Amazon Peasant Societies in a Changing Environment: Political Ecology, Invisibility and Modernity in the Rainforest PDF
Preview Amazon Peasant Societies in a Changing Environment: Political Ecology, Invisibility and Modernity in the Rainforest
Amazon Peasant Societies in a Changing Environment Amazon Peasant Societies in a Changing Environment Political Ecology, Invisibility and Modernity in the Rainforest by Cristina Adams UniversityofSa˜oPaulo,Brazil Rui Murrieta UniversityofSa˜oPaulo,Brazil Walter Neves UniversityofSa˜oPaulo,Brazil and Mark Harris UniversityofStAndrews,Fife,UK 1 3 Editors CristinaAdams RuiMurrieta SchoolofArts,SciencesandHumanities DepartmentofGeneticsand UniversityofSa˜oPaulo EvolutionaryBiology Brazil UniversityofSa˜oPaulo Brazil WalterNeves MarkHarris DepartmentofGeneticsand DepartmentofSocialAnthropology EvolutionaryBiology UniversityofStAndrews UniversityofSa˜oPaulo Fife,UnitedKingdom Brazil Translatedandupdatedversionof: Adams,C.,Murrieta,R.,&Neves,W.A.(2006).Sociedadescaboclasamazoˆnicas:modernidadee invisibilidade(1aed.).Sa˜oPaulo:Annablume. CoverimagetakenbyMarkHarrisinNovember2003. ISBN:978-1-4020-9282-4 e-ISBN:978-1-4020-9283-1 DOI:10.1007/978-1-4020-9283-1 LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2008936510 #SpringerScienceþBusinessMediaB.V.2009 Nopartofthisworkmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedinanyformor byanymeans,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,microfilming,recordingorotherwise,without writtenpermissionfromthePublisher,withtheexceptionofanymaterialsuppliedspecificallyfor thepurposeofbeingenteredandexecutedonacomputersystem,forexclusiveusebythepurchaser ofthework. Printedonacid-freepaper 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 springer.com To Guilherme M.M de La Penha, in memoriam Preface IamdelightedtobeabletoprovidesomecommentsontheEnglisheditionofthis book,SociedadesCaboclasAmazonicas:ModernidadeeInvisibilidade,originally published in Portuguese by Annablume Editora, with support from FAPESP (TheStateofSa˜oPauloResearchFoundation).Thebookpresentsasynthesisof theadvancesinunderstandingofcaboclosinthepast20years,andmuchofthis materialhasnotbeenavailableheretoforeinEnglish. ThisbookisappearinginEnglishatacriticalmomentintheevolutionofour understanding of caboclos. For one thing, this body of work has made it possible to get away from the earlier connotations of the term caboclo which wasademeaningtermusedalwaysforsomeonebelowyou,asnotedbyWagley andGalva˜ointhe1950s.Asresearchhasaccumulated,moreandmorescholars areoptingfortheuseofthetermribeirinhoinstead.Thisisasitshouldbe,asthe termcabocloisinanynumberofwaysintentionallyironic.Onceinaconversa- tionwithacolonofromthepre-Amazoniamaranhense,hecalledmeoverand showedmehispigpensaying‘thisisthecattleofthecaboclo’.Notallcaboclos havesucharefinedsenseofirony,orperhapstheydoandwehavefailedtotake noteofit. I will not try to summarize the papers in the volume, as the excellent introduction to the volume does a superb job of doing so. Rather, I want to notewhataremarkableshiftthisvolumerepresentsinthediscourseoncaboclos thatprecededit.Theunderstandingofcaboclosfromthe1950stothe1980swas stronglydrivenbynotionsofculturalecology(cultureshapedbythewaypeople organize to exploit resources), and by notions of syncretism (mixing up of cultures coming into contact). Then a more historical bent entered into the analysis,representedbyvariousauthorsinthisvolume,whobegantorecover the complex interactions of native Amazonians in Directorate (state run) vil- lages, and the subsequent economic conditions faced by these populations followingthebreakdownofthevillages andamore isolatedeconomic life. In the late 1980s and early 1990s came a more human ecological approach, that includedbioanthropological,nutritional,andpoliticaleconomicapproachthat complexified the underlying bases for the way of life of caboclos. It is this direction which is most strongly represented in this book. Whereas before caboclo cultural explanations focused on their isolation, now the analysis vii viii Preface