology is developed by industries in this region, facilitating easier access for municipalities and positioning them as innovation hubs for its use. Furthermore, cities in Europe and North America typically possess more extensive resources, both technical and financial. They also have greater levels of political and fiscal autonomy to initiate, develop or regulate technological projects. These competences often fall under national responsibility in other regions of the world. As a matter of fact, many cities worldwide serve merely as a testbed for innovations pushed forward by the private sector, supranational organisations and other tiers of government. In such cases, the local government may not necessarily play an active role as a partner in these advancements.







Nevertheless, misrepresentation is also exacerbated by other limitations (partly addressed in the methodological section of this report). Firstly, there are disparities in communication strategies, with European and American cities often employing more robust and outward-looking communication approaches. This visibility makes their projects more accessible to the general public compared to many of their counterparts. Secondly, geographical proximity plays a key role. This Atlas is a product of GOUAI, a joint project between CIDOB's Global Cities Programme and the cities of Barcelona, Amsterdam and London, in the framework of the Cities Coalition for Digital Rights. Hence, communication channels are more easily established with cities already connected through these networks. However, geographical proximity also introduces other types of limitations such as language barriers and cultural disparities, as perspectives on ethical AI differ across regions. These realities hinder efforts to collect detailed information about urban AI initiatives in other parts of the world, impacting the comprehensiveness of the database and influencing the assessment of ethical AI practices worldwide. This underscores the importance of adopting a more inclusive and globally representative approach to data collection and ethical assessment in future research. b. Top sectors for AI deployment: governance and urban servicesAs shown in Figure 2, an overwhelming majority of local governments use AI tools to improve governance and urban services. One illustrative example is the growing trend among cities worldwide to introduce city chatbots to assist residents and provide services (e.g. Dubai.AI). Moreover, several cities are increasingly leveraging AI tools to upgrade internal municipal management processes (e.g. The Hague), collect data to regulate public space (e.g. Taoyuan), manage and analyse urban data (e.g. Los Angeles), improve efficiency in urban services (e.g. Melbourne) or enhance law enforcement efforts (e.g. Seoul). Accounting for 66% of the total initiatives featured in the Atlas, the governance and urban services sector is the predominant category in urban AI, followed by mobility (24%), social services (22%) and environment and resources (22%).







Meanwhile, the least represented sectors in the Atlas are infrastructures and urban planning (10%), security and resilience (9%), and economy and business (4%). In fact, only seven of the initiatives included in the Atlas are economy-oriented, featuring projects such as using AI to map commercial opportunities (e.g. Buenos Aires) or improve logistics for local industries (e.g. Rotterdam). These low figures may suggest a lack of interest on the part of municipalities in applying AI for productive purposes or economic gain, contrasting with the extensive use of AI for economic advancement globally. Conversely, security and resilience are high priorities for municipalities yet are underrepresented in the Atlas due to ethical considerations. For instance, the Atlas deliberately excludes controversial uses of facial recognition technologies, which are extensively employed by many cities worldwide. Instead, it includes responsible examples within this sector, ranging from the creation of biometric privacy laws targeted at businesses (e.g. New York), to the use of AI for early detection of fires (e.g. Hong Kong) or mapping perceived security (e.g. Stockholm). c. Transparency and privacy protection: the golden ethical principlesEthical principles that municipalities apply in urban AI implementation and development vary in their prevalence. Particularly noteworthy is the widespread adoption of the "transparency and openness" principle, observed in 67% of the initiatives included in the Atlas (see Figure 3). One plausible explanation for this prevalence is its perceived ease of application. This is mainly achieved by informing the public about the use of AI (i.e. when, how and with what purpose an AI system is being employed). This information is disseminated through open communication channels and platforms, including AI registers and inventories such as the ones established by the cities of Amsterdam, Nantes, Helsinki or San José. To a lesser extent, this principle can also be accomplished by using open-source and open data-initiatives whenever possible.







"Privacy protection", identified in 50% of initiatives, stands as the second most upheld principle. Mainly accomplished through the anonymisation of data and, more recently, through the generation of synthetic data. Examples of this can be found broadly, from the anonymisation of licence plates and biometric information when employing image recognition tools (e.g. Greater Manchester's Behaviour Analytics or Melbourne's Smart Traffic Solution), to the use of lidar and radar technology to avoid capturing personal identifiable information in the first place (e.g. Amsterdam's Roboat), or the creation of synthetic data frameworks (e.g. Dubai's Synthetic Data Framework). In this context, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) undoubtedly played a pivotal role in paving the way to an extensive culture of privacy-by-design.







Conversely, the principles of "fairness and non-discrimination" (42%) and "safety and cybersecurity" (40%), along with "accountability" (33%), are applied unevenly, and are present in roughly 40% of initiatives. Common practices employed to observe these principles include conducting external audits, adopting a human-in-the-loop approach, and utilising technology to support decision-making rather than fully automating decisions. However, it should be noted that although external audits are a desirable measure to respect all three principles, private providers of AI systems are generally reluctant to disclose information on copyright protection grounds, resulting in the use of black-box technologies2 and the erosion of these principles.When cross-referencing sectors and principles, we find there is indeed variability in the adoption of different ethical principles across sectors (see Figure 5). While transparency stands out as the most prevalent principle across all sectors, its significance is particularly pronounced in urban AI associated with the provision of social services. Considering that AI systems in this field are at times utilised to allocate social provisions, thus impacting the lives of the most vulnerable, it is imperative to establish safeguards to comprehend and, if necessary, challenge the decisions made. The principles of fairness and non-discrimination and accountability also carry considerable weight in social services for similar reasons.A second observation is that some sectors need greater integration of various ethical principles more than others. Notably, initiatives related to mobility seem to incorporate fewer ethical provisions, primarily focusing on transparency and privacy protection considerations when included. A striking final observation is the insufficient attention given to the principle of sustainability in initiatives striving to enhance environmental conditions and resource allocation. This aspect will be further explored in the next section.







d. Sustainability: the elephant in the roomAs argued, "sustainability" is by far the least commonly upheld principle, with only 6% of initiatives incorporating it. Instances where it is present mainly involve being named in strategies rather than being applied in projects themselves. The challenge lies in reconciling the dark side of AI – addressing the environmental and social impacts the use of this technology entails – with its use for achieving sustainable purposes. In essence, the sustainability of AI clashes with the use of AI for sustainability. From an environmental perspective, AI is energy- and resource- intensive by nature, generates considerable amounts of electronic waste and depends on the generally unsustainable extraction of rare metals and rare earths, incurring not only environmental, but also social and geopolitical costs. Strategies to achieve a greener AI include using sustainable energy to fuel green data centres and reuse their excess heat, training algorithms with minimal and small datasets rather than large ones, and considering ethical sourcing of materials.Regarding social sustainability, AI and algorithmic systems at large have been unequivocally found to reproduce and reinforce existing societal biases. To effectively address this, cities need to embrace a digital rights perspective that ensures the respect of basic ethical principles. In this regard, initiatives such as the Cities Coalition for Digital Rights are key spaces for cities to implement operational frameworks to advance human rights in digital environments. On the other hand, the process of training AI itself also poses ethical concerns, as much of this "automated" training is in fact performed on many occasions by underpaid workers in dubious conditions in the Global South. e. Exponential growth of urban AI: a technology here to stayIn terms of the timeframe, 64% of the cases compiled in the Atlas were initiated between 2017 and 2023, indicating a notable surge in the adoption of algorithmic systems by municipalities over the past five years (see Figure 6). Furthermore, 2021 was a turning point in the formulation of local strategies and policies to govern AI, aligning with a global trend of accelerated efforts to regulate AI.







Regarding the maturity level of these initiatives (Figure 7), 66% are now fully implemented, while the rest are in the implementation or planning phase (17% in each case).3 Consequently, we can infer that many cities worldwide have moved beyond the pilot stage of this technology and are now actively employing it in a vast array of sectors in the execution of their day-to-day responsibilities. This growth is bound to increase exponentially in the years to come, sustained by the steady increase in global investments in AI development and the ever-growing popular interest in this technology.







f. Urban AI: a collective multistakeholder endeavourThe majority of initiatives featured in the Atlasare the result of various forms of public-private partnerships, involving collaborations between cities, companies, knowledge institutions, and various international and supranational organisations, including the European Union and the United Nations. Moreover, there is a growing trend in city-to-city collaboration, often facilitated by international city networks like Eurocities. In this context, it is crucial to emphasise that most cities worldwide lack the financial resources and the technical capacity to develop their own AI solutions and projects, leading them to acquire this technology primarily through procurement channels.This situation underscores the critical importance of alliances and collaborations, which have played a key role in encouraging cities of various sizes to adopt AI. Despite concerns about AI potentially perpetuating geographical inequalities seen in previous high-tech industries concentrated in leading tech hubs and "superstar" cities, our Atlas reveals that the AI revolution is not exclusive to large cities. Rather the opposite: 66% of the cities identified in our Atlas are small to medium-sized, encompassing populations ranging from 250,000 up to 1 million residents.5. From AI adoption to AI governance: How are cities regulating AI?The analysis of the types of urban AI initiatives included in the Atlas reveals that while many cities are actively innovating on AI use cases, few have put in place specific policies or comprehensive strategies to govern such adoption and ensure alignment with fundamental ethical principles. To quantify this, a significant 82% of the cases featured in the Atlas are specific AI-enabled urban services or solutions, with considerably lower percentages for policies (12%) and strategies (6%), as illustrated in Figure 8. To put it another way, a mere 11% of the cities documented in the Atlas have established specific AI strategies or action plans. Noteworthy examples among this select group of pioneering cities, include New York City's AI Strategy (2021) and Action Plan (2023); Barcelona's Municipal Strategy for promoting an ethical AI (2021); Agenda AI: Amsterdam Intelligence Agenda (2021); Buenos Aires' AI Plan (2021); or Vienna's Artificial Intelligence Strategy (2019).







On the other hand, only 21% of them have put in place local policies and regulations designed to oversee AI in different ways. Instances of these policies encompass the introduction of procurement clauses, enactment of legislation to advocate for algorithmic transparency, creation of public algorithmic inventories and registries, establishment of councils or advisory commissions, and the formulation of guidelines. The table below provides a more extensive compilation of these policies and regulations, incorporating specific examples taken from GOUAI's Atlas.







These findings indicate that there is at present an acute mismatch between the widespread adoption of algorithmic tools and the establishment of effective AI governance. This disparity is also evident in other spheres of technological governance worldwide. Arguably, the prevalent use of algorithmic tools without proper governance frameworks in place may indicate a general tendency towards a pragmatic and solution-oriented approach that municipalities (and other actors) have been embracing. In this sense, the primary focus has until recently fallen on addressing immediate urban challenges by leveraging available technologies, including AI. In contrast, the governance of AI, characterised by a deliberate intent to comprehensively regulate the technology to minimise associated risks, has lagged behind. However, the recent popularisation of tools such as ChatGPT, Dall-e and others, has catapulted ethical concerns into the public discourse, prompting most governments and international actors to embark on a global race to regulate algorithms and AI. In light of this, local governments cannot afford to be excluded from this race. Therefore, we can only anticipate an increasing number of cities worldwide advocating for policies and regulations to govern AI. The main challenge ahead for the Global Observatory of Urban AI will be to take stock of all these efforts.ReferencesCugurullo, F., et al., (2023a) "The rise of AI urbanism in post-smart cities: A critical commentary on urban artificial intelligence". Urban Studies, Nov. 2023Cugurullo, F., et al. (2023b) Artificial Intelligence and the city. Urbanistic perspectives on AI. London: RoutledgeGalceran-Vercher, M. and Rodríguez-Perez, A. (2024) "The dark side of urban Artificial Intelligence: addressing the environmental and social impact of algorithms". CIDOB Briefings, 55 Luusua, A., et al. (2023) "Understanding the emerging role of artificial intelligence in smart cities", AI Soc., 38(3), pp. 1039-1044. Popelka, S. et al. (2023) Urban AI Guide 2023. Urban AINotes:1- Fairness and non-discrimination; transparency and openness; safety and cybersecurity; privacy protection; sustainability; and accountability2- AI black boxes refer to AI systems with internal workings that are invisible to the user. You can feed them input and get output, but you cannot examine the logic that produced the output.3- Some 28% of the initiatives lack available information regarding their maturity status and the year of initiation.

The Atlas of Urban AI, conceived as the flagship project of the Global Observatory of Urban Artificial Intelligence (GOUAI), has established itself as the largest and most comprehensive openly accessible repository of ethical urban artificial intelligence initiatives worldwide. Building on the research conducted, this report analyses the cases included in the Atlas and provides a comprehensive view of best practices and trends characterising the global evolution of urban AI. 1. Introduction Artificial intelligence (AI) stands as one of the most transformative forces of our era, carrying the promise to reshape our societies. Unsurprisingly, this phenomenon has captured the attention of governments worldwide, and local governments are no exception. A recent survey reveals a strong interest among mayors in exploring the use of AI tools to enhance public service delivery and address critical urban challenges such as traffic congestion, infrastructure upgrades, public safety and climate change mitigation. This keen interest is not merely theoretical: nearly 70% of the surveyed mayors reported testing this technology, albeit with only a minority actively deploying it. Therefore, the tangible impact of AI on urban areas is indisputably significant. However, the enthusiasm surrounding the adoption of "urban AI" is tempered by an equal level of caution in embracing algorithmic tools. This caution stems from the potential impact of AI systems on rights, as well as the significant social risks and environmental costs associated with the increasing reliance of our societies and governments on AI systems. Furthermore, urban AI applications operate within specific policy contexts, thus wielding distinct political influence. Cities are political arenas where local governments have the authority to make decisions that impact millions of lives. It is no coincidence that the EU AI Act categorises certain common uses of AI systems in urban environments as either high-risk or limited-risk, making it imperative to scrutinise the interconnections between algorithmic systems and their ethical and political implications. In essence, there is an urgent requirement for cities to acquire knowledge on the ethical deployment of AI. And this is precisely the mission that the Atlas of Urban AI aims to accomplish. Conceived as the flagship project of the Global Observatory of Urban Artificial Intelligence (GOUAI), the Atlas offers a curated collection of over 200 initiatives from 70 cities around the globe, establishing itself as the most comprehensive openly accessible repository of urban artificial intelligence worldwide. Building on the research conducted, this report seeks to analyse the cases included in the Atlas to provide an overall view of best practices and trends characterising the global evolution of urban AI. Specifically, the report addresses the following questions: In which regions do local governments exhibit greater engagement in deploying AI systems with an ethical focus? What ethical principles do cities most frequently apply, and why? How are these principles operationalised and which ones tend to be overlooked? At what stage of implementation are municipalities in their deployment of AI technology? Are most projects already operational or is the emphasis still primarily on discussing pilot projects? What characterises the urban AI ecosystem for local governments, and who are their main partners? Is urban AI exclusive to larger cities? The report is structured into four sections. The first section provides methodological insights into the research process behind the curation of the Atlas, including information on the criteria used to select the cases featured in it. The second section is more theoretical and aims to clarify the concept of "urban artificial intelligence". It also reflects on the relationship between urban settings and artificial intelligence technologies and highlights distinguishing features that differentiate urban AI from other types of algorithmic systems. The third section presents key trends in urban artificial intelligence from the analysis of the Atlas. Finally, the fourth section explores the local regulation of AI and identifies policy initiatives undertaken by cities globally to ensure the ethical deployment of algorithmic systems. 2. Methodological noteGOUAI's Atlas of Urban AI was built on extensive desk research, involving the systematic gathering of data from various publicly accessible sources. These include official city reports, government websites, urban development agencies, technology company reports, smart city newspapers and other related online platforms. To a lesser extent, interviews and surveys with city officials and other relevant stakeholders were also conducted. The research, initiated in 2021, is still in progress and remains open to receiving additional cases via an online survey.Projects included in the database were required to meet four specific criteria, namely: (1) an explicit alignment with GOUAI's ethical principles;1 (2) direct or indirect involvement and/or support of the city government; (3) a clear focus on urban AI (i.e. with identifiable applications in an urban context); and (4) a documented record of planning, implementation or active development.Although this report and the extensive research supporting the Atlas strive to be thorough, the authors recognise possible omissions in their efforts to capture every case in the Atlas. This is due to significant limitations encountered during the data collection process. The main challenge stemmed from the heavy reliance on public sources, given that many cities do not actively promote their urban AI projects or provide easily accessible project information. This lack of promotion and transparency constitutes a key barrier to obtaining comprehensive and current data. Moreover, even when cities do disclose information about their projects, the ethical implications and considerations are often unclear or insufficiently documented. This ambiguity makes it difficult to assess certain projects' alignment with GOUAI's ethical principles, resulting in the exclusion of some potential best practices.By the same token, the overall data collection from primary sources was hindered by a low and sporadic response rate from city officials. Their limited availability and capacity to respond to data inquiries was a barrier to qualitative data collection. Even when city officials were willing to share information, they frequently encountered difficulties related to internal communication. This issue reflects the complexity of coordinating and disseminating information within city administrations. 