Ideas, interests and institutions in agroecology: an example from the analysis of its translation in the territories of Citizenship in the Brazilian Amazon.

Abstract

In the Brazilian Amazon region, agroecology (AE) and territorial development proposals (Pronat)
appeared at the same time. As a window of opportunity, some local actors and organizations
who claim to agroecology, have appropriated themselves these public spaces, institutionalizing
their agro-ecological proposals. We want to understand what were the ideas
developed around the AE, power games of the actors and forms of institutionalization (plan,
projects ...). A comparison between 2 territories shows that there is a great diversity of ideas in
the agroecological field. The translations of these ideas in terms of discourse, collective strategies,
operative contents and forms of institutions, depend on contexts, interests and games of
local actors specifics of each territory. Singularities of local trajectories participate in different
territorial constructions. Thinking about co-existence between forms of institutionalization is
important to strengthen a territorial agroecology proposal.