showed how connected they have been for a good part of the nineteenth and twentieth century to a global economy, and to regional patterns of economic inequality. WhenIfirstwenttotheAmazonmanydecadesago,itwasquicklyclearto methattheAmazoniancaboclosthatIcameacrossinnewsettlementprojects along the Transamazon Highway were gifted resource managers. They had higher yields per unit of land and per unit of labor, they had better health, andtheyeven tookadvantageofavailablecapitalandtechnologybetterthan theallegedlymoremodernsouthernerswhocametothearea.Theyknewhow tohunt,howtorecognizethebestsoilsforfarming,andhowtodiversifytheir portfolio.Theyevenledthewayininvestingtheirprofitsinnearbyurbanareas in the form of a house, a store, and education for their children—without abandoningtheirlandortheirknowledge.Whatwashardformetounderstand at that time, was why so many other colonists, and government civil servants working in the area, could not see that. Even when I presented them with quantitativeevidenceforthehigherperformanceofcaboclos,technicalperson- nel insisted that that could not be—and colonists dismissed caboclos as poor farmerswhoweremoreinterestedinhuntingthancultivatingtheirland. Whythisresistance?Ihavereflectedonthatovertheyears,andfoundthat there are many reasons. It takes time for people to learn how to use the resources in a new environment (sometimes as long as one generation), and while a few individuals will reduce that period by borrowing from neighbors, most people resist learning from those whom they have placed in a socially inferior position (i.e. the caboclo). Even if people are willing to learn, it still takestimetolearnsomethingascomplexasafullarrayofadaptivestrategiesto ecosystems as complex as those in Amazonia. People prefer to try what they know, rather than to change, and this attitude delays learning precise knowl- edge.Ifweaddtoenvironmentalknowledge,theknowledgerequiredtounder- stand one’s position vis-a`-vis the regional political economy – such a task becomes fraught with huge challenges. This was further complicated by the shifts in social and economic relations that accompanied life in Amazonia following the developmentalist efforts that began in the late 1960s and which brought many different actors to the scene, who challenged the traditional political economic order, and attempted to restructure the relations of production. IsitanywonderthattheruralpopulationsofAmazonia,whethercaboclo,or immigrant, found themselves in ever more precarious situations—but also provided with some opportunities. As the papers in this volume indicate, one seesplacesinAmazoniawherethehealth,nutrition,andeconomicconditions ofcabocloshaveimproved—butalsotoomanywhereithasnot.Whereasthe market for ac¸aı´ has exploded globally, local caboclos have not benefited as muchastheyshouldhaveeveryrighttoexpect.WhereasBrazilnowleadsthe worldinbeefexports,cabocloshavenotbenefited.WhereasBrazil’ssoybeans keep growing in world market share, this mechanized crop has not benefited caboclos. In fact, the trickle down benefits of the development efforts of the Preface ix past38yearsinAmazoniahavebeenminiscule,andpeopleinAmazoniahave not shared in whatever profits have been made—and the caboclo least of all amongthem. This book points to the need to pay attention to the structural conditions, and the livelihoods, of people in Amazonia— particularly its forgotten rural populationsandthemarginalizedpopulationsinthegrowingcities.Theyarea richresourceofknowledge,energy,andappropriatedevelopment.Theydonot lackcapacityordesire,theyoftenlackopportunity.Thedevelopmentformulas imposedbyoutsidersbenefitoutsidersmoreoftenthannot,andleavepopula- tionsfurtherimpoverished.Astarthastobeeducationandhealthavailableto all—butaneducationthatincludesknowledgeofAmazoniaanditspeopleand resources. This has to be an education that values what they know, and the conservationandsustainableuseoftheregion.Withoutthisfoundation,devel- opmenteffortswilldestroyratherthanuseandconserveAmazonia.Thisbook offersanimportantscholarlybasisforvaluingthecaboclo,andforaddressing