3. The concept of "urban artificial intelligence"Artificial intelligence is inherently connected with urban life. For one thing, urban spaces serve as tangible and prominent settings where AI is visibly present. Cities also function as testing grounds for new AI forms and are where some of its social and environmental impacts, in terms of both opportunities and risks, are most felt (Galceran-Vercher and Rodríguez Pérez, 2024). Furthermore, the functioning and development of AI require a variety of resources, many of which are closely tied to urban settings. In essence, cities can be described as microcosms through which AI observes and comprehends the wider world. More specifically, cities provide four crucial types of resources (Cugurullo et al., 2023b):Urban spaces: AI requires physical environments to act upon, and these are frequently urban. Examples include roads, buildings, parks, streets, etc.Access to activities: Urban settlements encapsulate a growing proportion and diversity of activities worldwide. Consequently, if an AI application is to partake in social interactions, participate in economic transactions, play a role in political processes or contribute to global environmental changes, it must interact with urban systems.Data for machine learning: Most AI systems presently enhance their intelligence through machine learning processes, which entail extensive data usage. Urban areas, characterised by dense populations, serve as significant hubs for diverse human activities, making them crucial producers of data. However, the importance of cities lies not only in the sheer volume of data they generate but also in the quality of the data. Urban spaces produce real-time data, which is highly detailed and particularly beneficial for machine learning applications.Infrastructures and facilities: Cities also offer other key facilities such as electrical grids, server farms, etc. The concept of "urban artificial intelligence" seeks to underscore the relationship between algorithmic systems and urban contexts, encompassing the built environment, infrastructures, places, people and their social practices (Luusua et al., 2023). This can be defined as any system that employs data derived from the urban environment and processed through algorithms, yielding practical applications in the socio-spatial dynamics of the city (Popelka et al., 2023, p. 14). Broadly speaking, the urban incarnation of AI systems has taken four distinct forms (Cugurullo et al., 2023a): autonomous vehicles, urban robots, city brains and urban software agents.Some important features distinguish urban artificial intelligence from other forms of artificial intelligence (Popelka et al., 2023). Firstly, the intricacy of the city: numerous interconnected sectors contribute to the functioning of urban areas. The Atlas of Urban AI categorises AI initiatives into seven such sectors: social services, governance and urban services, environment and resources, mobility, infrastructures and urban planning, economy and business, security and resilience. Similarly, many stakeholders partake in urban life: from the private sector to civil society organisations or grassroots communities. The second feature is the fact that urban AI operates within a specific policy context. Cities are political arenas where local governments possess the authority to make decisions that impact the lives of millions. Consequently, urban artificial intelligence applications wield a distinct political influence. Moreover, it is precisely the recognition of this political dimension that has led to the Atlasprioritising the compiling of cases where local governments are directly or indirectly involved, at least in the first stage of the research. The final feature of urban AI is its hybrid nature: urban AI cannot exist solely in the digital realm. Conversely, it necessitates the materiality and infrastructural components of physical urban systems. As argued, the added value and distinctive nature of GOUAI's Atlas of Urban AI lies in its emphasis on use cases with ethical considerations. This is important because the widespread deployment of AI systems in urban areas, connected to their impact on our everyday urban experiences and the process of city-making, is giving rise to numerous ethical concerns. Consequently, there is a growing need to examine the interconnections among artificial intelligence, the physicality of urban spaces, individual lives and the ethical and political aspects inherent to urban AI. In this respect, it is noteworthy that certain common uses of AI systems in urban environments have been categorised by the EU AI Act as either high-risk or limited-risk (Table 1). This implies that certain safeguards such as testing, documentation, transparency or notification duties must be implemented to mitigate potential harmful effects.4. Trends overviewa. Europe and North America: strongholds of ethical AI?Some 80% of the initiatives documented in the Atlas of Urban AI are located in North America and Europe, followed by 10% in Asia; 8% in Latin America and the Caribbean; and 1% in the MENA region. This uneven distribution (Figure 1) raises the question: is urban AI predominantly associated with the Global North? Indeed, a large part of the technology is developed by industries in this region, facilitating easier access for municipalities and positioning them as innovation hubs for its use. Furthermore, cities in Europe and North America typically possess more extensive resources, both technical and financial. They also have greater levels of political and fiscal autonomy to initiate, develop or regulate technological projects. These competences often fall under national responsibility in other regions of the world. As a matter of fact, many cities worldwide serve merely as a testbed for innovations pushed forward by the private sector, supranational organisations and other tiers of government. In such cases, the local government may not necessarily play an active role as a partner in these advancements.Nevertheless, misrepresentation is also exacerbated by other limitations (partly addressed in the methodological section of this report). Firstly, there are disparities in communication strategies, with European and American cities often employing more robust and outward-looking communication approaches. This visibility makes their projects more accessible to the general public compared to many of their counterparts. Secondly, geographical proximity plays a key role. This Atlas is a product of GOUAI, a joint project between CIDOB's Global Cities Programme and the cities of Barcelona, Amsterdam and London, in the framework of the Cities Coalition for Digital Rights. Hence, communication channels are more easily established with cities already connected through these networks. However, geographical proximity also introduces other types of limitations such as language barriers and cultural disparities, as perspectives on ethical AI differ across regions. These realities hinder efforts to collect detailed information about urban AI initiatives in other parts of the world, impacting the comprehensiveness of the database and influencing the assessment of ethical AI practices worldwide. This underscores the importance of adopting a more inclusive and globally representative approach to data collection and ethical assessment in future research. b. Top sectors for AI deployment: governance and urban servicesAs shown in Figure 2, an overwhelming majority of local governments use AI tools to improve governance and urban services. One illustrative example is the growing trend among cities worldwide to introduce city chatbots to assist residents and provide services (e.g. Dubai.AI). Moreover, several cities are increasingly leveraging AI tools to upgrade internal municipal management processes (e.g. The Hague), collect data to regulate public space (e.g. Taoyuan), manage and analyse urban data (e.g. Los Angeles), improve efficiency in urban services (e.g. Melbourne) or enhance law enforcement efforts (e.g. Seoul). Accounting for 66% of the total initiatives featured in the Atlas, the governance and urban services sector is the predominant category in urban AI, followed by mobility (24%), social services (22%) and environment and resources (22%).Meanwhile, the least represented sectors in the Atlas are infrastructures and urban planning (10%), security and resilience (9%), and economy and business (4%). In fact, only seven of the initiatives included in the Atlas are economy-oriented, featuring projects such as using AI to map commercial opportunities (e.g. Buenos Aires) or improve logistics for local industries (e.g. Rotterdam). These low figures may suggest a lack of interest on the part of municipalities in applying AI for productive purposes or economic gain, contrasting with the extensive use of AI for economic advancement globally. Conversely, security and resilience are high priorities for municipalities yet are underrepresented in the Atlas due to ethical considerations. For instance, the Atlas deliberately excludes controversial uses of facial recognition technologies, which are extensively employed by many cities worldwide. Instead, it includes responsible examples within this sector, ranging from the creation of biometric privacy laws targeted at businesses (e.g. New York), to the use of AI for early detection of fires (e.g. Hong Kong) or mapping perceived security (e.g. Stockholm). c. Transparency and privacy protection: the golden ethical principles Ethical principles that municipalities apply in urban AI implementation and development vary in their prevalence. Particularly noteworthy is the widespread adoption of the "transparency and openness" principle, observed in 67% of the initiatives included in the Atlas (see Figure 3). One plausible explanation for this prevalence is its perceived ease of application. This is mainly achieved by informing the public about the use of AI (i.e. when, how and with what purpose an AI system is being employed). This information is disseminated through open communication channels and platforms, including AI registers and inventories such as the ones established by the cities of Amsterdam, Nantes, Helsinki or San José. To a lesser extent, this principle can also be accomplished by using open-source and open data-initiatives whenever possible."Privacy protection", identified in 50% of initiatives, stands as the second most upheld principle. Mainly accomplished through the anonymisation of data and, more recently, through the generation of synthetic data. Examples of this can be found broadly, from the anonymisation of licence plates and biometric information when employing image recognition tools (e.g. Greater Manchester's Behaviour Analytics or Melbourne's Smart Traffic Solution), to the use of lidar and radar technology to avoid capturing personal identifiable information in the first place (e.g. Amsterdam's Roboat), or the creation of synthetic data frameworks (e.g. Dubai's Synthetic Data Framework). In this context, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) undoubtedly played a pivotal role in paving the way to an extensive culture of privacy-by-design.Conversely, the principles of "fairness and non-discrimination" (42%) and "safety and cybersecurity" (40%), along with "accountability" (33%), are applied unevenly, and are present in roughly 40% of initiatives. Common practices employed to observe these principles include conducting external audits, adopting a human-in-the-loop approach, and utilising technology to support decision-making rather than fully automating decisions. However, it should be noted that although external audits are a desirable measure to respect all three principles, private providers of AI systems are generally reluctant to disclose information on copyright protection grounds, resulting in the use of black-box technologies2 and the erosion of these principles.When cross-referencing sectors and principles, we find there is indeed variability in the adoption of different ethical principles across sectors (see Figure 5). While transparency stands out as the most prevalent principle across all sectors, its significance is particularly pronounced in urban AI associated with the provision of social services. Considering that AI systems in this field are at times utilised to allocate social provisions, thus impacting the lives of the most vulnerable, it is imperative to establish safeguards to comprehend and, if necessary, challenge the decisions made. The principles of fairness and non-discrimination and accountability also carry considerable weight in social services for similar reasons.A second observation is that some sectors need greater integration of various ethical principles more than others. Notably, initiatives related to mobility seem to incorporate fewer ethical provisions, primarily focusing on transparency and privacy protection considerations when included. A striking final observation is the insufficient attention given to the principle of sustainability in initiatives striving to enhance environmental conditions and resource allocation. This aspect will be further explored in the next section.d. Sustainability: the elephant in the roomAs argued, "sustainability" is by far the least commonly upheld principle, with only 6% of initiatives incorporating it. Instances where it is present mainly involve being named in strategies rather than being applied in projects themselves. The challenge lies in reconciling the dark side of AI – addressing the environmental and social impacts the use of this technology entails – with its use for achieving sustainable purposes. In essence, the sustainability of AI clashes with the use of AI for sustainability. From an environmental perspective, AI is energy- and resource- intensive by nature, generates considerable amounts of electronic waste and depends on the generally unsustainable extraction of rare metals and rare earths, incurring not only environmental, but also social and geopolitical costs. Strategies to achieve a greener AI include using sustainable energy to fuel green data centres and reuse their excess heat, training algorithms with minimal and small datasets rather than large ones, and considering ethical sourcing of materials.Regarding social sustainability, AI and algorithmic systems at large have been unequivocally found to reproduce and reinforce existing societal biases. To effectively address this, cities need to embrace a digital rights perspective that ensures the respect of basic ethical principles. In this regard, initiatives such as the Cities Coalition for Digital Rights are key spaces for cities to implement operational frameworks to advance human rights in digital environments. On the other hand, the process of training AI itself also poses ethical concerns, as much of this "automated" training is in fact performed on many occasions by underpaid workers in dubious conditions in the Global South. e. Exponential growth of urban AI: a technology here to stayIn terms of the timeframe, 64% of the cases compiled in the Atlas were initiated between 2017 and 2023, indicating a notable surge in the adoption of algorithmic systems by municipalities over the past five years (see Figure 6). Furthermore, 2021 was a turning point in the formulation of local strategies and policies to govern AI, aligning with a global trend of accelerated efforts to regulate AI.Regarding the maturity level of these initiatives (Figure 7), 66% are now fully implemented, while the rest are in the implementation or planning phase (17% in each case).3 Consequently, we can infer that many cities worldwide have moved beyond the pilot stage of this technology and are now actively employing it in a vast array of sectors in the execution of their day-to-day responsibilities. This growth is bound to increase exponentially in the years to come, sustained by the steady increase in global investments in AI development and the ever-growing popular interest in this technology.f. Urban AI: a collective multistakeholder endeavour The majority of initiatives featured in the Atlasare the result of various forms of public-private partnerships, involving collaborations between cities, companies, knowledge institutions, and various international and supranational organisations, including the European Union and the United Nations. Moreover, there is a growing trend in city-to-city collaboration, often facilitated by international city networks like Eurocities. In this context, it is crucial to emphasise that most cities worldwide lack the financial resources and the technical capacity to develop their own AI solutions and projects, leading them to acquire this technology primarily through procurement channels.This situation underscores the critical importance of alliances and collaborations, which have played a key role in encouraging cities of various sizes to adopt AI. Despite concerns about AI potentially perpetuating geographical inequalities seen in previous high-tech industries concentrated in leading tech hubs and "superstar" cities, our Atlas reveals that the AI revolution is not exclusive to large cities. Rather the opposite: 66% of the cities identified in our Atlas are small to medium-sized, encompassing populations ranging from 250,000 up to 1 million residents.5. From AI adoption to AI governance: How are cities regulating AI?The analysis of the types of urban AI initiatives included in the Atlas reveals that while many cities are actively innovating on AI use cases, few have put in place specific policies or comprehensive strategies to govern such adoption and ensure alignment with fundamental ethical principles. To quantify this, a significant 82% of the cases featured in the Atlas are specific AI-enabled urban services or solutions, with considerably lower percentages for policies (12%) and strategies (6%), as illustrated in Figure 8. To put it another way, a mere 11% of the cities documented in the Atlas have established specific AI strategies or action plans. Noteworthy examples among this select group of pioneering cities, include New York City's AI Strategy (2021) and Action Plan (2023); Barcelona's Municipal Strategy for promoting an ethical AI (2021); Agenda AI: Amsterdam Intelligence Agenda (2021); Buenos Aires' AI Plan (2021); or Vienna's Artificial Intelligence Strategy (2019).On the other hand, only 21% of them have put in place local policies and regulations designed to oversee AI in different ways. Instances of these policies encompass the introduction of procurement clauses, enactment of legislation to advocate for algorithmic transparency, creation of public algorithmic inventories and registries, establishment of councils or advisory commissions, and the formulation of guidelines. The table below provides a more extensive compilation of these policies and regulations, incorporating specific examples taken from GOUAI's Atlas.These findings indicate that there is at present an acute mismatch between the widespread adoption of algorithmic tools and the establishment of effective AI governance. This disparity is also evident in other spheres of technological governance worldwide. Arguably, the prevalent use of algorithmic tools without proper governance frameworks in place may indicate a general tendency towards a pragmatic and solution-oriented approach that municipalities (and other actors) have been embracing. In this sense, the primary focus has until recently fallen on addressing immediate urban challenges by leveraging available technologies, including AI. In contrast, the governance of AI, characterised by a deliberate intent to comprehensively regulate the technology to minimise associated risks, has lagged behind. However, the recent popularisation of tools such as ChatGPT, Dall-e and others, has catapulted ethical concerns into the public discourse, prompting most governments and international actors to embark on a global race to regulate algorithms and AI. In light of this, local governments cannot afford to be excluded from this race. Therefore, we can only anticipate an increasing number of cities worldwide advocating for policies and regulations to govern AI. The main challenge ahead for the Global Observatory of Urban AI will be to take stock of all these efforts.ReferencesCugurullo, F., et al., (2023a) "The rise of AI urbanism in post-smart cities: A critical commentary on urban artificial intelligence". Urban Studies, Nov. 2023Cugurullo, F., et al. (2023b) Artificial Intelligence and the city. Urbanistic perspectives on AI. London: RoutledgeGalceran-Vercher, M. and Rodríguez-Perez, A. (2024) "The dark side of urban Artificial Intelligence: addressing the environmental and social impact of algorithms". CIDOB Briefings, 55 Luusua, A., et al. (2023) "Understanding the emerging role of artificial intelligence in smart cities", AI Soc., 38(3), pp. 1039-1044. Popelka, S. et al. (2023) Urban AI Guide 2023. Urban AINotes:1- Fairness and non-discrimination; transparency and openness; safety and cybersecurity; privacy protection; sustainability; and accountability2- AI black boxes refer to AI systems with internal workings that are invisible to the user. You can feed them input and get output, but you cannot examine the logic that produced the output.3- Some 28% of the initiatives lack available information regarding their maturity status and the year of initiation.

This doctoral dissertation evaluated the use of sustainable biomass sources (agri-food waste and residues, and industry streams) in anaerobic digestion with the goal of replacing maize silage in a large-scale biogas production and investigated alternative pathways of biogas utilisation incorporated in energy systems operating with high share of renewable energy sources. The methods applied in the research included elements of chemical and mechanical engineering in order to create a holistic approach that could be applicable to various biogas plant cases. Experimental investigations showed the biogas yield of residue lignocellulosic biomass of 0.192-0.275 Nm3/kgTS, and bulk food waste of 0.252-0.566 Nm3/kgTS. Meat and bone meal and wastewater sludge were shown to be co-substrates with antagonistic effect in biogas production, however they increased the reaction rate of overall degradation. Pyrolysis of digestate showed lower energy requirements and higher biochar yield (38%) compared to direct pyrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass (24%). The gate fee business model for receiving biodegradable waste and the implementation of new technologies, namely biogas upgrading, are the most likely options for biogas plants in the future. A robust mathematical model of power-to-gas integration showed that the installation of 18 MWel of wind and 9 MWel of photovoltaics with an additional import of 16 GWhel from the grid could produce 36 GWh of renewable methane which could be economically competitive with natural gas if the feedstock gate fee in the proposed system was -120 €/t. Geospatial availability of an energy potential of biogas production from examined feedstocks, combined with Life Cycle Assessment of the alternative biogas utilisation pathways created the synergistic effects in terms of reduced environmental burdens by 4-36 times compared to the current operation. Based on the applied methods and outcomes of the doctoral thesis, the research hypothesis "Applying holistic approach on biogas plants, both on the production and utilisation side, can increase economic profitability and environmental benefits over current subsidised operation" was tested and confirmed. The economic feasibility of biogas plants after exiting subsidy schemes will include the implementation of the gate fee business model for substrates, new investments in biomass pretreatment lines, increase of on-site biogas storage capacity and additional investments in renewable methane production system, primarily biomethane. Environmental burdens of such actions will be reduced through a contribution of biowaste management on urban and rural level, combined with the utilization of biogas for production of biomethane as a replacement to natural gas. ; Biomasa je obnovljiv izvor energije (OIE) te ima važnu ulogu u diverzifikaciji opskrbe energijom u Europskoj Uniji (EU) [1]. Ona doprinosi ravnoteži ugljikovog dioksida (CO2), stvaranju radnih mjesta, smanjenju emisija stakleničkih plinova (eng. Greenhouse gas, GHG) te osiguravanju dostupnosti resursa i njihovom ekonomičnom gospodarenju [2]. U Republici Hrvatskoj biomasa je definirana prema Zakonu o obnovljivim izvorima energije i visokoučinkovitoj kogeneraciji kao "biorazgradivi dio proizvoda, otpada i ostataka biološkog podrijetla iz poljoprivrede (uključujući tvari biljnoga i životinjskoga podrijetla), šumarstva i srodnih proizvodnih djelatnosti, uključujući ribarstvo i akvakulturu, kao i biorazgradivi dio industrijskoga i komunalnog otpada" [3]. Biomasa se može direktno koristiti kao gorivo za dobivanje energije (npr. drvna biomasa u kotlovima), ili se može biokemijskim, kemijskim, ili termokemijskim postupcima pretvoriti u materijal dodane vrijednosti – biogorivo, čime se postiže njezina šira primjenjivost u energetske svrhe [4]. Biogoriva prve generacije dobivena iz prehrambenih usjeva kao uzgojene biomase [5] naišla su na neodobravanje znanstvene zajednice i šire javnosti, primarno zbog korištenja obradivih površina za njihov uzgoj. Napredna biogoriva (druge i treće generacije [5]) proizvedena su iz biomase koja nije kompetitivna s proizvodnjom hrane, a u nju spada otpadna biomasa iz kućanstva i industrije, poljoprivredni ostatci, neprehrambeni usjevi te alge. Ova doktorska disertacija stavlja fokus na korištenje biomase u procesu anaerobne razgradnje za dobivanje bioplina. Cilj istraživanja je ostvariti sinergijski učinak između ekonomičnog korištenja otpadne biomase i proizvodnje energije u sustavima s velikim udjelom OIE kako bi se postiglo smanjenje utjecaja na okoliš u usporedbi s trenutnom praksom u bioplinskim postrojenjima koja uključuje korištenje kukuruzne silaže i proizvodnju električne energije uz zajamčenu otkupnu cijenu. Mjesto nastanka, tip biomase, te njezine količine bitan su faktor za strateško pozicioniranje novih bioplinskih postrojenja, te za planiranje novih lanaca opskrbe sirovinama u postojećim postrojenjima. Geografski informacijski sustav (eng. Geographic Information System, GIS) [6] prepoznat je kao vrijedan alat za mapiranje potencijala izvora biomase, kao i određivanje transportnih udaljenosti od mjesta nastanka biomase do