Sandra Turbay

Folklore and popular conceptions regarding the fauna of a wetland area on the Caribbean coast of Columbia

In pre-Columbian times, the Zenu Indians established drainage systems in the wetlands of the Colombian Caribbean that enabled them to exploit this rich ecosystem in a sustained manner. Modern inhabitants of the region are, however, exposed to a regimen of periodic flooding that limits their productive activities. In addition, they are surrounded by large cattle ranches that occupy almost all the land and are responsible for the disappearance of forests that sustain the wild fauna. These peasants employ a classification system for the fauna that favors the criterion of habitat over that of morphology to distinguish categories of animals. Secondary forest animals inspire carnival dances, folk tales, poetry, and songs, while insects and other invertebrates are barely represented in the oral tradition. Fishing provides the principal source of protein for many families, but there are no mechanisms to control the use of large nets that exhaust the resource. The capture of reptiles such as iguanas, turtles, and crocodilians is intensive and is not based on studies that determine the state of the populations and the impact of hunting activities. The author draws attention to the need to take into account local representations of animals in programs aimed at conserving the wetlands and their fauna. She discusses the popular nomenclature, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs regarding the fauna of a wetland region of the Colombian Caribbean to assist in the design of programs for the sustainable exploitation of the resources of this ecosystem, vital to the survival of local fishermen and peasants.

Adaptive Strategies Building Resilience to Climate Variability in Argentina, Canada and Colombia

Many regions of the world are experiencing the impacts of climate change, which include the increasing variability of weather as well as increased drought and flood. Although many areas have had a long history of this variability and have a strong historic practice of adaptation, increasing variability has had a significant impact on adaptive strategies of agricultural producers over the last several years.

Governance and climate variability in Chinchiná River, Colombia

Purpose This paper aims to assess whether governance processes that are taking place in the Chinchina River basin, a coffee culture region in the Andean region of Colombia, are adaptive to climate variability and climate extremes. Design/methodology/approach A mixed research method was used by reviewing secondary research sources surrounding the institutional governance system of water governance and disaster response and semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with producers and members of organizations within the institutional governance system. Findings This study found that there is a low response to extreme events. Hopefully, the growing national awareness and activity in relation to climate change and disaster will improve response and be downscaled into these communities in the future. Although, some learning has occurred at the national government level and by agricultural producers who are adapting practices, to date no government institution has facilitated social learning taking into account conflict, power and tactics of domination. Originality/value This paper improves the understanding of the vulnerability of rural agricultural communities to shifts in climate variability. It also points out the importance of governance institutions in enhancing agricultural producer adaptive capacity.

Canadian, Argentinean, and Colombian Programs Building Resiliency to Extreme Events

An important determinant of adaptive capacity to climate change and extreme events of drought and flood is institutional capital, or the assistance provided by government, civil society and private companies through programs and policy. A strong institutional capital provides adaptive strategies for agricultural producers and rural communities that not only assist in prevention of disaster, but recovery and rebuilding from disaster. But what are the components of strong institutional capital?

Caracterización de nueve agroecosistemas de café de la cuenca del río Porce, Colombia, con un enfoque agroecológico

El proposito de este articulo es caracterizar nueve agroecosistemas de cafe de los Andes colombianos con un enfoque agroecolo-gico. Los atributos y los indicadores evaluados son agrupados en tres dimensiones: economica, social y tecnico-productiva. Los indicadores son sensibles a las condiciones del agroecosistema y pueden ser facilmente comprendidos por los agricultores. La baja productividad en los cafetales y el riesgo economico son identificados como los principales problemas. La seguridad alimentaria tiene valores altos en la mayor parte de las fincas a pesar de las deficiencias en la productividad del cafe. La metodologia propuesta podria ser adaptada por otros investigadores para caracterizar agroecosistemas campesinos sin olvidar que la seleccion de los indicadores debe ser el resultado de un proceso participativo; los indicadores usados en este trabajo no dan cuenta de todas las condiciones internas y externas que afectan los agroecosistemas, pero destacan factores relevantes para la reproduccion social de las familias campesinas.The purpose of this paper is to characterize nine coffee agroecosystems from the Colombian Andes with an agroecological approach. Attributes and indicators evaluated are grouped under three dimensions: economic, social and technical-productive. Indicators are sensitive to agroecosystem conditions and can be easily understood by farmers. Low productivity of coffee plantations and economic risk are identified as the main problems. The study found high food security in most of the farms despite deficiencies in coffee productivity. The methodology proposed could be adapted by other researchers for the characterization of peasant agroecosystems without forgetting that setting indicators should be a participatory process; indicators used in this work do not account for all internal and external conditions that affect agroecosystems but they highlight relevant factors for social reproduction of peasant families.

The categorization of nine coffee agroecosystems from the Porce river basin, Colombia, from an agroecological perspective

El proposito de este articulo es caracterizar nueve agroecosistemas de cafe de los Andes colombianos con un enfoque agroecolo-gico. Los atributos y los indicadores evaluados son agrupados en tres dimensiones: economica, social y tecnico-productiva. Los indicadores son sensibles a las condiciones del agroecosistema y pueden ser facilmente comprendidos por los agricultores. La baja productividad en los cafetales y el riesgo economico son identificados como los principales problemas. La seguridad alimentaria tiene valores altos en la mayor parte de las fincas a pesar de las deficiencias en la productividad del cafe. La metodologia propuesta podria ser adaptada por otros investigadores para caracterizar agroecosistemas campesinos sin olvidar que la seleccion de los indicadores debe ser el resultado de un proceso participativo; los indicadores usados en este trabajo no dan cuenta de todas las condiciones internas y externas que afectan los agroecosistemas, pero destacan factores relevantes para la reproduccion social de las familias campesinas.The purpose of this paper is to characterize nine coffee agroecosystems from the Colombian Andes with an agroecological approach. Attributes and indicators evaluated are grouped under three dimensions: economic, social and technical-productive. Indicators are sensitive to agroecosystem conditions and can be easily understood by farmers. Low productivity of coffee plantations and economic risk are identified as the main problems. The study found high food security in most of the farms despite deficiencies in coffee productivity. The methodology proposed could be adapted by other researchers for the characterization of peasant agroecosystems without forgetting that setting indicators should be a participatory process; indicators used in this work do not account for all internal and external conditions that affect agroecosystems but they highlight relevant factors for social reproduction of peasant families.