regional development, as if people mattered. I applaud the authors in this volume, for putting people first, and giving us deep understanding of the conditionsfacedbycaboclos. TerreHaute,IN EmilioMoran Acknowledgments We would like to begin by expressing our gratitude to all the families and communitiesofAmazoniawhohavehelpedtomakethisbookareality.With- out their collaboration, involvement and inspiring friendship this initiative wouldnothavebeenpossible.Ourspecialthanksmustgotoourstudentsand friends who have supported and helped in the long, and many times, tedious process of editing in Brazil: Aglair Ruivo, Nelson Novaes, Henrique Ataı´de, Eloise Tonial, Maissa Bakri, Natasha Navazinas and Carolina Taqueda. The immeasurable support of the Department of Genetics and Evolutionary Biology,oftheInstituteofBiosciences,andthe‘Pro´-ReitoriadePesquisa’,both oftheUniversityofSa˜oPaulo,wasvitaltotherealizationoftheworkshopfrom whichthisbookisderived.TotheFoundationfortheSupportofResearchof the State of Sa˜o Paulo (FAPESP) we owe a large part of the funding for the workshopinJune2002,aswellasforthepublicationoftheBrazilianeditionof thebook.ToEmilioMoran,ofIndianaUniversity,forhavingplayedafunda- mentalroleintheformationofthefirstgenerationofBraziliananthropologists andecologistsdedicatedtothestudyoftheriverinepopulationsoftheAmazon. InScotlandattheUniversityofStAndrews,LisaSmithpreparedtheEnglish languagemanuscriptforpublicationandGraemeSandemandesignedthemap. The translation of the Portuguese originals was made possible by a ‘Primer Premio Annual’ (2007) de Artı´culos de Investigacio´n en temas de Seguridad AlimentariayNutricional(SAN)fromtheIniciativaAme´ricaLatinayCaribe sinHambreandtheReddeInvestigacio´nyCapacitacio´nenSeguridadAlimen- tariayNutricionaloftheFoodandAgricultureOrganization(FAO). xi Contents Introduction................................................ 1 CristinaAdams,Rui MurrietaandWalterNeves PartI Identity,HistoryandSociety 1 UtopiasandDystopiasintheAmazonianSocialLandscape......... 21 StephenNugent 2 LandscapeTransformationandLanguageChange:ACaseStudy inAmazonianHistoricalEcology............................. 33 WilliamBale´e 3 MixedIndians,CaboclosandCuribocas:HistoricalAnalysis ofaProcessofMiscegenation;RioNegro(Brazil), 18thand19thCenturies.................................... 55 De´ciodeAlencarGuzma´n 4 ‘SempreAjeitando’(AlwaysAdjusting):AnAmazonianWay ofBeinginTime.......................................... 69 MarkHarris PartII SustainabilityandDevelopmentPolicies 5 TraditionalPeoples:IntroductiontothePoliticalEcologyCritique ofaNotion.............................................. 95 HenyoBarrettoFilho 6 TheDomesticEconomyinMamiraua´,Tefe´,AmazonasState....... 131 DeborahdeMagalha˜es Lima 7 PatternsofResourceUsebyCabocloCommunities intheMiddle-LowerAmazon................................ 157 Fa´biodeCastro xiii xiv Contents PartIII ResourceManagement 8 AgricultureIntensification,EconomicIdentity,andShared InvisibilityinAmazonianPeasantry:CaboclosandColonists inComparativePerspective................................. 181 EduardoBrondizio 9 TheUseofandAccesstoForestResources:TheCaboclos oftheLowerAmazonandTheirSocio-CulturalAttributes ......... 215 Ce´liaFutemma PartIV GenderandDailyLife 10 Women,GenderRelationsandDecision-MakinginCaboclo HouseholdsintheAmazonEstuary .......................... 241 AndreaSiqueira 11 ‘ILoveFlowers’:HomeGardens,AestheticsandGenderRoles inaRiverineCabocloCommunityintheLowerAmazon,Brazil .... 259 RuiMurrietaandAntoinetteWinklerPrins PartV DietandHealth 12 BreadoftheLand:TheInvisibilityofManiocintheAmazon ...... 281 CristinaAdams,RuiMurrieta,AndreaSiqueira,WalterNeves andRoselySanches 13 Socio-EcologyofHealthandDisease:TheEffectsofInvisibility ontheCabocloPopulationsofTheAmazon.................... 307 HiltonSilva Conclusion................................................. 335 RuiMurrieta,WalterNeves,HenyoBarrettoFilho andCristinaAdams Index..................................................... 347
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