postrojenja. GIS analiza na razini EU pokazala je ukupni energetski potencijal za proizvodnju bioplina iz poljoprivrednih ostataka i životinjske gnojovke na godišnjoj razini jednak 0.7 EJ (oko 195 TWh) [7], što je dvostruko više nego proizvodnja bioplina iz tih supstrata ostvarena u 2016 godini u EU. Primjenom GIS alata na lokalnoj razini u Grčkoj, Sjedinjenim Američkim Državama i Finskoj pokazano je da ekonomski prihvatljive transportne udaljenosti za supstrate mogu varirati između 10 i 40 km [8–10]. Povećanjem radijusa raspoloživosti biomase povećava se i kapacitet postrojenja čime je moguće ostvariti veću proizvodnju obnovljive energije, no istovremeno stvara se dodatan teret na okoliš, kako je još uvijek većina biomase transportirana teretnim vozilima na fosilna goriva [10]. Ono što također treba uzeti u obzir prilikom procjene korištenja biomase u bioplinskom postrojenju je njezina tržišna vrijednost, odnosno plaća li bioplinsko postrojenje za biomasu, ili dobiva naknadu za njezino gospodarenje (eng. Gate fee, GF). U postojećim okvirima proizvodnje bioplina, cijena kukuruzne silaže je između 15 i 40 € po toni sirovine [11], dok alternativni izvori biomase (npr. miješani komunalni biootpad i otpadna hrana) postižu GF u iznosu od -60 do 0 €/tona [11]. Nakon što biomasa uđe u prostor bioplinskog postrojenja, potrebno ju je adekvatno pripremiti za proces anaerobne razgradnje. U tu svrhu mogu se koristiti metode predobrade koje se služe termičkim, mehaničkim, kemijskim ili biološkim postupcima (ili nekim njihovim kombinacijama) [12]. Metode predobrade služe kako bi potaknule proces razgradnje kompleksnih polimernih molekula prisutnih u organskoj tvari, čime se postiže viša konverzija biomase u bioplin [13]. Uspješnost razgradnje biomase te proizvodnje bioplina, kao i stabilnost u procesu određuju se eksperimentalnim mjerenjima, pri čemu se prate procesne varijable kao što su sadržaj suhe tvari (eng. Dry Matter, DM, ili Total Solids, TS), proizvodnja i sastav bioplina, pH, koncentracija hlapljivih masnih kiselina (eng. Volatile Fatty Acids, VFA), ukupni anorganski ugljik (eng. Total Inorganic Carbon, TIC), prisutnost amonijakalnog dušika (eng. Ammonium-nitrogen, NH4-N), koncentracija soli, teških metala i ostalo [14]. Na temelju vrijednosti navedenih procesnih varijabli operatori bioplinskih postrojenja znaju odvija li se proces unutar dozvoljenih vrijednosti te kako reagirati ukoliko je primijećena nestabilnost u procesu. Eksperimentalni podatci također služe za modeliranje kinetike anaerobne razgradnje [15] pri čemu se ovisnosti o kompleksnosti ulaznih podataka i traženih rezultata mogu primijeniti razni kinetički modeli [16–18]. Složeniji modeli zahtijevaju veći broj ulaznih podataka, ali također daju i detaljniji uvid u mehanizam reakcija i otkrivanju tzv. uskog grla procesa koji određuje ukupnu brzinu nastanka bioplina. Osim bioplina, drugi proizvod anaerobne razgradnje je digestat kojeg čine nerazgrađeni ostatci biomase u tekućoj fazi [19]. Tekuća frakcija digestata je obično bogata makronutrijentima – dušikom (N), fosforom (P) i kalijem (K), što ju čini primjenjivom kao gnojivo za tlo [20]. Čvrsta frakcija digestata također sadrži P, ali i zaostali organski ugljik (C) što ga čini prikladnim za poboljšavanje karakteristika tla, kompostiranje [21] ili za neki od oblika energetske oporabe [22]. Prednost korištenja digestata u opisanim načinima leži u činjenici da je njegova tržišna vrijednost mala, tek 2-4 €/t [23]. Proizvedeni bioplin najčešće se koristi kao gorivo u kombiniranoj proizvodnji električne i toplinske energije, kogeneracija (eng. Combined Heat and Power, CHP). Proteklih desetljeća na razini EU mehanizmi subvencija za bioplinske kogeneracije u vidu feed-in-tariffa i feed-in-premija rezultirale su intenzivnom penetracijom bioplina u elektroenergetski sektor [24]. Razina subvencija je definirana na nacionalnoj razini, ali u svim članicama EU nije niža od 80 €/MWhel, što je gotovo dvostruko veći iznos od prosječne veleprodajne tržišne cijene električne energije u EU [25]. Također, ono što je važno napomenuti jest da su subvencije izdane na određeni period (12-20 godina od statusa stjecanja povlaštenog proizvođača električne energije [26]) nakon čega će bioplinska postrojenja morati razmotriti neke druge načine iskorištavanja (eng. Utilisation) bioplina da bi zadržale ekonomski isplativo poslovanje. Prema podatcima Europske udruge za bioplin (eng. European Biogas Association, EBA) u 2020. godini u Europi je bilo instalirano 18,943 bioplinskih postrojenja, od kojih je 18,214 (96%) radilo u kogeneracijskom načinu, a ostalih 4% kao postrojenja za proizvodnju biometana kroz tehnologiju poboljšavanja bioplina (eng. Biogas upgrading) odnosno uklanjanje svih ne-CH4 komponenti bioplina [27]. Ova doktorska disertacija detaljno razlaže inovativnije načine iskorištavanja bioplina u budućim energetskim sustavima, što će uključivati rad kogeneracijskih postrojenja u tržišnim okvirima [28], pretvorbu bioplina u biometan te proizvodnju e-metana kroz implementaciju power-to-gas (P2G) koncepta [29] u sustavima s visokim udjelom energije iz varijabilnih OIE. Primjena procjene životnog ciklusa (eng. Life Cycle Assessment, LCA) [30] može otkriti utjecaje promjene politika sirovina u proizvodnji bioplina i njegovog iskorištavanja u sprezi s budućim energetskim sustavima u odnosu na okoliš. Usporedba LCA performansi za bioplinsko postrojenje koje koristi životinjsku gnojovku i energetske usjeve pokazala je da bioplin za proizvodnju električne energije stvara uštede od oko 300 kgCO2-eq/MWhel, dok upgrading bioplina u biometan i njegovo ubrizgavanje u plinsku mrežu štedi oko 191 kgCO2-eq za proizvedeni MWh biometana [31]. Za preglednije tumačenje opisanih rezultata potrebno je izraziti emisije istom jedinicom, ali i prezentirati podatke o sastavu miksa električne energije (eng. Electricity mix). Za slučaj Irske, LCA je pokazao da integracija P2G koncepta za upgrading bioplina, uz korištenje električnog miksa od 85% OIE, može rezultirati smanjenjem GHG emisija za 70% u odnosu na fosilna goriva [32]. Na temelju pregleda literature (detaljniji prikaz u poglavlju Introduction), dosad nije zabilježeno istraživanje u području anaerobne razgradnje koje povezuje mapiranje i korištenje ostatne i otpadne biomase za proizvodnju bioplina sa njegovim iskorištavanjem u budućim energetskim sustavima. Ova doktorska disertacija je ocijenila takav cjeloviti pristup i predstavila rezultate istraživanja iz perspektive jednog, odnosno više bioplinskih postrojenja. Interdisciplinarni i cjeloviti pristup prema promatranoj temi koristio je elemente kemijskog i strojarskog inženjerstva za ispunjavanje četiri glavna cilja istraživanja: • • Kvantificirati proizvodnju bioplina koristeći nove supstrate biomase kao što su lignocelulozni ostatci iz poljoprivredne proizvodnje, otpadna hrana i industrijski nusproizvodi koji nisu konkurentni proizvodnji hrane, kao što je to slučaj s kukuruznom silažom u sadašnjoj proizvodnji bioplina. • • Procijeniti kinetičke parametre anaerobne razgradnje novih supstrata kombinirajući matematičko modeliranje i eksperimentalne podatke kako bi utvrdili utjecaj kemijskog sastava supstrata na stabilnost procesa i eventualna ograničenja u procesu. • • Utvrditi ekonomski isplative načine budućeg rada bioplinskih postrojenja na naprednim energetskim tržištima nakon što bioplinska postrojenja ostanu bez financijskih potpora i zajamčene cijene električne energije. • • Procijeniti utjecaje na okoliš različitih načina korištenja bioplina integriranih u buduće energetske sustave s visokim udjelom obnovljivih izvora energije. Ostvareni ciljevi istraživanja te rezultati prezentirani su široj znanstvenoj zajednici kroz sedam objavljenih znanstvenih radova (šest radova u kvartilu Q1 te jedan rad u Q2). Znanstveni članak 1 (ARTICLE 1) [33] prikazuje detaljnu analizu lanaca vrijednosti biomase iz različitih poljoprivrednih ostatka, nusproizvoda i otpada (eng. Agricultural wastes, co-products and by-products, AWCB). Rad opisuje faze u kojima i kako nastaje otpad kroz tri specifična koraka u lancu vrijednosti: proizvodnja/uzgoj, obrada u industriji te potrošnja/konzumacija. Analiza uključuje razdoblje od 7 godina, od 2010. do 2016. u 28 zemalja članica Europske unije (EU28) te uključuje četiri različita sektora sa 26 analiziranih dobara (eng. Commodity) i prikladnim vrstama otpada koji se pojavljuju u tim sektorima. Za izračun tehničkog potencijala AWCB korišteni su javno dostupni podaci iz EUROSTAT i FAOSTAT baze, a metoda proračuna uključivala je upotrebu specifične količine AWCB po analiziranim dobrima i sektoru. Rezultati su pokazali da je u analiziranom periodu u EU28 procijenjena količina AWCB iznosila oko 18,4 milijarde tona, a prema udjelima: animalni sektor ~ 31%, sektor povrća ~ 44%, sektor žitarica ~ 22% te sektor voća ~ 2%. Analizirajući pojedine sektore i količine nastalog AWCB, daljnje istraživanje bilo je usmjereno na evaluaciju korištenja određenih AWCB iz lanca vrijednosti biomase u procesu anaerobne razgradnje s ciljem proizvodnje bioplina. Znanstveni članci 2, 3 i 4 pokazuju rezultate takvog pristupa uz primjenu istraživačkih metoda kemijskog inženjerstva. ARTICLE 2 [34] istražuje upotrebu lignoceluloznih ostataka trave kao zamjene za silažu kukuruza u anaerobnoj razgradnji. Uzorci trave prikupljeni su s područja koja nisu kompetitivna s proizvodnjom hrane: neobrađeno zemljište, obala rijeke Save u gradu Zagrebu te bankina autoceste. U istraživanju je određen svježi i suhi prinos biomase, njezin kemijski sastav, prinos te sastav proizvedenog bioplina, a primjenom Anaerobic Digestion Model No. 1 (ADM1) modela određeni su kinetički parametri razgradnje trave. Ujedno, na kraju je dana usporedba okolišnijih učinaka zamjene kukuruzne silaže ostatnom travom u proizvodnji električne i toplinske energije. Rezultati istraživanja su pokazali da je najveći prinos ostatne trave utvrđen za obalu rijeke, sa prosječnom vrijednošću od 19 t/ha svježe mase i 2.6 t/ha suhe mase. Svi uzorci trave pokazali su zadovoljavajuće parametre za primjenu u anaerobnoj razgradnji − omjer C/N između 16.6: 1 do 22.8: 1. Ostvareni biokemijski potencijal metana u monorazgradnji (monodigestiji) ostataka trave su: 0.275 Nm3/kgTS za travu s neobrađenog zemljišta, 0.192 Nm3/kgTS za travu s obale rijeke i 0.255 Nm3/kgTS za travu s bankine autoceste. Procijenjeni kinetički parametri razgradnje trave razlikuju se od do sada objavljenih rezultata, prvenstveno zato što prijašnje analize uključuju specifične tipove travnate biomase, a ne ostatnu (miješanu) travu. Procijenjeni okolišniji utjecaji zamjene kukuruzne silaže travnatom biomasom u proizvodnji električne i toplinske energije pokazali su prednosti u smislu ostvarenog doprinosa kvaliteti ekosustava (eng. Ecosystem quality) i ljudskog zdravlja (eng. Human health), no također i nešto veće emisije GHG uzrokovane izgaranjem fosilnih goriva u poljoprivrednoj mehanizaciji i povećanim transportom trave zbog nižeg prinosa bioplina u odnosu na silažu. Čvrsta frakcija digestata dobivena u procesu monodigestije trave korištena je u znanstvenom članku 3 (ARTICLE 3) kao ulazni materijal za istraživanje procesa pirolize. Cilj istraživanja u ARTICLE 3 [35] bio je odrediti utjecaj anaerobne razgradnje na sastav lignocelulozne biomase korištenjem termogravimetrijske analize (eng. Thermogravimetric analysis, TGA). Također, procijenjeni su iznosi energije aktivacije i modificiranog predeksponencijalnog faktora za travu i njezine digestate, kao i prinos konačnog ostatka pirolize (eng. Biochar). Rezultati su pokazali da je procijenjena količina razgrađene celuloze i hemiceluloze u istraživanim uzrocima trave oko 44–50%. Nadalje, digestati trave pokazali su veći prinos biochar-a (oko 38%) u odnosu na uzorke trave (oko 24%). Kombinirani proces anaerobne razgradnje trave i pirolize njezinih digestata pokazao je manje vrijednosti procijenjenih kinetičkih parametra što upućuje na niže energetske potrebe takvog procesa u odnosu na direktnu pirolizu trave. ARTICLE 4 [36] bio je izrađen u suradnji sa industrijom biomase i bioplina. U radu je eksperimentalno istražena razgradnja otpadne hrane (eng. Food waste, FW) iz bioplinskog postrojenja zajedno s nusproizvodnima iz kafilerije (eng. Rendering plant): mesno-koštano brašno (eng. Meat and bone meal, MBM) i mulj sa otpadnih voda (eng. Wastewater sludge, WWS). Prvo je provedena termička predobrada uzoraka FW (FW1 i FW2) pri temperaturi od 35 °C i trajanju 5 dana u koju su bili dodani MBM i WWS u udjelima od 5, 10 i 15% TS. Nakon toga slijedila je anaerobna razgradnja pri 40.5 °C u trajanju od 40 dana. Uvjeti termičke predobrade i proizvodnje bioplina u laboratorijskom mjerilu replicirani su iz rada samog bioplinskog postrojenja. Također, za vrijeme procesa u laboratoriju bile su praćene sve procesne varijable kao i u radu digestora na postrojenju. Kao rezultat predobrade kemijska potrošnja kisika (eng. Chemical Oxygen Demand, COD) ispitivanih uzoraka povećala se za 7 – 26%. Dodavanjem MBM u FW1 došlo je do povećanja vrijednosti COD kao i NH4-N, dok se u slučaju dodatka WWS u FW2 postiglo smanjenje, što je i bilo očekivano, budući da je WWS materijal s niskim udjelom organske tvari. Kao rezultat testa anaerobne razgradnje dobiveni su sljedeći prinosi bioplina: za FW1 – 0.566 Nm3/kg TS, za FW1-MBM – 0.499 Nm3/kg TS, za FW2 – 0.252 Nm3/kg TS i 0.195 Nm3/kg TS za FW2-WWS. Tako širok raspon vrijednosti rezultat je heterogenosti FW (FW1 i FW 2 uzete su s vremenskim razmakom od dva mjeseca na istom postrojenju). Prema sastavu proizvedenog bioplina, kao i ostalim procesnim varijablama može se zaključiti da su FW1 i FW2 vrlo slični po sastavu, ali da je istovremeno postojao neki uzročnik inhibicije u proizvodnji bioplina za uzorak FW2, koji se nije mogao procijeniti na temelju dostupne opreme i provedenih mjerenja. Tek su mjerenja električne vodljivosti ukazala na to da uzorak FW2 sadrži nešto veću koncentraciju soli koja bi mogla biti uzročnik smanjenog prinosa bioplina. Nusproizvodi kafilerije dodani u 5%-tnom udjelu uzrocima FW rezultirali su smanjenjem proizvodnje bioplina za 12% u slučaju MBM i 23% u slučaju WWS, ali nisu utjecali na stabilnost proizvodnje. Štoviše, analizom kinetike razgradnje ustanovljeno je da MBM i WWS ubrzavaju proces razgradnje FW što se vidi iz višeg iznosa reakcijske konstante. Također, pokazano je da ispitivani uzorci najbolje koreliraju sa kinetikom prvog reda što je vidljivo iz najniže ostvarene vrijednosti RMSE (eng. Root mean square error) koja je iznosila 0.015 Nm3/kg TS. U znanstvenom članku 5 (ARTICLE 5) [37] provedena je tehno-ekonomska i scenarijska analiza rada bioplinskog postrojenja nakon isteka subvencija za proizvodnju električne energije. Vođenje takvog sustava temeljilo se na iznosu cijena električne energije i biometana (eng. Unit commitment with economic dispatch) koje su određivale koja od jedinica za prihvat bioplina: CHP, upgrading ili spremnik ima najveću ekonomsku isplativost u danom trenutku. Za opis dinamike korišten je program MATLAB/Simulink, a za ekonomsku analizu MS Excel. U prvom scenariju prikazan je utjecaj cijene proizvodnje električne energije u bioplinskom postrojenju (eng. Break-even point of electricity production, BECPel) na broj radnih sati kada ono može ostvariti svojevrstan profit na dan-unaprijed tržištu (eng. Day-ahead market) električne energije. Rezultati su pokazali da kada vrijednost BECPel postane 40 €/MWhel, bioplinsko postrojenje može ostvariti (neki) profit radeći samo 4,000 sati godišnje, kako je ostalo vrijeme cijena električne energije na tržištu niža od cijene proizvodnje. Kada BECPel postane 100 €/MWhel bioplinsko postrojenje ne može ostvariti nikakav profit radeći na dan-unaprijed tržištu. Kao jedno od rješenja koje se nameće za smanjenje vrijednosti BECPel je korištenje supstrata s negativnom cijenom (GF model) koja je detaljnije prikazana u članku 6 (ARTICLE 6). Drugi scenarij uključivao je instaliranje upgrading jedinice i proizvodnju biometana, a proizvodnja električne energije ovisila je o cijenama na tržištu uravnoteženja (eng. Balancing market). Takav pristup je pokazao da bioplinsko postrojenje i uz relativno visoku cijenu biometana od 80 €/MWh, može u određenim trenutcima ostvariti i veći profit ako radi na balancing tržištu. Treći scenarij za bioplinsko postrojenje uključivao je integraciju industrijskog otpada iz proizvodnje šećera za proizvodnju bioplina i njegovo korištenje za proizvodnju procesne topline u vrijeme šećerne kampanje. Takav pristup pokazao se relativno neisplativim za bioplinsko postrojenje kako je cijena prirodnog plina na veleprodajnom tržištu još uvijek dosta niska i bioplin joj ne može u tom smislu biti konkurentan. ARTICLE 6 [38] predstavlja rezultate integracije P2G koncepta u rad bioplinskog postrojenja koje se nalazi u GF poslovnom modelu, odnosno prima naknadu za ulazni supstrat pri proizvodnji bioplina. Cilj istraživanja bio je razviti robustan matematički model na satnoj razini za procjenu optimalnih kapaciteta vjetroelektrane i solarne elektrane, veličine spremnika za bioplin te kapacitete elektrolizera, upgrading jedinice i metanatora (eng. Methanation unit) koristeći linearno programiranje i besplatni (eng. Open source) programski jezik Julia. Kao funkcija cilja korištena je minimizacija ukupnih troškova. Matematički model testiran je na postojećoj bioplinskoj elektrani instalirane snage 1 MWel. Utvrđeno je da P2G koncept zahtijeva integraciju 18 MWel vjetra i 9 MWel solara na lokaciji, uz dodatan uvoz električne energije iz mreže u iznosu 16 GWhel kako bi se na godišnjoj razini proizvelo 36 GWh obnovljivog metana. Analiza je pokazala da GF (u promatranom slučaju za otpadnu hranu) značajno doprinosi ekonomskoj održivosti obnovljivog metana: promjena GF za 100 €/toni rezultira smanjenjem troškova njegove proizvodnje za 20-60%. Ustanovljeno je da za vrijednost GF=-120 €/tona obnovljivi metan iz prikazanog koncepta postaje cjenovno konkurentan prirodnom plinu. Robusna priroda modela pokazala je da nesigurnosti povezane s proizvodnjom električne energije iz vjetra i solara na lokaciji mogu povećati troškove proizvodnje obnovljivog metana za 10-30%. ARTICLE 7 [39] integralno obuhvaća rezultate svih dotad objavljenih radova u sklopu izrade doktorske disertacije i smješta ih u kontekst testiranja hipoteze. U njemu je provedena geoprostorna analiza (eng. Geospatial analysis) bioplinskog sektora korištenjem javno dostupnog programa QGIS te procjena okolišnijih utjecaja pomoću programa SimaPro. Cilj rada bio je mapirati energetski potencijal otpadne trave, industrijskih nusproizvoda i otpada, te komunalnog biootpada (otpadne hrane) za zamjenu kukuruzne silaže u postojećoj proizvodnji bioplina te planiranje proširenja bioplinskog sektora. Kao studija slučaja (eng. Case study) korištena je Sjeverna Hrvatska (eng. Northern Croatia), područje s intenzivnim bioplinskim sektorom te snažnom industrijom, poljoprivredom i velikom gustoćom stanovništva. Rezultati su pokazali da bi navedene sirovine mogle zamijeniti 212 GWh bioplina iz kukuruzne silaže u postojećim bioplinskim postrojenjima te stvoriti dodatnih 191 GWh biometana u novim postrojenjima. Također, geoprostorna analiza je pokazala da su neka bioplinska postrojenja izgrađena u neposrednoj blizini plinske transportne mreže (<2km udaljenosti) i da imaju potencijal za utiskivanje biometana u plinsku mrežu. Cjelokupna analiza utjecaja na okoliš postojećih bioplinskih postrojenja pokazala je da integralni pristup proizvodnji i korištenju bioplina stvara sinergijske učinke u smislu smanjenja opterećenja na okoliš, što izravno dokazuje hipotezu studije. Kompleksnost P2G koncepta i njegovi intenzivni energetski zahtjevi čine ga trenutno nepovoljnijim u usporedbi sa klasičnim upgradingom bioplina, no isti dolazi do izražaja kada se u razmatranje uzmu budući energetski sustavi s visokim udjelom OIE. Znanstveni doprinosi ovog rada ostvareni su kroz provedena istraživanja te prikazani kroz objavljene rezultate u radovima kako slijedi: • Eksperimentalnim istraživanjem anaerobne razgradnje novih supstrata biomase odredit će se potencijalne prepreke u proizvodnji bioplina, poput pojave inhibicije ili utjecaja tipa biomase na stabilnost procesa: ARTICLE 2: Ustanovljeno je da lignocelulozna biomasa u obliku ostatne trave ne sadrži fizikalno-kemijske karakteristike koje bi ograničile njezinu upotrebu za proizvodnju bioplina. Štoviše, pokazalo se da ista uzrokuje poboljšanu kontrolu pH što doprinosi stabilnosti proizvodnje bioplina. Nedostatak njezinog korištenja je taj što je za ostvarivanje većih prinosa potrebno primijeniti neki oblik predobrade. ARTICLE 4: Heterogenost otpadne hrane utječe na vođenje procesa za što je potrebno ustanoviti robusnu kontrolu procesnih varijabli. Pokazalo se da i na razini bioplinskog postrojenja postoje neke varijable koje se ne prate na dnevnoj razini (prisutnost soli i metala), a koje mogu uzurpirati proizvodnju bioplina. Ustanovljeno je da kafilerijski nusprodukti i otpad u manjim količinama mogu doprinijeti povećanju brzine razgradnje otpadne hrane. • Predložiti alternativne mjere za trenutni sektor bioplina uzimajući u obzir tržišne cijene i analizu utjecaja na okoliš koristeći pristup procjene životnog ciklusa. ARTICLE 5: Alternativne mjere za bioplinski sektor u vidu proizvodnje biometana i rada bioplinskih postrojenja na day-ahead i balancing tržištu električnom energijom pokazala se kao najvjerojatnija opcija nakon napuštanja poticajnih sustava za proizvodnju električne energije. U takvim okvirima tranzicija s kukuruzne silaže na supstrate alternativne supstrate postati će prihvatljiva operativna odluka uz dodatne investicije u novu opremu. ARTICLE 6: Integracija varijabilnih OIE u rad bioplinskih postrojenja pokazala je da će se u budućnosti paradigma bioplinskih postrojenja kao takvih promijeniti – više neće biti samo pasivni proizvođači struje, nego će postati aktivni sudionici na tržištima energijom. ARTICLE 2: Pokazano je da otpadana trava više doprinosi kvaliteti ekosustava i ljudskom zdravlju nego kukuruzna silaža, iako uzrokuje veće emisije stakleničkih plinova, prvenstveno zbog intenzivnijih potreba za transportom na fosilna goriva. ARTICLE 7: LCA predloženih mjera za sektor bioplina koje uključuju zamjenu kukuruzne silaže alternativnih oblicima biomase te iskorištavanje bioplina u sustavima s visokim udjelom OIE pokazala je sinergistički efekt u smislu smanjenja cjelokupnog tereta na okoliš. Analiza je također pokazala da je integracija P2G u promatranim okvirima još uvijek neatraktivna zbog kompleksnosti sustava i energetski intenzivnih procesa. • Napredni model geografskog informacijskog sustava mapiranja novih izvora biomase koji će u kombinaciji s različitim načinima korištenja bioplina integriranim u sustave visokih obnovljivih izvora energije u naprednim energetskim tržištima rezultirati robusnim matematičkim modelima primjenjivim na različite slučajeve bioplinskih postrojenja. ARTICLE 6: Razvijeni robusni model integracije P2G koncepta u rad bioplinskog postrojenja pokazao je sinergiju između GF poslovnog modela te integracije obnovljive električne energije i topline koji su objedinjeni u postavljenoj matematičkoj formulaciji nivelirane cijene obnovljivog metana (eng. Levelized cost of renewable methane, LCORM). ARTICLE 7: Razvijeni GIS model obuhvaća analizu postojećih bioplinskih postrojenja i pozicioniranje budućih biometanskih postrojenja na temelju geoprostorne analize dostupnih alternativnih supstrata i položaja plinske mreže. Hipoteza ovog istraživanja je da je primjenom cjelovitog pristupa u radu bioplinskih postrojenja, i na strani proizvodnje i iskorištavanja bioplina, moguće povećati ekonomsku profitabilnost i doprinos zaštiti okoliša u usporedbi s trenutnim subvencioniranim radom. Kroz provedena istraživanja hipoteza je testirana i potvrđena uzevši u obzir sljedeće: • Ekonomska profitabilnost bioplinskih postrojenja nakon napuštanja subvencija i ograničenja u korištenju kukuruzne silaže bit će teže ostvariva. Uključivat će implementaciju GF poslovnog modela za supstrate za što će biti potrebne nove investicije po pitanju linije za predobradu, povećanje kapaciteta za spremanje bioplina na lokaciji kako bi postrojenje bilo fleksibilnije na tržištu električne energije te dodatne investicije u sustav za proizvodnju obnovljivog metana, prvenstveno biometana. • Cjeloviti pristup pokazao je da će doprinos budućeg bioplinskog sektora smanjenju okolišnih tereta ići kroz dvostruki doprinos: iz gospodarenja otpadom za proizvodnju bioplina koji će uključivati prvenstveno komunalni i industrijski biootpad u urbanim bioplinskim postrojenjima, a poljoprivredne ostatke u ruralnim bioplinskim postrojenjima, te iskorištavanja bioplina za proizvodnju obnovljive energije u vidu biometana.

