Multiple approach research in Andes and Amazonia

Climate change is generating significant and also highly heterogeneous impact on natural environments, ecosystems, regions. These changes are particularly visible in the Andes / Amazonian macrosystem, as well as the Central-American region.

Among other approaches, we use the concept of “Sacred Places” to articulate the multiple meanings and values attached to a territory by its inhabitants. This may include an ancient spiritual or mythological dimension, and also the environmental, agricultural and economic values of the site and its vulnerability or resilience vis-a-vis climate change. Sacred places are present in key ecological systems, such as the water reservoirs of the Andean highlands, and regulate the resource and energy cycles of the terrain and the people. Also they contain the historical memory of the remote and recent past. This way they reinforce local social identities and also the most valued products of each region, and define it culturally and economically.

The linkages between the populations with their territories, in terms of traditional knowledge, care and protection of the sites, food production patterns, and conveying of meaning through myths, folklore and customs, are a legacy to be preserved. Participatory research projects explore these relationships and promote the recognition and valuation of local cultures, environmental protection, and social cohesion.