This book takes both a global as well as a local perspective in assessing the impacts of climate change on the economy, agricultural sector, and households in three of the MENA countries; Syria, Tunisia and Yemen. The major channels of impact for global climate change are through changing world food (and energy) prices, especially since all the countries under analysis are or have become net importers of oil and petroleum products and many food commodities in recent years. The impacts of local climate change decrease crop yields in the longer run and through them, productivity in the agricultu

Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) is an emerging multidisciplinary research area that aims to create an ecosystem of different types of sensors, computers, mobile devices, wireless networks, and software applications for enhanced living environments and occupational health. There are several challenges in the development and implementation of an effective AAL system, such as system architecture, human-computer interaction, ergonomics, usability, and accessibility. There are also social and ethical challenges, such as acceptance by seniors and the privacy and confidentiality that must be a requirement of AAL devices. It is also essential to ensure that technology does not replace human care and is used as a relevant complement. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a paradigm where objects are connected to the Internet and support sensing capabilities. IoT devices should be ubiquitous, recognize the context, and support intelligence capabilities closely related to AAL. Technological advances allow defining new advanced tools and platforms for real-time health monitoring and decision making in the treatment of various diseases. IoT is a suitable approach to building healthcare systems, and it provides a suitable platform for ubiquitous health services, using, for example, portable sensors to carry data to servers and smartphones for communication. Despite the potential of the IoT paradigm and technologies for healthcare systems, several challenges to be overcome still exist. The direction and impact of IoT in the economy are not clearly defined, and there are barriers to the immediate and ubiquitous adoption of IoT products, services, and solutions. Several sources of pollutants have a high impact on indoor living environments. Consequently, indoor air quality is recognized as a fundamental variable to be controlled for enhanced health and well-being. It is critical to note that typically most people occupy more than 90% of their time inside buildings, and poor indoor air quality negatively affects performance and productivity. Research initiatives are required to address air quality issues to adopt legislation and real-time inspection mechanisms to improve public health, not only to monitor public places, schools, and hospitals but also to increase the rigor of building rules. Therefore, it is necessary to use real-time monitoring systems for correct analysis of indoor air quality to ensure a healthy environment in at least public spaces. In most cases, simple interventions provided by homeowners can produce substantial positive impacts on indoor air quality, such as avoiding indoor smoking and the correct use of natural ventilation. An indoor air quality monitoring system helps the detection and improvement of air quality conditions. Local and distributed assessment of chemical concentrations is significant for safety (e.g., detection of gas leaks and monitoring of pollutants) as well as to control heating, ventilation, and HVAC systems to improve energy efficiency. Real-time indoor air quality monitoring provides reliable data for the correct control of building automation systems and should be assumed as a decision support platform on planning interventions for enhanced living environments. However, the monitoring systems currently available are expensive and only allow the collection of random samples that are not provided with time information. Most solutions on the market only allow data consulting limited to device memory and require procedures for downloading and manipulating data with specific software. In this way, the development of innovative environmental monitoring systems based on ubiquitous technologies that allow real-time analysis becomes essential. This thesis resulted in the design and development of IoT architectures using modular and scalable structures for air quality monitoring based on data collected from cost-effective sensors for enhanced living environments. The proposed architectures address several concepts, including acquisition, processing, storage, analysis, and visualization of data. These systems incorporate an alert management Framework that notifies the user in real-time in poor indoor air quality scenarios. The software Framework supports multiple alert methods, such as push notifications, SMS, and e-mail. The real-time notification system offers several advantages when the goal is to achieve effective changes for enhanced living environments. On the one hand, notification messages promote behavioral changes. These alerts allow the building manager to identify air quality problems and plan interventions to avoid unhealthy air quality scenarios. The proposed architectures incorporate mobile computing technologies such as mobile applications that provide ubiquitous air quality data consulting methods s. Also, the data is stored and can be shared with medical teams to support the diagnosis. The state-of-the-art analysis has resulted in a review article on technologies, applications, challenges, opportunities, open-source IoT platforms, and operating systems. This review was significant to define the IoT-based Framework for indoor air quality supervision. The research leads to the development and design of cost-effective solutions based on open-source technologies that support Wi-Fi communication and incorporate several advantages such as modularity, scalability, and easy installation. The results obtained are auspicious, representing a significant contribution to enhanced living environments and occupational health. Particulate matter (PM) is a complex mixture of solid and liquid particles of organic and inorganic substances suspended in the air. Moreover, it is considered the pollutant that affects more people. The most damaging particles to health are ≤PM10 (diameter 10 microns or less), which can penetrate and lodge deep within the lungs, contributing to the risk of developing cardiovascular and respiratory diseases as well as lung cancer. Taking into account the adverse health effects of PM exposure, an IoT architecture for automatic PM monitoring was proposed. The proposed architecture is a PM real-time monitoring system and a decision-making tool. The solution consists of a hardware prototype for data acquisition and a Web Framework developed in .NET for data consulting. This system is based on open-source and technologies, with several advantages compared to existing systems, such as modularity, scalability, low-cost and easy installation. The data is stored in a database developed in SQL SERVER using .NET Web services. The results show the ability of the system to analyze the indoor air quality in real-time and the potential of the Web Framework for the planning of interventions to ensure safe, healthy, and comfortable conditions. Associations of high concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) with low productivity at work and increased health problems are well documented. There is also a clear correlation between high levels of CO2 and high concentrations of pollutants in indoor air. There are sufficient reasons to monitor CO2 and provide real-time notifications to improve occupational health and provide a safe and healthy indoor living environment. Taking into account the significant influence of CO2 for enhanced living environments, a real-time IoT architecture for CO2 monitoring was proposed. CO2 was selected because it is easy to measure and is produced in quantity (by people and combustion equipment). It can be used as an indicator of other pollutants and, therefore, of air quality in general. The solution consists of a hardware prototype for data acquisition environment, a Web software, and a smartphone application for data consulting. The proposed architecture is based on open-source technologies, and the data is stored in a SQL SERVER database. The mobile Framework allows the user not only to consult the latest data collected but also to receive real-time notifications in poor indoor air quality scenarios, and to configure the alerts threshold levels. The results show that the mobile application not only provides easy access to real-time air quality data, but also allows the user to maintain parameter history and provide a history of changes. Consequently, this system allows the user to analyze in a precise and detailed manner the behavior of air quality. Finally, an air quality monitoring solution was implemented, consisting of a hardware prototype that incorporates only the MICS-6814 sensor as the detection unit. This system monitors various air quality parameters such as NH3 (ammonia), CO (carbon monoxide), NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), C3H8 (propane), C4H10 (butane), CH4 (methane), H2 (hydrogen) and C2H5OH (ethanol). The monitoring of the concentrations of these pollutants is essential to provide enhanced living environments. This solution is based on Cloud, and the collected data is sent to the ThingSpeak platform. The proposed Framework combines sensitivity, flexibility, and measurement accuracy in real-time, allowing a significant evolution of current air quality controls. The results show that this system provides easy, intuitive, and fast access to air quality data as well as relevant notifications in poor air quality situations to provide real-time intervention and improve occupational health. These data can be accessed by physicians to support diagnoses and correlate the symptoms and health problems of patients with the environment in which they live. As future work, the results reported in this thesis can be considered as a starting point for the development of a secure system sharing data with health professionals in order to serve as decision support in diagnosis. ; Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) é uma área de investigação multidisciplinar emergente que visa a construção de um ecossistema de diferentes tipos de sensores, microcontroladores, dispositivos móveis, redes sem fios e aplicações de software para melhorar os ambientes de vida e a saúde ocupacional. Existem muitos desafios no desenvolvimento e na implementação de um sistema AAL, como a arquitetura do sistema, interação humano-computador, ergonomia, usabilidade e acessibilidade. Existem também problemas sociais e éticos, como a aceitação por parte dos utilizadores mais vulneráveis e a privacidade e confidencialidade, que devem ser uma exigência de todos os dispositivos AAL. De facto, também é essencial assegurar que a tecnologia não substitua o cuidado humano e seja usada como um complemento essencial. A Internet das Coisas (IoT) é um paradigma em que os objetos estão conectados à Internet e suportam recursos sensoriais. Tendencialmente, os dispositivos IoT devem ser omnipresentes, reconhecer o contexto e ativar os recursos de inteligência ambiente intimamente relacionados ao AAL. Os avanços tecnológicos permitem definir novas ferramentas avançadas e plataformas para monitorização de saúde em tempo real e tomada de decisão no tratamento de várias doenças. A IoT é uma abordagem adequada para construir sistemas de saúde sendo que oferece uma plataforma para serviços de saúde ubíquos, usando, por exemplo, sensores portáteis para recolha e transmissão de dados e smartphones para comunicação. Apesar do potencial do paradigma e tecnologias IoT para o desenvolvimento de sistemas de saúde, muitos desafios continuam ainda por ser resolvidos. A direção e o impacto das soluções IoT na economia não está claramente definido existindo, portanto, barreiras à adoção imediata de produtos, serviços e soluções de IoT. Os ambientes de vida são caracterizados por diversas fontes de poluentes. Consequentemente, a qualidade do ar interior é reconhecida como uma variável fundamental a ser controlada de forma a melhorar a saúde e o bem-estar. É importante referir que tipicamente a maioria das pessoas ocupam mais de 90% do seu tempo no interior de edifícios e que a má qualidade do ar interior afeta negativamente o desempenho e produtividade. É necessário que as equipas de investigação continuem a abordar os problemas de qualidade do ar visando a adoção de legislação e mecanismos de inspeção que atuem em tempo real para a melhoraria da saúde e qualidade de vida, tanto em locais públicos como escolas e hospitais e residências particulares de forma a aumentar o rigor das regras de construção de edifícios. Para tal, é necessário utilizar mecanismos de monitorização em tempo real de forma a possibilitar a análise correta da qualidade do ambiente interior para garantir ambientes de vida saudáveis. Na maioria dos casos, intervenções simples que podem ser executadas pelos proprietários ou ocupantes da residência podem produzir impactos positivos substanciais na qualidade do ar interior, como evitar fumar em ambientes fechados e o uso correto de ventilação natural. Um sistema de monitorização e avaliação da qualidade do ar interior ajuda na deteção e na melhoria das condições ambiente. A avaliação local e distribuída das concentrações químicas é significativa para a segurança (por exemplo, deteção de fugas de gás e supervisão dos poluentes) bem como para controlar o aquecimento, ventilação, e sistemas de ar condicionado (HVAC) visando a melhoria da eficiência energética. A monitorização em tempo real da qualidade do ar interior fornece dados fiáveis para o correto controlo de sistemas de automação de edifícios e deve ser assumida com uma plataforma de apoio à decisão no que se refere ao planeamento de intervenções para ambientes de vida melhorados. No entanto, os sistemas de monitorização atualmente disponíveis são de alto custo e apenas permitem a recolha de amostras aleatórias que não são providas de informação temporal. A maioria das soluções disponíveis no mercado permite apenas a acesso ao histórico de dados que é limitado à memória do dispositivo e exige procedimentos de download e manipulação de dados com software proprietário. Desta forma, o desenvolvimento de sistemas inovadores de monitorização ambiente baseados em tecnologias ubíquas e computação móvel que permitam a análise em tempo real torna-se essencial. A Tese resultou na definição e no desenvolvimento de arquiteturas para monitorização da qualidade do ar baseadas em IoT. Os métodos propostos são de baixo custo e recorrem a estruturas modulares e escaláveis para proporcionar ambientes de vida melhorados. As arquiteturas propostas abordam vários conceitos, incluindo aquisição, processamento, armazenamento, análise e visualização de dados. Os métodos propostos incorporam Frameworks de gestão de alertas que notificam o utilizador em tempo real e de forma ubíqua quando a qualidade do ar interior é deficiente. A estrutura de software suporta vários métodos de notificação, como notificações remotas para smartphone, SMS (Short Message Service) e email. O método usado para o envio de notificações em tempo real oferece várias vantagens quando o objetivo é alcançar mudanças efetivas para ambientes de vida melhorados. Por um lado, as mensagens de notificação promovem mudanças de comportamento. De facto, estes alertas permitem que o gestor do edifício e os ocupantes reconheçam padrões da qualidade do ar e permitem também um correto planeamento de intervenções de forma evitar situações em que a qualidade do ar é deficiente. Por outro lado, o sistema proposto incorpora tecnologias de computação móvel, como aplicações móveis, que fornecem acesso omnipresente aos dados de qualidade do ar e, consequentemente, fornecem soluções completas para análise de dados. Além disso, os dados são armazenados e podem ser partilhados com equipas médicas para ajudar no diagnóstico. A análise do estado da arte resultou na elaboração de um artigo de revisão sobre as tecnologias, aplicações, desafios, plataformas e sistemas operativos que envolvem a criação de arquiteturas IoT. Esta revisão foi um trabalho fundamental na definição das arquiteturas propostas baseado em IoT para a supervisão da qualidade do ar interior. Esta pesquisa conduz a um desenvolvimento de arquiteturas IoT de baixo custo com base em tecnologias de código aberto que operam como um sistema Wi-Fi e suportam várias vantagens, como modularidade, escalabilidade e facilidade de instalação. Os resultados obtidos são muito promissores, representando uma contribuição significativa para ambientes de vida melhorados e saúde ocupacional. O material particulado (PM) é uma mistura complexa de partículas sólidas e líquidas de substâncias orgânicas e inorgânicas suspensas no ar e é considerado o poluente que afeta mais pessoas. As partículas mais prejudiciais à saúde são as ≤PM10 (diâmetro de 10 micrómetros ou menos), que podem penetrar e fixarem-se dentro dos pulmões, contribuindo para o risco de desenvolver doenças cardiovasculares e respiratórias, bem como de cancro do pulmão. Tendo em consideração os efeitos negativos para a saúde da exposição ao PM foi desenvolvido numa primeira fase uma arquitetura IoT para monitorização automática dos níveis de PM. Esta arquitetura é um sistema que permite monitorização de PM em tempo real e uma ferramenta de apoio à tomada de decisão. A solução é composta por um protótipo de hardware para aquisição de dados e um portal Web desenvolvido em .NET para consulta de dados. Este sistema é baseado em tecnologias de código aberto com várias vantagens em comparação aos sistemas existentes, como modularidade, escalabilidade, baixo custo e fácil instalação. Os dados são armazenados numa base de dados desenvolvida em SQL SERVER e são enviados com recurso a serviços Web. Os resultados mostram a capacidade do sistema de analisar em tempo real a qualidade do ar interior e o potencial da Framework Web para o planeamento de intervenções com o objetivo de garantir condições seguras, saudáveis e confortáveis. Associações de altas concentrações de dióxido de carbono (CO2) com défice de produtividade no trabalho e aumento de problemas de saúde encontram-se bem documentadas. Existe também uma correlação evidente entre altos níveis de CO2 e altas concentrações de poluentes no ar interior. Tendo em conta a influência significativa do CO2 para a construção de ambientes de vida melhorados desenvolveu-se uma solução de monitorização em tempo real de CO2 com base na arquitetura de IoT. A arquitetura proposta permite também o envio de notificações em tempo real para melhorar a saúde ocupacional e proporcionar um ambiente de vida interior seguro e saudável. O CO2 foi selecionado, pois é fácil de medir e é produzido em quantidade (por pessoas e equipamentos de combustão). Assim, pode ser usado como um indicador de outros poluentes e, portanto, da qualidade do ar em geral. O método proposto é composto por um protótipo de hardware para aquisição de dados, um software Web e uma aplicação smartphone para consulta de dados. Esta arquitetura é baseada em tecnologias de código aberto e os dados recolhidos são armazenados numa base de dados SQL SERVER. A Framework móvel permite não só consultar em tempo real os últimos dados recolhidos, receber notificações com o objetivo de avisar o utilizador quando a qualidade do ar está deficiente, mas também para configurar alertas. Os resultados mostram que a Framework móvel fornece não apenas acesso fácil aos dados da qualidade do ar em tempo real, mas também permite ao utilizador manter o histórico de parâmetros. Assim este sistema permite ao utilizador analisar de maneira precisa e detalhada o comportamento da qualidade do ar interior. Por último, é proposta uma arquitetura para monitorização de vários parâmetros da qualidade do ar, como NH3 (amoníaco), CO (monóxido de carbono), NO2 (dióxido de azoto), C3H8 (propano), C4H10 (butano), CH4 (metano), H2 (hidrogénio) e C2H5OH (etanol). Esta arquitetura é composta por um protótipo de hardware que incorpora unicamente o sensor MICS-6814 como unidade de deteção. O controlo das concentrações destes poluentes é extremamente relevante para proporcionar ambientes de vida melhorados. Esta solução tem base na Cloud sendo que os dados recolhidos são enviados para a plataforma ThingSpeak. Esta Framework combina sensibilidade, flexibilidade e precisão de medição em tempo real, permitindo uma evolução significativa dos atuais sistemas de monitorização da qualidade do ar. Os resultados mostram que este sistema fornece acesso fácil, intuitivo e rápido aos dados de qualidade do ar bem como notificações essenciais em situações de qualidade do ar deficiente de forma a planear intervenções em tempo útil e melhorar a saúde ocupacional. Esses dados podem ser acedidos pelos médicos para apoiar diagnósticos e correlacionar os sintomas e problemas de saúde dos pacientes com o ambiente em que estes vivem. Como trabalho futuro, os resultados reportados nesta Tese podem ser considerados um ponto de partida para o desenvolvimento de um sistema seguro para partilha de dados com profissionais de saúde de forma a servir de suporte à decisão no diagnóstico.

This essay continues with a discussion concerning the intersection between indigenous technological adoption/adaptation and the range of perspectives with respect to local communities' use of technology in general. Analytical instruments will be presented at the end of this article. First, however, the reader will have the opportunity to examine the 'views' of outsiders with respect to the debate surrounding sustainability, environmental management and territorial ordering. Responses to an on-line survey concerning the above issues together with my own comments, will add to the discussion. ; Gestión ambiental; Ordenamiento Territorial; Sostenibilidad; TIC; Usos ; 1 TECHNOLOGY IN NORTHWEST AMAZONIA (NWA) VIEWS OF VIEWS: SUSTAINABILITY, ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND TERRITORIAL ORDERING A contribution to a Political Ecology for Northwest Amazonia1 This essay continues with a discussion concerning the intersection between indigenous technological adoption/adaptation and the range of perspectives with respect to local communities' use of technology in general2. Analytical instruments will be presented at the end of this article. First, however, the reader will have the opportunity to examine the 'views' of outsiders with respect to the debate surrounding sustainability, environmental management and territorial ordering. Responses to an on-line survey concerning the above issues together with my own comments, will add to the discussion. Aims Initially there were two aims behind the construction of a website. One of was to overcome impediments to my personal mobility and direct access3. ICT facilitated communications with other interested people and helped solicit their views on indigenous management of the forest and their opinions with respect to the process of territorial ordering in Amazonia. The other aim was to serve the process of opening up political opportunities for NWA's inhabitants. Grassroots organisations all around the globe were (and are) establishing links through ICT. The indigenous peoples of Amazonia may attempt the same and this experience could, in the future, be an instrument of education for NWA. The introduction of such technology among indigenous peoples, if possible, will have impacts, which will to be judged as positive or negative, depending of the political interests of the observer and the moment of observation. It is argued here, that despite there being no indisputable positive or negative effects of technological transfer, it would be contrary to indigenous people's rights to self-determination to prevent the promotion of ICT among them. We wish to question conservative forces: if governments, corporations, NGOs and even international drug dealers and terrorist groups are using ICT to fortify their political positions, why should indigenous peoples be denied access to it? The access (or lack of it) of grassroots organisations to ICT facilitates (or impedes) the 1 The author wishes to thank: Jim Connor and Mark Bennett of Imperial College, the former for his advice on the use of Arcview-GIS and the latter for helping to write the cgi-script form for the website. Thanks are also due to: Stuart Peters from the University of Surrey for training in Web- Page design; Adriana Rico from Páginas.Net for valuable advice during the design process and Alvaro Ocampo for a detailed critique of Kumoro.com before it went live. I also wish to thank the Board of Puerto Rastrojo Foundation, which gave me permission to use their vegetation map as a base for the Yaigojé vegetation map that appears on the web-site. Finally thanks to all the people that took the time to fill out the on-line survey. Their contributions made this chapter possible. 2 This discussion was introduced in "Technology in Northwest Amazonia: Sketches from Inside" (Forero 2002b). 3 A restriction of one of the scholarships the author was granted as well as guerrilla incursions at the time, prevented the author from going back to NWA. 2 development of their rights to be informed (and educated) in accordance with the actual historical context of a globalising corporate economy and cultural hybridisation. For indigenous peoples, as well as for other ethnic minorities, financial resources to set up ICT are extremely limited compared to those of corporations, governments and even NGOs. The establishment of an ICT network for indigenous peoples' organisations in NWA remains a Utopia. But without a Utopian vision there is no aim for social mobilisation; this is something that was underlined by responses to the on-line survey. Fieldwork in NWA involved the author in the territorial ordering process, helping with the formation of indigenous people's organisations, and getting involved in communities' economic and educational projects. My work in NWA can thus be characterised as participatory action research (PAR) and one way of continuing to engage in PAR without going back to the field was to set up a website, wait for an opportunity to share my experience with the people of NWA and promote projects that would allow them to take over the website and use it for their own projects4. Deconstruction of an Internet generated discourse Elsewhere the author has dealt with descriptions and deconstructions of discourses of indigenous and institutional organisations, be they NGOs, churches, governmental or international. This process of deconstruction has included the author's own work among indigenous organisations and NGOs, which was one of the aims of "Indigenous knowledge and the scientific mind: activism or colonialism?" (Forero 2002a). I wish to explain the inclusion of governmental and non-governmental organisations within the category 'institutional'. There are great differences as well as important coincidences in governmental actions and the work of NGOs in developing countries due to the limited nature and poor quality of State-driven action in such nations. E.g. in Colombia, COAMA, the largest NGO network in NWA, has been involved in the political administrative reforms, and served as a consultant in matters of education, health and sustainable production. Furthermore, COAMA staff accompanied indigenous peoples in all these processes and without their intervention it is doubtful that many of the indigenous political organisations of Amazonia would ever have succeeded in their quest for legal recognition5. NGOs and governmental institutions may pursue similar political aims and share administrative structures. Inasmuch as small organisations are successful, (and usually this success is a result of strong personal commitment to a cause and personal knowledge of all members of the organisation), they tend to obtain more funds, which in turn forces them to become increasingly bureaucratic. As 4 At the time of writing (May 2002) the author was preparing to visit NWA at the invitation of indigenous leaders, including the Co-ordinator of an education committee who wanted to discuss the roll of ICT in education. 5 See Forero, Laborde et al. 1998 and the interview with the director of COAMA Martín von Hildebrand, in The Ecologist 2002 (Vol. 32 No.1-February). 3 organisations grow, individual members have fewer opportunities to get to know each other personally and maintain an accordance of principles, aims and political means. This is not to say that NGOs are condemned to be inefficient bureaucratic institutions, (which is not uncommon among developing countries' governmental institutions). But it is important to draw attention to the risk that when resources are pumping in and recruitment is growing there is more chance of becoming detached from grassroots sensibilities with respect to issues and less chance of correctly interpreting local developmental idioms. Views of Indigenous Environmental Management The design, production and publishing of a website on the development of a political ecology for NWA, taking the Yaigojé Resguardo as a study case, may seem a very simple task with little impact. But it proved to be a very delicate matter that involved exhausting work. The production of a map of the Yaigojé Resguardo, (which was to be included on the website) has been explained elsewhere, although it is worth mentioning something about the methodology involved. The author accompanied shamans (who were selected by indigenous leaders from the Apaporis) on several trips in which all the recognised sacred places of the Apaporis River and some of its tributaries where identified. The shamans learn the names of the places during their training. These names are recited in myths, chants and spells. The shamans carry, as they say, the map within themselves. It is impressive to see these men point to a place and give its name without hesitation. It is like this even when they have never been in that place before. It is impressive that this orally transmitted geography corresponds so precisely to the physical aspects that start to become relevant for people who, like the author, have different epistemological instruments for their interpretations of the world. While visiting the sacred places shamans spoke of trips they had made previously. In the case of shamanistic trips, visits did not actually involve physical journeys, but what were referred to as trips en pensamiento, en espíritu (in thought, in spirit). While accompanying them I recorded the geographical co-ordinates using a satellite guided geographical positioning system (GPS). The geographical co-ordinates thus generated were converted to plane co-ordinates and a map was generated using AUTOCAD software. Translations, drawings and reflections about this map-making process are included in a MSc thesis of the University of Warwick (Forero 1999). The work I will describe now, although partially derived from my work with the shamans is distinct in character and intention from that reported in Forero (1999). The use of technological gadgetry allowed me partially to reflect the Tukano world in a way that non-indigenous people could understand. And although this was a significant and, I believe, useful undertaking the real knowledge of the territory lies within the shamans with whom I worked. The fact that the 'indigenous territorial' aspects of the website are illustrated with maps is a by-product of the technology. A more significant value of the work (and the reason behind the shamans' wish to become involved in mapping) is that the maps were going to provide evidence for the legal process through which the ACIYA 4 indigenous organisation would claim rights over lands outside the recognised Resguardo Indigenous Reserve (Forero, Laborde et al. 1998). This work was successful and an extension to the Resguardo was indeed granted. Work on the website began by making a provisional outline of the desired end product. The original plan included six pages: Introduction (Home), vegetation map, traditional territorial map, discussion (an introduction to the political ecology of the Yaigojé Resguardo), bibliography (for those looking for references to NWA and the Yaigojé in particular), and a questionnaire that would generate the information from which this chapter has been developed6. The contrasting discourses obtained from the questionnaires Although I shall refer to percentages in this section, there is no intention of making any predictions based on statistical analyses. Neither is it suggested that the analysis of questionnaires can provide an objective account of outsiders' opinions with respect to the politics of the environment and people of NWA. The following notes are not representative in that sense and such was never the intention of the exercise. What is intended is that the reader gets an insight into the perceptions of survey respondents. What is important in a qualitative data analysis, like this, is to present differential tendencies. If discourses are constituents of reality then the confusing scenario of political confrontation in NWA should be linked to the visions and perspectives of all of us, including the views of people that have never been in Amazonia but nonetheless hold an opinion. And, if there is a marked difference between indigenous and exogenous perspectives with respect to sustainability and environmental management in Amazonia, which relates to whether people have visited NWA or not, this should be reflected in the answers to the surveys. The information generated from the on-line survey was collected between May and December of 2001. Eight hundred invitations were sent through e-mail. They were sent mainly to academics and organisations working on indigenous issues, conservation or sustainable development in NWA. One of these invitations reached COLNODO7 and the ICT network asked if we wished to submit the website in a weekly contest for the best new website, which we did and subsequently won! This meant that COLNODO subscribers were notified and invited to visit the site. But we have no idea how many hits were derived from COLNODO invitation. What we know is that during these 8 months we received 51 completed survey forms. This is a 6.4% response rate to the original 800 invitations8. 6 The survey form is in Appendix 1and, a summary of the technical work involved in the construction of the web-site is in Appendix 2. 7 "COLNODO is a Colombian communications network serving organizations dedicated to community development. It is operated by the non-profit organization called Colombian Association of Non-Governmental Organizations for Email Communication" (http://www.colnodo.org.co/summary_english.html). For a critical review of COLNODO work the interested reader could consult Gómez, R. 1998. 8 This response rate is rather low relative to postal questionnaire surveys, but we are unable to assess it relative other on-line surveys. 5 For the purposes of the analysis respondents (R) were divided into two groups: those claiming to have visited NWA (VA – 29% of R) and those claiming not to have visited the region (NVA – 71% of R). With respect to occupation, 68% of R come from the academic sector, including five anthropologists (almost 10% of R) all of whom had visited NWA. In contrast, although there were the same number of environmental managers as anthropologists answering the questionnaire, none had visited NWA. With respect to gender, the percentage of male (53%) and female (47%) respondents is similar across both VA and NVA groups. In terms of age, there were four groups: 1) 18 to 24, 2) 25 to 34, 3) 35 to 50, and 4) over 50. For R the percentages were: 8%, 47%, 35% and 10% respectively. The majority of respondents belong to the second group, between 25 to 34 years of age. However with respect to age groups the composition of VA and NVA groups differs: 56% of the NVA group belong to this second age cohort (25-34), while the majority of the VA group (47%) is between 35 and 50. Additionally, 13% of the VA group are over 50. 61% of the NVA group are between 18 and 34 years of age, while 60% of those that have visited Amazonia are over 35. A comparison of age among the survey respondents thus shows that those that have visited Amazonia (VA) tend to be older than those that have not (NVA). To distinguish among the views held by survey respondents we have to present the responses to each of the questions of the survey. We have made some associations of responses with the intention of outlining the different tendencies that we identify, but the reader might identify others. Before we do so a word about the view of respondents with respect to the website itself should be said. Website evaluation An evaluation of the web-site made by users was included in the questionnaire. Respondents were asked to rate the site between four categories: poor, fair, good and excellent. These categories were chosen as follows: 0, 2, 32 and 15 respectively. Two of the respondents did not offer a rating for the site. Additionally, respondents had the opportunity to suggest improvements. Some respondents suggested changes in design: modification of fonts and colours (some changes had already taken place). There were those who asked for more pictures, a photo album, more links and the construction of a chat room. With respect to the content, some wanted more ethnographic data, another more on political ecology, others asked for better visibility of the maps, while others called for additional links to related sites, and/or more information in general. One suggestion was to make the website less personalised, while another expressed interest in knowing more about the author's research project. Others asked for an enhanced bibliography. Some changes had already taken place by the time these comments were analysed but further changes are still being undertaken at the time of writing. With respect to the questionnaire, two people suggested larger windows to facilitate vision and to be able to comment largely, in contrast, another suggested encouraging more 'yes/no' responses. An important suggestion was: "Perhaps it is now appropriate to include some questions on communication 6 and information flows" (S52). Although not sought explicitly, information was gathered with respect to the use of ICT in the territorial ordering process of Amazonia. One of the respondents suggested that in future the website should be used by indigenous peoples of the Yaigojé. This has been the intention of the author, which has made a visit to Yaigojé (summer 2002) with intention to advance in that direction. Access to ICT for the indigenous peoples of the Yaigojé Resguardo is very limited but present. Future modification of the site will respond to indigenous peoples' feedback. During the visit few indigenous people gave their opinions on the website but several discussions on the roll of ICT in developmental processes took place9. Q1 - Are development and sustainability compatible? A clear response to Question 1 was that this depends on the definition of both terms: "It is impossible to answer this question as it is, as both terms are open to interpretation… " (S26). The question could have been and was read as: Is sustainable development attainable? Respondent S26 continued: "I think sustainable development is possible but hard to achieve in an environment of often conflicting interests and values (economic vs. environmental vs. cultural.)… " One respondent (S22) did not answer this particular question, and two others seemed to be confused (S38 and S41). Forty respondents (78% of R) answered that they were or could be compatible, although there are differences in the way they perceived this compatibility. Development first There were few respondents that failed to question the meaning of 'development' as concept or practice: the developmental project. These responses somehow postulated that certain environmental concerns should be acknowledged and dealt with in order for the development processes to continue: "Yes… . Development as the integration of western technologies or increase of income per capita, can be carefully done by implementing appropriate technologies into the productive activities of the communities. Sustainability defined as a continuous productivity level over the long term." (S2); "Yes. It is only a question of integration of environmental considerations in all we do and adjustment of behaviours accordingly." (S12); "Yes, because there can never be sustainability without development. People have, first to develop for them to have a sense of sustainability." (S13); "Yes, I do. The point is how you can reach a determinate "state" of development without undermining financial, ecological and human capacities in a determinate site (or taking into account their characteristics)." (S40) SD: human - environmental security There were others that perceived the compatibility or the possibility of sustainable development as the chance to diminish human/environmental security risks: "Yes of course in the long run - otherwise life is not possible." (S18); 9 The author is currently preparing a report that will summarise some of these discussions. 7 "Yes. Both are necessary for the survival of the area." (S21); "Si. Solo las acciones en el hoy nos pueden garantizar acciones en el mañana. (Yes. Only by taking action now we can guarantee we could act tomorrow)." (S23); "Yes, development should always be sustainable otherwise there are costs that are not taken into account. i.e. cost of pollution" (S39); "We don't have any choice. We have to make development and sustainability compatible as it's the only way we can survive and at the same time preserve the earth for future generations." (S42) Pessimism, in the sense that without SD life will no longer be possible, was to be repeated in the responses to all of the survey questions. Sustainability is an aim The majority of the respondents that believed development and sustainability to be compatible or capable of becoming compatible, were also of the opinion that the goal of sustainable development had not yet been achieved. Some of them discussed requisite conditions for achieving sustainability. They either underlined the importance of accepting sustainability as a guiding principle for development policy and interventions or/(and) exemplified ways in which sustainable practices might be instituted: "They have to be. I think they are because they have to be. I am optimistic that eventually it will be seen as natural to have sustainable development, but the problem is when this attitude kicks in." (S3) "Depends on how you define the two terms. If you mean that human quality of life can improve while maintaining the natural resource base, I think this is possible but very difficult to achieve." (S5) "Yes, but development in qualitative and not in quantitative terms." (S8) "Yes… there can be sustainable development in an ecological sense of the word - which means installing 'best ecological practice' in planning development." (S24) "No solo lo creo sino que estoy seguro que ambos pueden ser compatibles. Un desarrollo sin considerar ciertos indicadores de sustentabilidad/ sotenibilidad no es posible o viceversa. Uno y otro deberan de ir al parejo tratando de limar los conflictos que a menudo surgen cuando se pretende no un desarrollo pero un crecimiento economico sin considerar la parte social/cultural o ecologica. (Not only I believe that the two can be compatible, I am certain. Development without considering certain indicators of sustainability is impossible or vice versa. Both should go hand in hand, trying to solve the social, cultural and ecological problems that often arise when economic growth rather than sustainable development is the goal)." (S 25) "Sim, no alto rio Negro onde trabalho a ideia e essa: implementar um programa regional de desenvolvimento indedgena sustentado. (Yes, in the Upper Black River, where I work, the idea is precisely to implement a regional programme for sustainable indigenous development)" (S29) "Yes they are. The problem is with the material and energy growth and its compatibility with some environmental standards, like critical thresholds and so on." (S35) "Yes. The only way is by avoiding rapid over-development and having good planning."(S37) ".El concepto de desarrollo sostenible lo veo mucho mas como algo a lo que se quiere llegar, es una nocion implementada por parte de las politicas gubernamentales y ong's donde lo que se 8 procura con estos es el aprovechamiento al maximo de los recursos con un minimo impacto ambiental y social. (I see the concept of sustainable development as goal towards which we heading. It is an idea implemented through governmental and non-governmental policies which aim at maximum exploitation of resources with a minimum of environmental and social impacts)." (S48) "Yes, because they represent the best option to keep for human life." (S51) The need for local definitions Among the respondents that considered sustainability and development compatible if certain conditions were met, there is group of responses that emphasised the need for local definitions of 'sustainability' and 'development', or 'sustainable development': "They can be compatible providing that development is targeted at the right level i.e. small scale and in-keeping with the natural resources and environment." (S5) "Depende de las condiciones y del desarrollo para quién? Por lo tanto el desarrollo es sostenible si es buscado y logrado por la misma comunidad local (It depends on the conditions and on the question 'Development for whom'? Development can only be sustainable if it is sought and implemented by the local community itself)" (S20) "Yes but mainly if made through indigenous methodologies in their territories in Amazonia" (S27) "Yes. There is work done in northern Scandinavia where the "sammi" (lapps) have been given economical support and encouraged to create their own parliament. They have programs protecting their way of life, language and customs. The Norwegian broadcasting company NRK sends news in the language and coastal dialects. All this, at least for Norwegian sammi (lapps) has been key factors in late developments where communities have developed economically achieving great sustainability, contributing, not only to their well being, but to the sustainability of the inhospitable sub-artic regions." (S31) "Yes - but only if there is an 'appropriate' deployment of tools, techniques and processes of development in line with local community needs." (S52) Semantics and the economic imperative Interestingly, one respondent was very pessimistic about the possibilities for sustainable development even when it was sought and pursued at the local level. This respondent brought into the equation the idea that people are driven by monetary benefits to deplete their environment, even though they know that such practices are unsustainable: "To a certain degree, yes. I think that monetary considerations will always outweigh humanitarian concerns and it is very hard to convince people who are seeking a living from sometimes-meagre resources that it is in their own good to give consideration to long-term sustainable use of their resources. It is usually easier and cheaper to move on to the next area when one area has been depleted." (S17) This last argument derives from a rationality that considers poor people to be collaborators in their own misery. In this particular response there was no questioning of the developmental project or the social structures within which people are stimulated to act regardless of the future; but it did address 'monetary considerations' as the driving force. 9 Those responses that argued that the concepts are incompatible claimed an intrinsic contradiction in "sustainable development": "Development of any kind cannot sustain anything." (S4). Instead of blaming the people (needy or not), the proponents of incompatibility pointed their fingers at 'the system'; contemporary capitalist structures, the current developmental project and the prevailing economic model are seen as unavoidably contrary to sustainable practices: "No because development is premised upon economic gain, and capitalism is inherently unsustainable" (S10); "The problem with sustainability is that the economic model is not compatible with social, economic and ecological aspects at the same time and proportion. The neo-liberal model promotes the economic aspect leaving as secondary the social and ecological." (S19); "No, because development does not imply a recognition of limits or the necessity to preserve the natural and human resources used to achieve it. It is an economic concept, which has bases in the apparently unlimited uses of resources… " (S47); "… Si lo entemos [desarrollo] como crecimiento economico, por supuesto que no son compatibles. Ya que el crecimiento economico, tal y como lo plantean los economistas, excluye de raiz criterios sociales, culturales y ambientales requeridos para la sustentabilidad." (If we understand development as economic growth, of course they [sustainability and development] are not compatible. This is because economic growth, as economist have brought it up, excludes from its bases the environmental, cultural and social requirements of sustainability)" (S34) S.D. inconsistent with the present There are less radical rejections of the compatibility, which do not portray sustainable development as a contradiction itself but rather as inconsistent with current economic and ecological trends. The point such respondents make is that the necessary conditions for sustainable development are currently, rather than inherently unattainable: "… The current model of industrial development, where 'development' means material economic growth, is unlikely to be sustainable on a long term basis for the majority of the world population." (S1) "Present development of our world is clearly not sustainable" (S33) "Yes, they are compatible. But in a different social and economic order, not in the one the world is living now… " (S36) "Yes, if we change the way development is understood, for instance, development is associated to living styles resembling to those Europe and USA have, which are a lot related to consumption. But we could live in a healthier and more compatible way with our environment if we change our pattern of consumption and the generalised idea of development nowadays, it would be turning it into "only use what I need and get from nature, exclusively this, not until I just can't get anymore from it", 'cause I over pressed the place, to obtain more benefits. So, at last, this could be possible but in the long term, I hope not when there's nothing left to do." (S45) 10 Greening politics Some responses expressed doubts about the compatibility of sustainability and development. These doubts arise from the apparent use of "sustainability" as a green rhetoric, the aim of which is the continuation of projects that degrade the environment or human rights: ". usually development translates into cutting down natural habitats without regard to "sustaining" cultures" (S32); "In theory 'yes' but much depends on the definition of the terms and societies' acceptance of equal human rights and obligations to others." (S7) "Los conceptos de desarrollo y de sostenibilidad resultan ser bastantes amplios y ambiguos. En la mayoria de los casos cuando se plantean proyectos de desarrollo se trata de relacionarlos directamente con proyectos que resulten ser favorables para el medio ambiente. Como si un concepto llevara implicito otro, sin embargo creo que lo que se esta haciendo desde hace algunos años es precisamente disfrazar los proyectos de desarrollo para que sean aprobados bajo el nombre de mantenimiento del medio ambiente." (The concepts of sustainability and development are very ambiguous. In the majority of cases, there is an attempt to portray development projects as environmentally friendly[, a]s if one concept implied the other. However, I believe that what has been happening for the last few years is a camouflaging of development projects, in order to get them approved under the heading of environmental management) (S48). Reflections on responses to Q110: If "all development is not 'absolute' but will have a beginning and an end" (S24) then, "[d]evelopment of any kind cannot sustain anything." (S4). The impossibility of re-establishing high quality energy after it has been transform into low quality energy (or entropy) is a characteristic feature of closed systems, this would leave us with a world in decline where there is no possibility of sustaining anything. It could be argued that this is the case, as we cannot even guarantee perpetual solar energy flow. But this is perhaps taking the concept of sustainability too far, leaving us with no possibility for discussion. The central political discussion arising from the different responses revolves around the contradiction between those arguments of compatibility that leave the development project unquestioned and those that reject any possibility of compatibility because of a profound questioning of development. Between the two, the picture is blurred, undefined, open and elusive. There does not appear to be any significant correspondence between the two opposite groups of respondents in relation to whether they have been in Amazonia or not. Three out of five of the respondents claiming that there is absolutely no compatibility between development and sustainability have been in Amazonia; but so have two out of four of the respondents that left the development project unquestioned. However, it may be of some significance that none of those that accepted 'sustainable development' are related to social sciences. Those respondents with academic backgrounds in the social sciences all fit into groups 10 A schematic summary can be found in Table 1, Appendix 3. 11 that see sustainable development as a principle, something to be defined locally or as a reformist greening of politics. None of them were found in the group arguing for absolute incompatibility. The middle ground, where the picture is most blurred, came from the majority of respondents by whom it was argued that sustainable development may be possible but that they were unsure about how it might be achieved. Although these responses varied from those expressing suspiciousness (those pointing out the rhetoric of sustainability) to hope: "They have to be. I think they are because they have to be". This acceptance of a possibility of sustainable development, despite the semantic contradiction and current political rhetorical manipulation of the term, reflects a process of thinking and acting that is deeply rooted in Utopian beliefs. This 'sustainability' will happen in the future, in another time, when local communities take control of their lives and their resources, when environmental protection is taken seriously, when today's actions reflect our responsibility toward the future, etc. According to one of the respondents even continuous increases in productivity will be possible, when the proper technology has been developed. Q2 - Is there a relationship between indigenous reserves (IR) and protected areas (PA)? In Colombia IR are called "Resguardos Indígenas" or "Resguardos de Tierras". The term resguardo, literally means protection. Its meaning is not too different from that given to natural conservation areas of different grades: áreas protegidas, protected areas (PA). Both, IR and PA, emphasise the need for an area to be specially protected. Some of the respondents of this question pointed out an implicit relationship between IR and PA perhaps departing of this meaning: "… In a general sense, indigenous reserves are protected areas; they are protected from outside influence for the benefit of the indigenous people… " (S1); "Yes there are relationships. Both have natural systems and environmental quality that requires some level of conservation and protection" (S9); "Yes , for obvious reason. Because the protected reserves are a birth child of indigenous reserves and because we do not want to lose the nature environment the relationship should be maintained." (S13); "Yes, indigenous reserves are protected areas" (S28) As in the case of Q1 (Do you think that development and sustainability are compatible?) some respondents pointed out that it would depend on what we understand by the two terms: "Depends on the sort of protected area or what we mean with protected area… " (S25). "There could be" (S38); "It could be, but I am not sure" (S46); "… this has to be context specific" (S1). Five respondents simply said "yes" (S37, S18, S22, S43, S50) and one simply said "no" (S15). However many of the respondents did go on to qualify the relationship in some way. 12 Harmony or the need for it Some of the affirmative responses portrayed indigenous peoples as the guardians of the environment while others offered concrete examples of this viewpoint: "Si. Las culturas indigenas han demostrado que sus culturas han vivido armonicamente con su entorno durante miles de años" (Yes. Indigenous peoples have demonstrated that their cultures have lived in harmony with their environment during millennia). (S23); "Empirical evidence through statistical analysis has shown (particularly in Colombia in the north west region of the Sierra Nevada) that there is a direct relation between conservation and indigenous reserves. So, the answer is "yes, I do think so". (S40) There were those that referred to the need for a harmonic relationship because: 1) the environment should be protected for the benefit of indigenous peoples: "… indigenous reserves are related with spaces or areas that the government leaves for indigenous people and protected areas are where the local authorities or government provide the ($) resources in order to protect them" (S19); "Existe una relación, historica y cultural, respecto a su territorio, esto debe ser respetado y protegido para las mismas comunidades indigenas" (There is an historic and cultural relationship with respect to their territories. This should be respected and protected by indigenous communities for their own sake (S20). 2) the protection is fundamental for biodiversity conservation: "… Podria ser que se proteja un area porque existe cierta flora o fauna que esta en peligro de extincion. Por ejemplo, muchos animales que viven en la selva solo se aparean una vez al año en cierta temporada y si estos son interrumpidos por presencia humana su decendencia podria verse aun mas en peligro de extincion… " (It may be that an area is protected because there are endangered flora or fauna. For example, there are many rainforest animals that mate once a year or seasonally; if they are interrupted by human activities their progeny could be further endangered) (S25); "… development there should be restricted for the sake of conservation" (S33) 3) sustainable practices could be developed based on indigenous peoples' experiences: "Yes. By protecting areas where almost all indigenous people are more and more confined, there will be a way to preserve indigenous experiences in order for these experiences to contribute to a sustainable development." (S11). Utopia There were also those sorts of answers that reflected a feeling of hope or a sense of Utopia, in which a harmonic, positive relationship was acknowledged as desirable but not yet achieved: "I imagine IR to equate with PA in some way. Perhaps naively. IR is implicitly protected from external development forces, but not necessarily internal." (S3); "There can be. If people are continuing a way of life that has been sustainable in the past and are able to develop sustainably (… ) there is no reason why both should not coexist." (S6); "Most indigenous reserves must be also protected areas. How to effectively do it? I don't know." (S36); "In countries with mindless and irresponsible politicians and business people, it should be mandatory that 'indigenous reserves' must be synonymous with 'protected areas'. (S42) 13 Contamination and cultural imposition Some respondents signalled the risk of contamination, this is of indigenous peoples being influenced by a mestizo culture and therefore driven to break the presumed harmonic relationship with the natural environment. This may be seen as a lost opportunity, that of the rest of humanity to learn from indigenous experiences or, that of given indigenous people to assert managerial control: "Yes, as indigenous populations tend to live in harmony with nature these areas tend to require protection from the outside world. (S12); "… I also think it is difficult to put it into practice since indigenous people want to be part of the economic system and therefore there is a risk of depletion. Anyway who is better to protect certain areas than the people who have lived there for hundred of years!!!" (S39); "Yes, in fact, so far as I know, many of our indigenous people live in these protected areas, where most of them have been able to live in a sustainable way, I say most of them, because others are affected by the mestizo men that live nearby or want to get something from that place due to its economic importance, affecting these natural areas." (S45) It was pointed out that both types of jurisdiction, IR and PA, derived from a cultural-historical process, in which self-determination was not accounted for: "Yes, a very imperialistic one - especially in the Americas (including Canada). It is an old regressive link between the two, in the 60s and 70s this paternalistic viewpoint saw indigenous culture as static --which is wrong!" (S24); "Yes, they both seem to be defined by the ruling 'white' government." (S26) A respondent that had visited Amazonia (VA) added that there is resistance to this imposition, at least as far as indigenous peoples of Colombia are concerned: "yes-especially when indigenous management systems are practised in spite of the models of dominant society in Colombia" (S27). Similarly, another VA respondent suggested that in Colombia there are no friendly relationships between IR and PA: "It depends from country to country, but in Colombia no" (S10)! Analytical responses The analysis provided by some of the respondents tended to localise the relationship: to put it into the historical process. The analysis underlined the main problem for a "non-confrontational" relationship between IR and PA regimes. As they are designations that came about without public participation and from a rationality that is especially alien to indigenous peoples, when IRs and PAs overlap, competition for management arises. These type of answers either acknowledged that the relationship happens through overlap, or mentioned the difficulties of hitting indigenous rights and conservation target simultaneously: "Freedom of choice for all people, in terms of lifestyle, cultural heritage can translate into giving management control to indigenous people in protected areas. However the balance between sustainable economic development for indigenous people and at the same time protecting the environment is a difficult topic to discuss at a macro level. Individual environmental and socio-cultural circumstances need to be fully accounted for and explicitly articulated." (S7) "Yo creo que existe una relacion estrecha entre reservas indigenas y areas protegidas alrededor del mundo. Ya que estas dos figuras juridicas en muchos casos (p.e. Colombia) se encuentran translapadas." (I believe there is a close relationship between indigenous reserves and protected areas around the world. It derives from the fact that in many cases these two jurisdictions overlap) (S34). 14 "There is a relationship when they overlap, which I think happens often." (S44) "Los resguardos y las reservas indigenas han tenido la tendencia a considerarse y definirse como areas protegidas, sin embargo me parece importante tener en cuenta que al establecer los limites territoriales entre los resguardos quedan zonas intermedias que no pertenecen necesariamente a algun resguardo, y esto hace de un modo u otro que tambien se presenten roces con diferentes actores. Por la misma razon que al no estar circunscrito en un resguardo aparentemente se consideraría como un area no protegida… " (It has been the tendency to consider the resguardos and indigenous reserves as protected areas. However, I think it is worth considering that when the resguardo boundaries are established, there are zones in-between not ascribed to any resguardo. And this makes it somehow possible for different [political] actors to get confrontational. This happens as a consequence of the non-ascription of the in-between zone, which is not considered as protected area… ) (S48) However it came about and assuming that both jurisdictions are somehow competing, some respondents argued that IR should be more effective, as it gives responsibility to the people for their own lives: "Yes, although I think indigenous reserves serve to protect the environment/area better. This is because they are protected by local people who value the resources and use them in a traditional and more sustainable way. Protected areas can be designated/run by Governments and this can remove the responsibility from the indigenous peoples." (S5); "Yes. I think that indigenous reserves do offer more protection than protected areas because it gives local people more incentive to use sustainable practices. They can see it being in their own interests" (S17) In contrast, one respondent argued: "Maybe there is, but I don't believe in reserves" (S35). And a second respondent (VA) added that poverty have driven indigenous peoples to behave unsustainably: "I think it is possible. However, some indigenous areas are completely degraded because they are selling their natural resources to survive." (S53). This response (S53) is related to one of those made to Q1: "To a certain degree, yes. I think that monetary considerations will always outweigh humanitarian concerns and it is very hard to convince people who are seeking a living from sometimes meagre resources that it is in their own good to give consideration to long-term sustainable use of their resources. It is usually easier and cheaper to move on to the next area when one area has been depleted." (S17) Both answers (Q1-S17, Q2-S53) echo a neo-Malthusian argument. It implies that a 'tragedy of the commons' is happening in Amazonia and elsewhere as result of overpopulation. The politics involved "No. Indigenous reserves and protected areas (for nature conservation) are two different political land use strategies. If the government is assigning an Indian reserve then they should respect the use the indigenous people are making of the terrain according to traditional use or to improved technologies. Areas for Nature conservation must be treated separately and with a different priority. We cannot make the indians responsible for the disappearing of the diversity. The government has to be responsible by applying appropriate conservation and management regimes" (S2) This response makes an argument for the need to differentiate between IR and PA as diverse political strategies that pursue different aims. The first would aim to 15 comply with Indigenous Peoples Rights, particularly that of self-determination. The second political strategy would aim at biodiversity conservation. The respondent acknowledges indigenous social change as indigenous management depends on both, tradition and technological improvement. Interestingly, the analysis provided does not try to conceal the confrontational nature of the relationship; nor does it neither place much hope in conciliation. On the contrary, it advocates for a distinction. If there is some hope or sense of utopia in the response it comes from solutions provided by technological improvement. Which is something this particular respondent had already stressed in Q1: "… . Development as the integration of western technologies or increase of income per capita, can be carefully done by implementing appropriate technologies into the productive activities of the communities. Sustainability defined as a continuous productivity level in the long term." (S2) Non-conclusive comment-Q211 Nowadays, the establishment or enlargement of IRs (Resguardos in Colombia) and PAs requires the interested proponents to follow long protocols, the fulfilment of precise administrative procedures and of legal conditions. One aim of the process is to allow different stakeholders to participate and to assure the fulfilment of fundamental rights to all citizens in equal conditions. In Colombia, like in many other parts of the developing world, when the "juridical figures" were established these procedures were not necessary, therefore, many IRs and PAs were established without participation of all interested parties. It is not surprising that some of the respondents refer to the confrontation or competition of regimes that began with their imposition. It could be of some significance that none of the respondents that claimed the need to harmonise IR and PA have been in Amazonia. In contrast, the two respondents that pointed out that these two regimes are conflicting in Colombia have been there. The analytical response that called for clear differentiation between the two also came from the group of people that had visited Amazonia (VA). From the set of answers given to Q2 it is clear that different and contrasting narratives ascribed to with respect to environmental management. For some of the respondents indigenous peoples are guardians of the environment, victims of colonialism or in risk of a cultural contamination that will force them to adopt maladaptive strategies that would threaten conservation strategies. For others, indigenous reserves are untrustworthy designations: the environment should be preserved against development and human intervention, be it indigenous or otherwise. Therefore indigenous peoples should not be in charge of environmental management. Yet, another political perspective is derived from hopes of compatibility between the two regimes, which although pursuing different aims are seen as relevant for environmental and human security at the same time. Thus, the third perspective could be characterised as dialectic or iterative. From this (last) perspective indigenous experience could help the development of conservation strategies; and, 11 Schematic summary: Table 2, Appendix 3. 16 at the same time, the revision of environmental and conservation management strategies could be vital for the survival of indigenous peoples. Hope or Utopian visions also have a place here: the development of technology is seen as a key component for adequate environmental management. Technological improvement would allow both compliance with indigenous peoples' rights and biodiversity conservation. We are sketching a continuum from our comment on Q1, suggesting that the narrative of conciliation 'reflects a process of thinking and acting that is deeply rooted in utopia'. Q3 - Do you think that the concepts of protected areas (PA), indigenous reserves (IR) and sustainable development (SD) are useful for environmental management today? Two respondents say that the concepts should be context specific: "Yes, but which of them is useful depends on context… " (S1). "As I said before, all these terms have to be defined properly in the first place before they can be applied." (S2). There were two respondents that simply said 'yes' (S14, S22), while one answered: "yes, if it works" (S4). S4's response suggests that concepts are instruments, and not surprisingly many answers referred to the "applicability" of these three concepts. Environmental indians and contamination risk Some respondents reiterated the idea, already expressed in Q1 and Q2, that indigenous peoples are practitioners of SD or conservation managers: "… Indigenous reserves are important because they allow the preservation of a way of living in sympathy with the environment long gone in most areas… " (S12); "Claro que si. Las culturas indigenas son un ejemplo de convivencia y explotacion sostenible del entorno en que viven" (Yes of course. Indigenous cultures are an example of coexistence with the environment they live in and of sustainable exploitation.) (S23); "Yes because indigenous people are the 'shepherds' of the landscape and they have a first-hand understanding and experience (handed down from previous generations) of ecosystem processes. Sometimes indigenous customs and habits reflect an understanding of nature's processes that can be exemplary in the planning of management plans… "(S41) One response re-enforced an idea presented in Q2, that indigenous sustainable practices are in risk as the younger generations begin to adopt western lifestyles: "… , but this knowledge is also in danger [endangered],… , shamanism is related in many cases to the management of the natural resources, but I have listened to the indigenous people from the community that I'm working in, that they're not interested in receiving this knowledge from their parents, and day by they they're a lot like us in their agricultural practices." (S45) Principles as instruments Various responses made reference to certain conditions that would have to be fulfilled in order for the concepts to be useful. This perspective, where the concepts are understood as political instruments, could be useful if a 'real' or 'truth-value' definition of them were accomplished. This truth-value would come from using the political instrumentality of a concept only if it were to reflect a set of principles such as intergenerational equity, empowerment, and participation. 17 And, in the case of participation, special emphasis were given to the incorporation of indigenous people, their knowledge and ways of dealing with the environment: "The concept of protected areas will only be successful if indigenous peoples are involved, therefore this would seem to indicate that indigenous reserves would be the best way forward of the two" (S5) "… indigenous reserves need to be redefined according to the wishes of the people who will be living in them,… (S6); "… If sustainable development means development with the means which exist and with the participation of the people concerned… " (S11); Yes. Exercising indigenous knowledge should not be limited to reserves but integrated into the management plans along with scientific knowledge more widely. (S26); "Yes… Any protected area, etc. must actively incorporate the participation of indigenous people" (S41) The idea of intergenerational equity is attached to that of resource reserve for the developmental process: "Yes… The sustainable development concept relating to the obligation of the present generation to leave enough natural assets and capital for future generations to enjoy at least the same quality of life we enjoy today must be at the heart of environmental management activities." (S12) "Yes, because the natural environment that we believe is endangered should be protected as a reference in future years to come and because of this a sense of environmental management is very important as the same environment becomes a resource for development" (S13) "Yes. We need to protect the area and its people and provide for sustainable development. (S21) "… pero estoy cierto que las areas protegidas independentemente del interes en prervarlas desempeñan un papel importante en el manejo de ambientes naturales para la captura de CO2, conservación de recursos biogenéticos/biodiversidad/ y como elementos de estudio para futuras generaciones… " (… but I am certain that, independently of the interest in preserving them, protected areas play a roll in the management of natural environment for CO2 sequestration, conservation of biodiversity/genetic resources and as study subjects for future generations (S25) "yes, otherwise development will go against our own endurance. I think we have to consider the possibility that we are not the most powerful force in this world." (S38) Risk and Protection Following this idea is that of concepts (as political instruments) being useful if they could provide and enforce protection (S13, S21 above). In this case either the environment is seen at risk (endangered species or ecosystems) or both indigenous peoples and their environments: "Yes. Protected areas are important as pools of natural resources not affected by human activity. Indigenous reserves are important because they allow the preservation of a way of living in sympathy [tune] with the environment long gone in most areas." (S12); "I think they are vital. Until everyone has a responsible attitude to environmental control certain protections have to be enforced." (S17) Some of the responses expressing a need for environmental protection have a sense of impending catastrophe: "Yes, but they are loaded concepts so we have to be careful in using them… sustainable development is the only way we will survive, but is usually glibly applied." (S6); "in a limited sense perhaps.but what we need to accomplish is protection of all that there is left, without cutting and taking land around the so called protected area. stop the modernisation process wherever it has not already reached into" (S32); "Yes, because they are the only source to preserve life on earth." (S51) 18 Protection but of cultural diversity: "… They may contribute to 'capturing' and saving fragile cultures and 'unknown' languages." (S31) Although acknowledging the need for protection, some respondents made it explicit that IRs were not effective, as the policies derived from such concepts (regimes) would increase risk instead of attenuating it: "… in terms of indigenous groups if they become circumscribed to a specific protected area then this will prevent persistence of nomadic lifestyles etc. and as a result the protected area may become 'unsustainable' as people are becoming circumscribed to a specific reserve. I guess this also answers the question on indigenous reserves, however, the indigenous reserves of N. America should be used as an example of the problems of tying people to such reserves,… " (S10) "… 'indigenous reserves' are not so useful - most of indigenous social problems have been caused by the colonisers, and are being reproduced through generations. Keeping indigenous people enclosed in such areas, and introducing paternalistic rules and laws is not healthy for any society. It instils racism in a society, and will not ensure that indigenous practices of environmental management will be maintained - that depends on the indigenous group and how they choose to manage their environment… " (S24) The need for integration and its impediments Some emphasis was put on the idea that there is or should be a link between the concepts (political instruments): "Yes all concepts are useful as they each permit different aspects of the economic/ecology debate to enter into the wider public arena. Ultimately for there to be sustainable solutions to environmental problems there needs to be a holistic approach adopted… " (S7) "… environmental development will not be meaningful without taking into account the interrelation between 'indigenous reserves' and 'sustainable development'" (S11) "Yes, because all areas are linked with each other very closely" (S18). "Yes. Exercising indigenous knowledge should not be limited to reserves but integrated into the management plans along with scientific knowledge more widely." (S26) "… Lo que creo es que tanto las reservas indigenas, como las areas protegidas deberian orientarse hacia un desarrollo sostenible. Bien sea que estas dos figuras se translapen o no. Si entendemos el desarrollo sostenible como un proceso que involucra criterios sociales, culturales, economicos, y ambientales." (… What I do believe is that indigenous reserves as well as protected areas should direct their attention towards sustainable development, whether or not the entities [juridical regimes] overlap. If we understand sustainable development as a process that involves social, cultural, economic and environmental criteria.) (S34) However, quiet a few responses pointed out the problems that prevent this integration from taking place: 1) Incompatibility of interests between IR and PA: "… Protected areas are useful, but they raise the debate as to whether one should protect an area and exclude people from it so that a certain species/ archaeological site/community can survive or whether people should have access… " (S10); "It is quite difficult to harmonies those concepts, specifically among indigenous people. They are convinced that 'sustainable development' is an imperialist concept, and the first idea they have -as far as they hear the concept- is that they are going to be exploited by others… " (S40) 2) The prevalence of economic efficiency and profit at the expense of anything else: 19 "… El desarrollo sustentable que ha sido cada vez mas un objetivo importante en varios paises del mundo. Pero encontrar los balances correctos ha sido y es dificil, particulrmente cuando las sociedades y gobiernos estan sometidos a un proceso de globalizacion y de efeicientizacion economica. He ahi los conflictos permanentes de lograr un desarrollo verdaderamente sustentable que considere no solo los aspectos economicos, pero politicos, cultrales, sociales y ecologicos o ambientales. (Sustainable development has become an increasingly important objective in several countries around the world. But to find the correct balances has been and continues to be difficult; in particular as a result of societies and governments being subjected to economic efficiency within the globalisation process. There are permanent conflicts in the way of obtaining a real sustainable development that involve not only the economic aspects, but also the social, cultural, ecological and environmental criteria " (S25). "… too many people think of 'sustainable' as meaning economic sustainability and not environmental sustainability." (S30). "… While protected areas and indigenous reserves serve to maintain environmental quality, the concept of sustainable development is often disregarded for the sake of profits and globalisation." (S33) 3) Political manipulation: "I think there have been problems with these concepts for two reasons: First, they mean different thing for different people, second, they have been used and to serve particular interests. There are several and opposite definitions of 'sustainable development' and it's a difficult concept. 'Indigenous reserve', used as a general concept does not describe usefully the complex realities and 'protected areas' have been used to serve particular interests over time so I think it is seen suspiciously by a lot of people." (S44) "I think so, but these concepts are used a lot by politicians, and then the meaning can be manipulated". (S46) "… The big problem is not related to the concepts alone, it is related to the way in which these are applied according with particular interests and purposes. Many times the terms are used by different groups or organisations in order to pretend to be environmental friendly or responsible, when the real purposes reveal an opposite target or interest." (S47) "… Muy seguaramente estos términos se manejan como deben ser en el plano académico teórico, mas no ocurre lo mismo en el ambito práctico donde lo que prevalece son los interese de los diferentes actores que trabajan en este campo, lo que lleva inevitablemente a que se presenten situaciones de tension entre estos y se deje de lado el objetivo primordial en cuanto a la conservación y le manejo ambiental" (For sure, theoretically and within the academic circles these concepts are managed as they should be. Although, in the practical scenario privilege is given to the particular interests of those different [political] actors who work in this field. Thus, it is unavoidable that tensions will arise between these [political actors], which leave aside the fundamental aim of environmental management and conservation) (S48) 4) Semantics, the concepts mean too many things to too many different political actors (S44 above): "… 'Sustainable development' is not so useful for environmental management, as the concept is too contested - it means too many different things to different people." (S24); "As I said, the problem is that there are many definitions of those terms and it makes it difficult to determine if they are useful in one place compared to other places" (S50) Dynamism The perspective of 'dynamism' reflects a perception of mutating meanings as an advantage. Under this perspective 'contested' means 'in change', which is seen as part of a learning process, which is in tune with the idea of local definition of concepts (emphasised above): "Ultimately for there to be sustainable solutions to environmental problems there needs to be a holistic approach adopted, where people can better appreciate that their lifestyle has much in 20 common with others - even if they are in an OECD country and cannot appreciate the day to day lifestyle of someone in a less developed country. … . Therefore the concepts listed can provide an opportunity to raise the awareness of the majority of the world's people." "Yes, there is plenty that can be learned from these three concepts and also applied" (S37) "A lot, I believe there are a lot of things we can learn from them, specially in this field of study,." (S45) "If these concepts are [understood or interpreted] under a dynamic and changing world (attached to contexts), which mean that there is not a unique definition or way to apply them, I think they are still useful for environmental management." [original: understanding or interpreting… ] (S47) The need for new concepts-Q3 Contradicting narratives can be appreciated through the reading of these responses. There is a group of respondents that are uncritical of the concepts or the policies derived from them (like S37, S45 above and): "Yes, they are important to efficient environmental management" (S28); "Yes. An understanding of the mechanism of these terminologies is essential for effective environmental management … " (S9). Another group could be made out of those responses that reflect suspicion or are definitely critical of the concepts (S10, S24, S25, S30, S33, S40, S44, S46, S47, S48, S50 above). And, besides the group of respondents that express conditionality or hope (see above), there is a group of responses that, while critical of the concepts, acknowledge that at present they are all we have: "… which of them is useful depends on context… If an ethnic group is to be allowed to determine the course of events within its own territory, then the territory must be reserved for them until such time as they develop complete autonomy or decide to integrate more closely with wider society. Sustainable development may seem a rather broad, unspecific term, but it does at least draw attention to the unsustainability of conventional development… " (S1) "… The concept of sustainable development is gradually getting better developed and, even if it is not strictly attainable, gives decision-makers something to work towards… (S5) "I don't agree with the concept of SD as it is a contradiction in terms, but at present there are few better alternatives… " (S10) One respondent actually moved forward in the critique, pointing out that the concepts were built on preconceptions and identifying the need to generate new concepts that would integrate the useless categorical divide of nature and society: "I think they are old fashioned, and generated by the Anglo-Saxon culture. We should move towards an increased compatibility between human activities and nature, making it therefore not necessary to talk about reserves, or natural areas." (S35) Non-conclusive comment-Q312: The majority if not the totality of respondents took 'concepts' as 'politics'. They discussed the history of these politics, their adequacy and sufficiency. It is very interesting that while the conduct through which political ideas become policies is supposed to be complex, it is obvious for the respondents that there is more than theoretical debate going on in the process of policy making. There is a prevailing, sometimes automatic or non-reflexive awareness that narratives pursue the aims that drive the policies and politics that are transforming the environment. 12 Schematic summary: table 3, Appendix 3. 21 In continuity with the results of Q2, only 1 out of five respondents of those who argued for the need to integrate the concepts had been in Amazon; while the two respondents that argued the case of 'incompatibility of interests' had been there. Of those which suggested that these concepts –political strategies- are useful for environmental protection or that this is the last chance –catastrophism- for life, none had visited Amazonia. It may be of some significance that none of the five respondents that suggested that IR might be a better strategy than PA have been in Amazonia, while one person of the two that argued that IRs are ineffective had been there. The responses correspond to several narratives that can be identified. One of them is that of 'confidence in science and trust in political instrumentality' derived from the (traditional definitions of) concepts outlined. Another narrative is that of 'natives as heroes and outsiders as villains', which is reflected in the suspiciousness of concepts based in untested assumptions and in mistrust of the governmental policies derived from them. In summary there is a status-quo narrative and a counter narrative. Yet a third type of narrative could be identified, that of 'critical understanding'. Q4 – Should environmental managers (EM) get involved in the territorial ordering process (TOP) of the Amazon? One of the respondents simply answered yes (S4). One was unsure (S52), perhaps suspicious? One considered the question was tricky (S32), and three of them put the question into question. Two of these responses asked for the term 'environmental manager' to be defined: "Difficult to answer. Define the roles, mandate and empowerment of the environmental manager… " (S31); "What do you mean by environmental managers?." (S6). The third one was more critical: "this sentence is colonialist as if indigenous peoples of Amazonia were not in fact environmental managers" (S27). With a similar intent, one respondent argued that indigenous people were better-qualified environmental mangers: "Las comunidades indigenas han sido las mejores administradoras del territorio ancestral, eso debe ser respetado y replicado en zonas donde la intervención humana 'civilizada' ha afectado las condiciones ambientales. (Indigenous communities have been the best managers of ancestral territories, this should be respected and should be replicated in areas where 'civilised' human intervention has affected environmental conditions) (S20)" The response of Indigenous peoples as better managers had been expressed in Q1, Q2 and Q3. Another three responses reinforced the ideas of catastrophism, the need for urgent environmental protection and to stop development (S32, S33, S42). Perspectives EMs are the ones: "Definitely" (S12); " … They have in many cases a better view for the long-run." (S18); 22 Yes. Who else is better suited to do so?" (S21); "Environmental Managers should get involved. They are best able to ensure protection of ecosystem" (S28); "Por supuesto que si. Ya que el ordenamiento territorial de un territorio (en este caso de la Amazonia) debe tener como objetivos el desarrollo sostenible." (Definitely. Territorial ordering (of the Amazon in this case) should have sustainable development as an objective) (S34); "Because they are the ones that can understand the balance that must exist between economic development, traditional culture and environment." (S36); " They should, how can they do whithout?" (S46) "Yes, because they can contribute to better territorial ordering in the region" (S53) EMs and scientists figure out the solutions and take the decisions: "Deben estar involucradas todas las personas del planeta, pero con mas razon los 'decision makers', que a fin de cuentas, toman las acciones concretas sobre nuestro futuro medioambiental. (All people from the planet should get involved, but the 'decision makers' have more reason to be there, after all they are the ones that take the concrete actions in respect to our environmental future) (S23); "Yes, but along with some other scientists, not only because of the importance of the Amazon from a global point of view, but specially for the importance for the people living there." (S35); "Yes, always considering multiple disciplines result in a better understanding and so better solutions." (S38) But taking into account the other opinions: "Yes, although indigenous peoples will also play a major part and without them any agreements between Governments and environmental managers will not work… " (S5); "Not always, because it is necessary to take into consideration lay people's opinions too." (53) Indigenous peoples direct EMs: "If they are asked to do so by indigenous peoples, I see no problem with this." (S1); "Territorial ordering should be primarily decided upon by the indigenous groups that inhabit them, … ultimately decisions need to come from the bottom upwards" (S10); "… The indigenous people should be in charge of the program at the ultimate level" (S14). " They should but they should make sure they respect the opinion of indigenous people and they should be very discreet in their approach and aim for cooperation." (S41) EMs have equal rights to participate as other stakeholders: " Of course. All actors should be involved in the process… It doesn't mean that they have to take decisions but they can evaluate the circumstances under different and also important perspectives." (S2); "What do you mean by environmental managers? But yes, I think they also have a stake in the fate of the Amazon, and have a right to make their voices heard. (S6); " Involvement - yes but only in collaboration and co-operation with the Amazonian people and those in the higher levels of bureaucracy and policy making … Environmental managers can make significant contributions in this area, given their depth of understanding of the issues (relative to the general public)" (S7); "Deveriam estar envolvidos no processo de re-ordenamento territorial, junto com edndios, ribeirinhos etc" (they should be involved in the territorial ordering process together with indigenous peoples, riverine inhabitants, etc." (S29); " I think they should be involved as advisors and technical support but I support the idea of a non-technical management, where decisions are taken by the different stakeholders based on the technical advice and the social, cultural and economic factors." (S44) 23 But this intervention should be avoided within indigenous territories: "Not in indigenous reserves or territories which historically have been managed by indigenous communities. In other areas, should be taking part in dialogue of knowledge between cultures, people, communities, scientists and decision makers from private and government sectors, to order process on the amazon area." [Original text:… historically has been management by… ](S47) The apolitical EM: "Yes, but not for political reasons. It should be for the cause of sustainable use of our natural environment which is our heritage." (S9); " … Generally though I think that environmentalists like missionaries before them should not get involved in political processes as this can have a very negative reaction within the local community." (S17) "Yes, their knowledge will hopefully be of use in the ordering process" (S37) The political participation of EMs: "Yes, to counteract the interference of other external actors but hopefully to work with the indigenous people respecting their values and practices, not independently." (S26) EMs as facilitators of the dialog between IK and WS: "… without them [indigenous peoples] any agreements between Governments and environmental managers will not work. Environmental Managers should facilitate discussion… " (S5); "Territorial ordering should be primarily decided upon by the indigenous groups that inhabit them, environmental managers roles here should be as referees to help in the co-ordination of the process, but ultimately decisions need to come from the bottom upwards." (S10); "It's necessary for people involved in this field of study, that had already gained a conscience, and that are able to understand that we have to work with indigenous, not from our usual management vision, but theirs, trying to see the world like they do. In this way could be easier, perhaps to understand and give convincing and why not scientific arguments to the authorities (or people in charge of handling these affairs) about the different way they have already distributed their territory, which [in] most of the case (if not all) doesn't have our political distribution. (I.E, those groups that live between Colombia and Brazil boundaries) they don't have the same division of territories, because of this, they must be managed in a way more in concordance to their political organisation." (S45) Capacity, ability and quality of EMs: "Depends who the environmental managers are - if they are from the area and have a passion for the area, then why not. If they are drafted in from outside, and seen as the 'outside experts' then probably not - it usually causes friction within the area."(S24) "Define the roles, mandate and empowerment of the environmental manager. They may fall into different categories, of which I may name at least 4: 1. The conflictive manager. Created by a lobbying body. A good example is the body (forget the name) that is in charge of the Everglades in Florida. Their work is tainted by conflict of interest: the provision of water to cities and sugar cane farmers, at the same time maintaining the 'wet lands' as an ecosystem and controlling flooding! 2. The romantic. Exemplified by rich Europeans or North-Americans. Wanting to keep habitats, they may buy some land and resort to eco-tourism in order to keep their sustainability. I believe there are some German managed 'eco' destinations in Ecuador. Driven by an alternative way of life, they may not 'manage' the environment as they should. 3. The bureaucrat. A member of a government agency or NGO that may not be aware of local needs, responding always to policies made from a distance. Current legislation may be a hinder. "Los paisas", developed and colonised what is today Risaralda, Quindio, Caldas and 24 parts of Choco in Colombia, by using legislation that enabled them to cut and clear big forest areas to be claimed afterwards, creating the concept of the "colono". A colonisation process I witnessed in Caquetá some years ago. 4. The "grass roots" manager. Perhaps, the type who knows best the ecosystem and the power relationships that develop around it by the people involved with it. Usually their voice is not heard, mainly because of the threat they represent to some landowners or 'colonos'. If the law regarding claiming land that has been cleared is still existing, managing the environment is going to be a great task. One shall not forget that the 'colono' phenomenon represents one of the many socio-economical problems a nation like Colombia faces. … Management work usually develops around a policy. Trust among all participants is primordial. There ought to be some kind of legal-economical framework that will ease management work. If this is in place and all conflicts of interest reduced, then the territorial ordering process of Amazonia may become real." (S 31) Political risks, EMs tough job: "Yes, however the pressures on the person might be extreme. It would be preferable to have both on-site environmental managers and use some respected external managers as reference." (S15); "Yes, but bearing in mind that you should work with politicians and many kinds of 'parasitic' people which are thinking every day in the short term. It means that environmental managers are not enough for sustainable management and use of natural resource: their analytical models as well as their technical capacity is necessary, but they cannot work isolated, they require to work with others, despite the fact that 'the others' could (and should) think in a different way." (S40) Summarising-Q413 Like in the responses to Q1, Q2 and Q3, we can identify different and often contradictory perspectives. There were those that argued that environmental managers14 are the best qualified for the task and appeared somewhat perplexed by the question. Within that group there were those responses that assumed that decisions were taken by environmental managers or should be taken by them, although two expressed that others' opinion should be considered to a lesser extent. In the other direction were the responses that questioned intervention by EMs and considered it useful only when the decision-making process was led by indigenous peoples themselves. Yet, a third group was of the opinion that EMs should get involve in the same conditions that other stakeholders, such as indigenous peoples but, one respondent suggested they should not intervene in the management of indigenous peoples' territories at all. 13 See also Table 4, Appendix 3. 14 Called EMs in the survey to differentiate them from other experts and indigenous peoples. As it has been explained elsewhere (See "The march of the Manikins: Agroforestry practices and Spiritual dancing in Northwest Amazonia) indigenous peoples management of the environment departs from a different rationality and uses different instruments. What indigenous people from Northwest Amazonia call "management of the world" is not only a set of shamanistic practices but a way of living that combines social aims, aesthetic values, religious believes, and economic practices in a distinctive manner. Although acknowledging indigenous peoples from Northwest Amazonia are in fact environmental managers, the author has stressed that their "management of the world" incorporates many things, some of them of tremendous importance for environmental management more generally. 25 The other contrasting perspectives concerned the character of the intervention. While one group of responses were of the opinion that EMs should not get involved in politics, but have a technical approach, others thought that they should get involved to contrast and balance the political interests of other groups. A third group emerged, which advocated the intervention of environmental managers as conciliators and facilitators. Related to this roll of managers as advisers there was a group of responses showing concern with the capacity, ability and quality of environmental managers and, the possible risks that they have to face. Non-conclusive comment-Q4: As in responses to questions one, two and three, we can trace arguments and contra-arguments. One set of respondents portrays EMs as heroes. In this scenario they face a tough job, they are well trained, better able and indispensable for the process of territorial ordering; their politically risky job in which they have to make the decisions would be fundamental for diminishing environmental risk and even saving life on earth. (As in Q2 and Q3 none of those arguing conservation/catastrophism had been in Amazonia). A counter narrative is that provided by respondents arguing that EMs' participation should be directed by indigenous peoples (IP) or that the projects should be led mainly by natives, and that EMs should not intervene in the management of indigenous territories: in this case the heroes are indigenous peoples. A second counter narrative seems to be reflected by some of the respondents. In this scenario, EMs like IP should have equal rights to participate as different stakeholders, in this case decisions would come from a rational process in which dialog between cultures would take place. The participation of EMs would not be limited by their status/power but by their capacity, ability and their roll as facilitators or conciliators. Discussion European colonisation of Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Australasia from the late fifteenth century onwards, gave a tremendous boost to the volume of global transactions involving natural resources. Over the long run, trade in these resources, and in an increasingly diverse array of environmental services, has been expanding ever since. However, much of what is called globalisation in the twenty first century has more to do with developments in information technology since the late 1900s. The increasing speed of communications media and information transfer have proved fundamental in economic restructuring and the transformation of the world into a largely urban space (Castells 1996). In the globalised, twenty first century, local political decisions have little chance of being autarchic; international policy advisors inform local stakeholders about what is considered adequate or legal in accordance with international treaties, foreign protocols and political compromises. The local politics of environmental management is the concern of everybody: corporations, governments, international, regional and national NGOs, all of which compete for access to information and expansion of their scope of power in the political arena (Ambrose-Oji, Allmark et al. 2002). During the 1990s, and especially after the Río Earth Summit in 1992, one of the main topics of discussion was management of the global environment (Sachs 26 1993). Global targets for sustainable development were established at Río and similar processes were set in train at regional, national and local scales all over the world, following the guidelines set out in one of the policy documents agreed at Río: "Agenda 21". The official discourse that emerged from the Río process was replicated and many of the assumptions that informed the original discourse have been accorded a quasi-factual status by many people all over the globe (Sevilla_Guzmán and Woodgate 1997). The official discourse on globalisation emphasised the need for environmental management at supranational levels. At the same time, counter-discourse or anti-globalisation narratives have emerged. These emphasise the rights of indigenous people and local political actors to manage natural resources independently, in ways that allow them to make their own livelihood decisions and establish resource-use regimes that can provide the environmental goods and services that people need15. The management of the environment has always motivated debate and often led to confrontation. One of the main arguments of conservative conservationists concerns the 'vulnerability' of rainforest environments, and thus the need for their protection. Since the 1980s the problem of deforestation of tropical rainforests has been a global issue with special emphasis in South East Asia, the Congo basin and Amazonia (Adger, Benjaminsen et al. 2001). In a 1998 analysis of 'rainforest' web-sites, Stott revealed four metawords within the conservation rhetoric: orientalism (the exotic other), climax (harmony), old age (ancient, undisturbed) and vulnerability (Stott 1999). Metawords such as these become key rhetorical devices so that even research and development project proposals tend to employ them, thus replicating assumptions that are no longer questioned. How is this metalanguage produced? What are the bases of its principal cannons? And why is it that semantic analysis tends to remain the preserve of scientists – or is it something that is also dealt with at a local level? Narratives can be traced back in time. Equilibrium disturbance (climax rupture) and environmental fragility (vulnerability) both played parts in Hardin's 1968 'tragedy of the commons' (Hardin 1998). The neo-Malthusian discourse of environmental catastrophe as a result of an increasing population (of 'poor people') lies at the heart of Hardin's tragedy. The conservative conservationist perspective on the management of the rainforest is based on mistrust of systems of environmental management in which property rights (over life and resources) are not yet marketable. From a conservative political perspective responsible environmental action can only be achieved through the clarification of property rights to allow the unfettered action of free markets for the negotiation of such rights. It is assumed that the tragedy of the commons is happening or will happen in rainforest contexts where private property rights are not yet the rule and where societies still practise communal environmental management regimes based on indigenous knowledge rationalities in which nature and society form an ontological continuum. For conservatives only free markets for environmental rights, good and services can guarantee sustainable development. Neo-Malthusian 15 The discourses that emphasise on the need of eco-efficiency, economic transnationalization and planetary ecological management, were named by Sachs as contest and astronauts' perspectives. And the counter-discourse arising from the desempowered communities of the South as the home perspective (Sachs 1977). 27 and neo-liberal assumptions are fundamental to this perspective on sustainable development. With the aim of promoting Agenda 21 at local, national and regional levels, a complex and sophisticated process of institutionalisation was embarked upon. Amazonia did not escape this process; governmental officials or conservationist NGOs replicated the dominant conservationist discourse at the local level in NWA16. This official discourse of deforestation with its main initiative of protection of the environment from people has been labelled 'hegemonic' (Stott and Dullivan 2000) or 'neo-Malthusian' and 'managerial' (Adger, Benjaminsen et al. 2001). It should come as no surprise then that counter narratives have developed in Amazonia (and elsewhere), for many of which the principal intention is to contradict the conservative policies derived from this hegemonic discourse. The rights of indigenous people to define the course of their lives: their rights to manage natural resources and the environmental services used or supplied by the Amazonian environment have been key issues in these significant counter-claims against the official Amazonian territorial ordering politics and policies, which have involved environmental management that has been designed elsewhere. This counter-narrative pursues the principle and right of self-determination against the interests of political initiatives for global environmental management. The counter-narrative was not just a reaction to neo-liberal, neo-Malthisian conservative politics and conservation policies during the 1980s and '90s, however. In Latin America, all indigenous peoples' rebellions against the European empires were motivated by a call to reconstruct pre-colonial socio-cultural orders returning to territorial orders where the management of 'agroforestry' was undifferentiated from the sacred (Varese 1996:124-25). In modern, post-colonial states, indigenous peoples continued to struggle for the recognition of their territories. In today's NWA this struggle is related to governmental and conservationists policies of environmental management and the presence of armed groups opposed to political resolution of territorial ordering. Many of the Protected Areas (PAs) of NWA were created at a time when no legal procedure was established for public intervention in the designation of such areas. The official titles of the PA or IR (Resguardos in Colombia) have not prevented non-native invasion of lands or the expansion of illegal crop production inside either PAs or IRs. Conservationists and indigenous peoples alike have vacillated between alliances with, and the rejection of, the armed groups in charge of illegal crop production, depending on the political gains to be made and the risks involved in rejecting the proposals or achieving an alliance. The armed groups, on their part, have sought political alliances when such co-operation could benefit their military capacity or improve the managerial efficiency of their enterprises.17 16 With respect to the territorial ordering process, the Colombian Amazon controversy is discussed in Forero 1999, 2000; Forero, Laborde et al. 1998. 17 See Forero 2000, "Territoriality and Governance in the Colombian Amazon". 28 As far as local inhabitants were concerned, rainforest conservation policies arrived in NWA from another space and time. The legal establishment of protected areas took no account of the opinions or desires of the peoples already inhabiting NWA. Indigenous agro-ecosystems and the livelihood strategies of more recent colonisers were both ignored. The ideology expressed through legal frameworks was that of protection of the environment from people. The villains were local inhabitants and the regulations to be enforced were those of expelling people from the 'conservation' areas and maintaining their exclusion. The dominant discourse made no distinction between complex indigenous agro-ecosystems and the less sophisticated livelihood strategies being developed by recent immigrants. All of them were labelled as "slash and burn" agriculture (Myers 1980). Yet it has become increasingly apparent over the last thirty years that slash and burn is just an aspect of indigenous environmental management in Amazonia, which combines agricultural production, fish and game management, ritual prescriptions, and aesthetic developments18. It has even been suggested that movement towards "short cropping/long-fallow" cultivation patterns within indigenous Amazonian agro-ecosystems was an strategic response to alien invasion of territories and the introduction of metal axes (Denevan 2001: 115-31). Today, most ethnoscientists find it self-evident that the concepts of "chagras" (gardens) and "rastrojos" (abandoned gardens) are far too simplified to reflect the structure of cultivations over the short-, medium- and long-terms, in accordance with local knowledge of agro-ecological variation. It is obvious that indigenous environmental management has transformed Amazonian ecosystems for millennia; this was already evident to many of the nineteenth century European explorers19. Even the most knowledgeable people in the industrialised world have no precise idea of how 'vulnerable' rainforest is and few have accurate knowledge about the political conditions facing indigenous peoples or other human inhabitants of the Amazonian rainforest. With respect to NWA, even the most determined researcher would have problems accessing this information. It is often said that the rainforests of Amazonia are the 'lungs of the planet' (S.33), a metaphor used to emphasise the region's role in the carbon cycle, especially the absorption of CO2. This is somewhat ironic given that our own lungs actually consume oxygen and release CO2 during respiration. Indigenous people have been portrayed as villains or victims depending on the observer and the moment of observation. When portrayed as victims the picture is something like this: the wise guardians of the rainforest are obliged by violence to sell their natural resources or abandon their noble environmental practices. The role of violence in the functioning of extractive economies has been well documented. Violent coercion has been the dominant system in NWA for more than a century. Although indigenous people are no longer sold, 'debt-peonage' systems still dominate and exploit poor indigenous and immigrant inhabitants of 18 See Forero 2001, " The march of the Manikins: Agroforestry Practices and Spiritual Dancing in Northwest Amazonia". 19 See Forero 2002a, " Indigenous Knowledge and the Scientific Mind: Activism or Colonialism". 29 NWA. These people are employed for the harvesting, transport and commercialisation of coca base, cocaine and, the functioning of 'extractive economies' in general (Gómez, A. 1999). But there has been an indigenous response. This has sometimes taken the form of open rebellion and sometimes that of making strategic and tactical alliances in an attempt to obtain or preserve political power, to secure the acquisition of merchandise or simply to survive20. The counter-hegemonic narratives that we mentioned above have been labelled 'populist discourse': making it explicit that the victims are the indians and the villains the international organisations, sometimes allied to transnational corporations (like oil drilling companies) and the dependent and often corrupted governments that collaborate with these international organisations (Adger, Benjaminsen et al. 2001: 687). For NWA there are reports that seem to corroborate these arguments; e.g. indigenous peoples and environmental campaigners have protested jointly in Ecuador and Brazil against the construction of massive pipelines planned to cross through both IRs and PAs in both countries. The pipeline construction projects in both countries have arisen following collaboration between national governments and international oil exploration companies and have provoked public feelings of outrage (Weinberg 2001)21 . " [In NWA] Governments, multilateral lenders, multinational corporations, private banks and other institutions may not be counting on the convenient disappearance of indigenous peoples who get in the way of their ambitious development plans, but they often act as if they are." (Rabben 1998:122) "We who live in indigenous communities are surviving in the midst of a war imposed upon us by different factions and by the very same Colombian state that historically abandoned the countryside and permitted our lands to be invaded by waves of colonizers. Today we are caught in the crossfire, menaced by killings and displacement, while the State manifests its presence in the air with planes that slowly kill our plants and animals, our subsistence crops, and our people." (Organizacion Zonal Indigena del Putumayo_ OZIP 2002) However, is it possible to claim that there is a policy of 'ethnic cleansing' for NWA? From one side the whole issue of national sovereignty has been put into question; the expansion of Plan Andino (formerly Plan Colombia), the USA's anti-drug strategy for Latin America, exemplifies the delicate situation in which some of the Latin American countries have entered the twenty first century. The military component Plan Andino is aimed to support economic measures, the famous and indeed infamous structural adjustment plans that have provoked strikes and rebellions22. Additionally, even if there were an official policy of ethnic cleansing, South American States, given their size and power, would find it difficult to implement 20 See "Indigenous Knowledge and the Scientific Mind: Activism or Colonialism" (Forero 2002a), and "Technology in Northwest Amazonia: Sketches from Inside" (Forero 2002b). 21 For recent (March 2002) press releases on this issue see www.amazonwatch.org and www.americas.org 22 See Forero and Woodgate 2002, "The semantics of 'Human Security' in Northwest Amazonia: between indigenous peoples''Management of the World' and the USA's State Security Policy for Latin America". 30 it. The poor, be they indigenous peoples or colonisers are in the middle of a territorial war linked to international networks of criminality; they have been displaced, kidnapped or killed regardless of their claims of neutrality. In the case of Colombia, although some military authorities have been linked to some of the worst of the paramilitaries' atrocities, it has not been proved that the State itself has a policy of ethnic cleansing. In the case of Brazil, in 1996 the national executive proclaimed Decree 1775, instructing a right to contravene which, contrary to 169 WTO international agreement on Indigenous Peoples' rights, gave other stakeholders the opportunity to challenge Indigenous property rights. Paramilitary groups associated with illegal evictions of indigenous peoples in Brazilian Amazonia have long sought such a 'charter'. At the same time, the decree left the definition of indigenous land rights to the will of the executive power itself (Ministry of Justice). But, as in the case of Colombia, it cannot be proved that there is a policy of ethnic cleansing. It has been suggested in the non-conclusive comments on the survey results, that many people's responses echoed hegemonic and populist narratives. Indigenous peoples were portrayed as heroes or victims, as well as scientists and environmental managers. However, quiet a few of responses cannot be associated with either populist or hegemonic narratives. There is a group of responses that reflect critical thinking and are willing to challenge such simplistic dichotomies. Thus, the concept of sustainable development has been questioned, suspiciousness of western, scientific and technological solutions was expressed, and there was little willingness to give environmental managers carte blanche to prescribe whatever measures they might see fit. Interestingly, this last group, while acknowledging the need for: new concepts and adequate guidelines for environmental management, and the difficulty of achieving conservation targets while complying with indigenous peoples rights, still consider the concepts of SD, PA and IR as useful or the politics derived from them as desirable. What is interesting is that the responses to this survey, which were made by outsiders (respondents were not inhabitants of Amazonia), reflect a tendency to picture the conflict over territory in ways that do not correspond to either of the two main narratives. We can say that inasmuch as outsiders see possibilities for political action outside hegemonic or populist approaches, so Amazonian insiders are organising and negotiating regardless of whether their political discourse echoes either conservative or counter-hegemonic politics of territorial ordering. As no significant statistical analysis could be derived from the survey it would be difficult to speak of tendencies. At first sight it seems that adherence to hegemonic, counter-hegemonic, utopic or conciliatory narratives reflects each respondent's intellectual background more than his or her witnessing of the situation of peoples and forests in Amazonia. However, certain coincidences among the responses to each question might be representative: - For Q1-SD, two out of four of the respondents that accepted the imperative of SD without question have been in Amazon, none of them is a social scientist (SS) though and the other two were environmental managers. None of the SSs 31 that had visited the region argued for complete incompatibility between sustainability and development. Instead, SSs were part of a third group acknowledging that the concept of SD might be of some use, given certain conditions. - For Q2 – the relationship between IRs and PAs, not one of those who argued for the need to harmonise the two concepts (5), or those that emphasised SD as a desirable aim that has not yet been reached (4), or those or that argued that IRs are better than PAs (2) had been to the Amazon (in total 21 % of respondents). Respondents that had visited Amazonia (VA) were among those that acknowledged a relationship between IRs and PAs and that the relationship can be both complementary and competitive. Two respondents from the VA group argued that a complementary relationship was not possible in Colombia and one of them pointed out that being political strategies with different aims they should be kept differentiated in order to avoid conflict. This result might indicate that people that have been in Amazonia are more aware of the problems of territorial ordering caused by the imposition of regimes based in alien concepts. - For Q3 – on the usefulness of the concepts, none the five respondents arguing that IRs might be better that PAs had been in Amazonia, while one of the two that argued that IRs are ineffective had visited. Only one out of five respondents that argued for the need to integrate the concepts had been in Amazonia, while both those that argued for an incompatibility of interests have. This result seems to confirm that people who have visited the area are more conscious of the problems caused when policies formulated elsewhere are imported to Amazonia. Conclusions All technological adoption/adaptation has diverse effects in the life and development of society. People living within the society that is adopting them, and the outsiders that are analysing cultural change perceive these effects in different ways. The assessments of 'usefulness' or 'risk' a society makes when adapting/adopting technologies are linked to the conscious and subconscious present and future scenarios into which the society places itself alongside other societies. If the rest of the world wishes to respect Amazonian indigenous peoples' rights of self-determination, they should not intervene in ordering processes of indigenous territories. The problem is that indigenous ways of dealing with the world might not be compatible with the ideas that foreigners have with respect to Amazonia, its peoples and its future. And, for good or bad, fairly or unfairly, each group has a way of intervening and exercising a certain amount of power to modify the global political agenda for the governance of Amazonia in function of their own particular interests. Replication of narratives is a common strategy used by all groups aiming to make alliances and enhance their power. However, the responses analysed here seem to indicate that a large group of people (at least from the academic sector) is 32 unhappy with the assumptions behind either populists or hegemonic discourses with respect to rainforest management, and seeking new ways of environmental policy making. This group of people acknowledged that political conflict has derived from policy formulated elsewhere, and derived from an epistemology alien to local inhabitants. There are varied political groups competing for the governance of Amazonia. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) facilitates analysis and political action. It is expected that better-informed indigenous peoples would be in a better position to make decisions with respect to the governance of Amazonia. At the present time, the indigenous peoples of Amazonia have very limited and precarious access to ICT. Thus, their perspectives on territorial ordering are less likely to be represented than those such as conservation agencies, multinational developers, insurgent and mafiosi groups, all of which have far superior access to ICT. 33 Appendix 1 PRIVACY POLICY: Email addresses will be used only to send out materials related to this survey. Aggregate survey results may be distributed, but all personal data will be kept strictly confidential. No information about individual users will be disclosed to third parties. 34 Appendix 2 Summary of Web-site technical work The most demanding work was designing the pages that would contain indigenous territorial maps. CAD versions of the map would have to be transformed into image files suitable for Web use. In order to do this ArcView- GIS (Geographical Information Systems) software was needed. A picture of the map could be easily generated in ArcView-GIS and to certain extent, editing and colouring could enhance some features. But such a map or, more precisely, such a picture of the bi-dimensional representation of the Tukano territory remained inadequate for publication in WebPages. "The pics were to heavy" (I would learn the ICT design jargon), meaning that the memory used to storage, loading and unloading of these pictures was vast. Besides dividing the map and generating pictures of several areas, these pictures needed transforming to make them 'lighter'. This meant that the pictures had to be edited and the storage format had to be changed in terms of the colour pallet and resolution (a maximum of 72 dpi). Most importantly, the pictures should look better! An early version of PhotoImpactTM was used to change the colours and other features as well as to design the icons that would be used to identify the hypertext links between pages. However, the software was not appropriate for the task and the 'pics' were still too heavy. The design was poor, too rigid, with inappropriate colours and, worst of all the 'weight' of the maps would not allow for easy loading of the images by potential users. To change the maps (pics) again, PhotoshopTM was used, while major design transformations were achieved using FireworksTM software. For the actual montage and edition of the whole web-site Dreamweaver3TM was used. A similar process was followed to generate the vegetation map, which was adapted from one of the Amazonian Vegetation maps generated by Puerto Rastrojo. The introduction to a political ecology taking as a case study the Yaigojé Resguardo, was originally a single text (like in the preliminary version) but following the advice of critical reviewers, this page was divided into six parts. 35 Appendix 3 Table 1 Q1- Do you think that 'development' and 'sustainability' are compatible? RESPONSE - ARGUMENT SURVEY No. NVA VA Profession Unquestioning the developmental project 2 1 PhD Student Biology 12 1 Environmental Engineer 13 1 Environmental Engineer 40 1 Project Co-ordinator (SD) Yes, to diminish environmental risk 18 1 Student 21 1 Taxation 23 1 Designer 39 1 Postgraduate Student 42 1 Biologist Sustainable Development is an aim to be 3 1 Epidemiologist reached 5 1 Civil Servant 8 1 Accountant 24 1 Student 25 1 PhD St. Agriculture & Development 29 1 Anthropologist 35 1 Lecturer 37 1 Postgraduate Student 48 1 Anthropologist 51 1 Postgraduate Student Compatible if defined locally 5 1 Civil Servant 20 1 Lecturer: Ecotourism 27 1 Anthropologist 31 1 Postgraduate Student 52 1 Lecturer: IT & Development Possible but risk of economic imperative 17 1 Unemployed Incompatible a) Contradiction in terms 24 1 Student 4 1 PhD St. Environmental genetics b) Financial economic imperative 10 1 Student 19 1 PhD St. Agriculture & Development 34 1 PhD Student: Environmental Manager 47 1 PhD Student SD inconsistent at present time 1 1 Lecturer: Env. Sociology 33 1 PhD Student 36 1 Research Engineer 45 1 EM SD is green rhetoric 7 1 Student 32 1 Teacher 48 1 Anthropologist 36 Table 2 Q2 - Do you think there is any relation between 'indigenous reserves' (IR) and 'protected areas' (PA)? RESPONSE - ARGUMENT SURVEY No. NVA VA Profession Yes 37 1 Postgraduate Student 18 1 Student 22 1 Anthropologist 43 1 Anthropologist 50 1 PhD Student No 15 1 Consultant: Health & Safety Need to harmonise IR and PA to protect a) For (IP) Indigenous Peoples' benefit 19 1 PhD St. Agriculture & Development 20 1 Lecturer: Ecoturism b) Protection of Biodiversity 25 1 PhD St. Agriculture & Development 33 1 PhD Student c) SD based on IP experiences 11 1 Consultant: Rural Development. SD as Utopia 3 1 Epidemiologist 6 1 Lecturer Ecology Env. Management 36 1 Research Engineer 42 1 Biologist IR and PA are different political strategies 2 1 PhD Student - Biologist IR and PA are colonisation strategies 10 1 Student 24 1 Student 26 1 Student Indigenous resistance to IR/PA strategies 48 1 Anthropologist IR and PA overlapped 7 1 Student 34 1 PhD St. Environmental Management 44 1 Postgraduate Student Environmental Indian 23 1 Designer 40 1 Project Co-ordinator (SD) Environmental Indians contaminated 12 1 Environmental Engineer by mestizo culture 39 1 Postgraduate Student 45 1 Environmental Manager IR are Inefficient 35 1 Lecturer 53 1 Journalist IR more effective that PA 5 1 Civil Servant 17 1 Unemployed 37 Table 3 Q3 - Do you think that the concepts of 'protected areas' (PA), 'indigenous reserves' (IR) and SD are useful for environmental management today? RESPONSE - ARGUMENT SURVEY No. NVA VA Profession Depends on the context 1 1 Lecturer: Env. Sociology 2 1 PhD St. Biologist Yes 4 1 PhD St. Env. Genetics 14 1 Economist 22 1 Anthropologist Indigenous Environmental 12 1 Environmental Engineer 23 1 Designer 41 1 PhD Student Indigenous Environmental in contamination risk 45 1 EM Concepts: Principles and instruments a) Participation: IR better than PA 5 1 Civil Servant 6 1 Lecturer Ecology EM 11 1 Consultant: Rural Development RD 26 1 Student 41 1 PhD Student b) Intergenerational Equity: resource reserve 12 1 Environmental Engineer for Development 13 1 Agriculturist 21 1 Taxation 25 1 PhD St. Agriculture & Dvnt. 38 1 Gardener (MSc) Risk and Protection a)Environmental Protection (EP) 12 1 Environmental Engineer 17 1 Unemployed EP and catastrophism 6 1 Lecturer Ecology EM 32 1 Teacher 51 1 Postgraduate Student b) Of cultural diversity 31 1 Postgraduate Student IR as ineffective 10 1 Student 24 1 Student Integration of concepts or the need for it 7 1 Student 11 1 Consultant RD 18 1 Student 26 1 Student 34 1 PhD Student Env. Mgment. Difficulties for integration a) Incompatibility of interests 10 1 Student 40 1 Project co-ordinator (SD) b) Financial economic effectiveness' imperative 25 1 PhD St. Agriculture Devent. 30 1 Postgraduate Student 33 1 PhD Student c) Political manipulation 44 1 Post. St. Environment 46 1 Lecturer 38 47 1 PhD Student 48 1 Anthropologist d) Semiotic blur 24 1 Student 50 1 PhD Student Education: Dynamism of the concepts 37 1 Postgraduate Student 45 1 Environmental Manager 47 1 PhD Student 39 Table 4 Q4 - Should or should not environmental managers (EM) get involved in territorial ordering process in Amazon? RESPONSE - ARGUMENT SURVEY No. NVA VA Profession Yes 4 1 PhD St. Evolutionary Genetics In fact they are 22 1 Anthropologist Unsure 52 1 Lecturer: IT & Development 32 1 Teacher Question into Question 6 1 Lecturer Ecology EM 31 1 Postgraduate St Indigenous Peoples as EM 27 1 Anthropologist Yes, for Env. protection (catastrophism) 32 1 Teacher 33 1 PhD Student 42 1 Biologist Yes, EM are the ones (better able that IP) 12 1 Environmental Engineer 18 1 Student 21 1 Taxation 28 1 Lecturer 34 1 PhD student 36 1 Research Engineer 46 1 Lecturer 53 1 Journalist EM provide solutions/ take decisions 23 1 Designer 35 1 Lecturer 38 1 Gardener Yes but listening to others 5 1 Civil Servant 53 1 Journalist If Indigenous Peoples direct EM or projects 1 1 Lecturer: Env. Sociology 10 1 Student 14 1 Economist 41 1 PhD Student EM have equal rights to other stakeholders 2 1 PhD St. Biology 6 1 Lecturer Ecology EM 7 1 Student 29 1 Anthropologist 44 1 Post. Student Not inside IP territories 47 1 PhD Student Yes, if apolitical EM 9 1 Environmental Manager 17 1 Unemployed 37 1 Postgraduate Student Yes for political counteract 26 1 Student EM as facilitators 5 1 Civil Servant 10 1 Student 45 1 Environmental Manager Depends of capacity, ability & quality of EM 24 1 Student 31 1 Postgraduate Student EM tough job: political risk 15 1 Consultant: Health 40 1 Project Co-ordinator (SD) 40 References Adger, W. N., T. A. Benjaminsen, et al. (2001). "Advancing a Political Ecology of Global Environmental Discourses". Development and Change 32: 681-715. Ambrose-Oji, B., T. Allmark, et al. (2002). "The Environmental State and the Forest; of Lookouts, Leopards, and Losers". In The environmental state under pressurence. A. P. J. Mol and F. H. Buttel. Oxford, Elsevier. 10: 149-69. Castells, M. (1996). "The rise of the network society". Cambridge, MA, Blackwell Publishers. Denevan, W. M. (2001). "Cultivated Landscapes of Native Amazonia and the Andes". Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press. Ecologist (2002). Making it happen. Interview to Martin von Hildebrand. The Ecologist. 32: 44-7. Forero, O. A. (1999). From pure sciences to ethnosciences. A broad perspective on ecosystems analysis and governance. Examining the environmental management problems of the Yaigojé Resguardo Indigenous Reserve in the Colombian Amazon. Ecology and Epidemiology Group. Biological Sciences. Coventry, UK, University of Warwick: 233. --- (2000). "Territoriality and Governance in the Colombian Amazon". Conference: SLAS annual conference- 2000, Hull, (Unpublished). --- (2001). "The March of the Manikins. Agroforestry practices and spiritual dancing in Northwest Amazonia". Conference: Conservation and Sustainable Development -Comparative Perspectives, CCR-University of Yale. New Haven, Connecticut, Unpublished. --- (2002a). "Indigenous knowledge and the scientific mind: Activism or Colonialism?" Conference: Activism as History, History as Activism. History Department, Columbia University, New York. --- (2002b). "Technology in Northwest Amazonia: Sketches form Inside. A contribution to the Political Ecology of Northwest Amazonia." Unpublished. Forero, O. A., R. E. Laborde, et al. (1998). "Colombia: Yaigojé Indigenous Resguardo Natural Reserve". In Indigenous Peoples and Diversity Conservation in Latin America. IWGIA. Copenhagen, IWGIA. Doc. 87. Forero, O. A. and G. Woodgate (2002). "The semantics of 'Human Security' in Northwest Amazonia: between indigenous peoples' 'Management of the World' and the USA's State Security Policy for Latin America". In Human Security and the Environment. M. Redclift. Cheltenham UK and Northampton MA, Edward Elgar. Gómez, A. (1999). "Estructuración socioespacial de la Amazonia Colombina, siglos XIX-XX". In Domínguez, C. F. Cubides. Bogotá, CES, Universidad Nacional de Colombia: 21-40. Gómez, R. (1998). "The Nostalgia of Virtual Community. A Study of computer-mediated communications use in Colombian non-governmental organizations". Information Technology and People 11(3): 217-34. Hardin, G. J. (1998). "The Tragedy of the Commons". In Debating the Earth. The Environmental Politics Reader. S. Dryzek and D. Scholosberg. N.Y., Oxford University Press: 23-34. Myers, N. (1980). Conversion of Tropical Moist Forest: A Report prepared for the Committee on Research Priorities in Tropical Biology of the National Research Council. Washington D.C., National Academy of Sciences. OZIP (2002). SOS from Indigenous Peoples of Putumayo, Znet:http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=9&ItemID=2122. 2002. Rabben, L. (1998). "Unnatural Selection. The Yanomami, the Kayapó and the Onslaught of Civilisation". London, Pluto Press. Sachs, W. (1977). "'Sustainable Development'". In The International Handbook of Environmental Sociology. M. Redclift and G. Woodgate. Cheltenham, UK Northampton, MA, USA, Edward Elgar: 71-82. ---, Ed. (1993). "Global Ecology. A new arena of political conflict". London, Zed Books. Sevilla_Guzmán, E. and G. Woodgate (1997). "'Sustainable rural development': from industrial agriculture to agroecology". In The International Handbook of Environmental Sociology. M. Redclift and G. Woodgate. Cheltenham, UK Northampton, MA, USA, Edward Elgar: 83-100. Stott, P. (1999). Tropical rain forest: a political ecology of hegemonic mythmaking. IEA Studies on the Environment, No 15. London. 41 Stott, P. and S. Dullivan, Eds. (2000). "Political Ecology: Science, Myth and Power". London and N.Y., Arnold. Varese, S. (1996). "The new Environmentalist Movement of Latin American Indigenous Movement pp." In Valuing Local Knowledge. S. Brush and D. Stabinsky. Washington D.C.: 122-144. Weinberg, B. (2001). "Amazonia: Planning the Final Destruction. Mega-Development Threatens Devastation of Indian Ecologies". Native Americas: Hemisphere Journal of Indigenous Issues 450: Fall/Winter.