Local and regional conflicts in Latin America 1900-3-KAM-GL
Lectures: conflicts (genesis, course, structure, effects) and conflict situations in general are discussed, as well as the conditions under which conflicts may occur and the potential consequences that they may have.
Most of the lectures concern conflicts over resources and management methods: Most of the conflicts over resources arise from the socio-economic situation of Latin American countries (developing countries, countries of the global South, illiteracy), where poverty (scarcity of goods), weakness of democracy, and corruption are fundamental the cause of dissatisfaction of part of the population and creates conflicts. Examples that are discussed in the class are, above all, material conflicts, conflicts of interest resulting from the unfair distribution of goods, competition for goods or participation in goods, and conflicts of ideas. The weakest side of the conflicts, usually the losers, are the indigenous peoples. They fall victim to companies exploiting crude oil, exploiting forests to obtain timber, acting on behalf of soybean and sugar cane producers, etc. Unhampered exploitation of resources by domestic companies and multinationals (corporations) creates conflicts of a different nature, resulting from the weakness of countries in which they work. It is a state - foreign capital that poses a threat to the environment, also for legally protected areas (national parks). The state has no funds to protect endangered areas.
In addition, there will be discussed conflicts over urban and suburban space in Latin America, hypercrime in Central America - causes, effects and remedies (with particular emphasis on extortion), the conflictogenic nature of the informal sector in Latin America, youth social movements in the Internet era and local conflicts in America Latin, the terrorist threat in Latin America, the drug cartels in Mexico.
Classes: consist in the implementation - together with the whole group - of a research project: conceptualization and operationalization of research on environmental conflicts in selected Latin American countries, interpretation of the analysis results and their presentation. Data for analysis will be collected and processed using the Environmental Justice Atlas. Database creation and statistical analysis will be carried out in Excel and SPSS, and the presentation of the results - with the use of Microsoft Office.
The estimated number of hours that the student must spend to achieve the learning outcomes defined for the subject.
Lecture: 1 ECTS (30 hours) - hours in direct contact with the teacher, i.e. participation in classes, 1.5 ECTS (45 hours) - student's own contribution, including 15 hours reading the literature, 30 hours preparation for the oral exam.
Classes: 0.5 ECTS (15 hours) - hours in direct contact with the teacher, i.e. participation in classes, including discussions on the conceptualization and operationalization of a project study; and presenting the results of the analysis in an oral form; 2 ECTS (50 hours) - student's own contribution, including 35 hours database preparation, 15 hours preparation of a multimedia presentation with research results and preparation of a written final report.
Type of course
Mode
Prerequisites
Prerequisites (description)
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Directional effects: K_W03, K_W12, K_W13 / K_U07, K_U08 / K_K02
Specialization effects: S2_W03, S2_W11, S2_W13 / S2_U07, S2_U08 / S2_K02
KNOWLEDGE: The graduate knows and understands
- causes (background) of conflicts in human-environment relations in Latin American countries (more broadly in developing countries) in conditions of limited access to various goods, malnutrition, illiteracy, weakness of state structures;
- the structure of conflicts over resources in Latin America;
- consequences (actual and possible) of conflicts over resources in Latin America, which, in the light of modern knowledge, lead to environmental degradation and pose a threat to the ever less numerous and less numerous groups of indigenous peoples.
- basic terminology in the field of environmental justice, with particular emphasis on Latin American specificities,
- history of local and regional conflicts in Latin America.
SKILLS: The graduate is able to:
- search for information and data on environmental conflicts in Latin America;
- acquire research skills allowing to formulate problems, questions, goals, research hypotheses in the field of environmental conflicts in Latin America;
- select, apply and interpret the results of appropriate methods of analysis concerning environmental conflicts, taking into account the adopted hypotheses and available data;
- participate in discussions on environmental conflicts in Latin America;
- present the results of the analysis of a simple research problem in the field of environmental conflicts in Latin America in written and oral form.
SOCIAL COMPETENCES: The graduate is ready to
- work in a group research project on environmental conflicts in Latin America;
- conducting a critical analysis of conflict situations in Latin America;
- is aware of the opportunities and threats related to local and regional conflicts in Latin America;
- understanding the importance of environmental conflicts as catalysts for change in Latin America.
Assessment criteria
Lectures: The attendance list is not checked (lectures are not compulsory). The grade is issued on the basis of an oral exam on the issues discussed in lectures and included in the given literature.
Exercises: One unexcused absence is possible (other absences must be excused). The assessment includes: class activity, especially in discussions on a research project and the subject of environmental conflicts in Latin America (40% of the grade), development of a database (20%), presentation of the analysis results in the form of a speech at the last class, supported by a multimedia presentation ( 20%), final test report (20%).
Bibliography
Bozigar M., Gray C.L., Bilsborrow R.E., 2016, Oil Extraction and Indigenous Livelihoods in the Northern Ecuadorian Amazon, World Development, t. 78, 125–35.
Czerny M., 2015, Ameryka Środkowa – trudne sąsiedztwo na przesmyku między Meksykiem i Ameryką Południową, Studia z Geografii Politycznej i Historycznej, t. 4, 37–54.
Czerny M., Czerny A., 2017, Geograficzne aspekty ochrony dziedzictwa kulturowego w Ameryce Łacińskiej, Zeszyty Naukowe Uczelni Vistula, t. 52, 40-54.
Díaz A., Padilla C., 2018, Conflictos mineros en América Latina: extracción, saquero y agresión. Estado de situación en 2017, Observatorio de Conflictos Mineros de América Latina.
García Pérez J., 2005, Conflictos territoriales y luchas fronterizas en América Latina durante los siglos XIX y XX, Norba. Revista de Historia, t. 18, 215-41.
Haslam P.A, Tanimoune N.A., 2016, The Determinants of Social Conflict in the Latin American Mining Sector: New Evidence with Quantitative Data, World Development, t. 78, 401–19.
Lisińska M., 2017, Stan bezpieczeństwa w Ameryce Łacińskiej w 2016 roku, Przegląd Strategiczny, nr 10, 529–45.
Luján P.M., 2017, Geopolítica, conflictos fronterizos en América Latina, Revista Geopolítica Transfronteiriça, t. 1, nr 1, 1–14.
Łaciński P., 2017, Wyzwania i uwarunkowania stabilności geopolitycznej Ameryki Łacińskiej, Ameryka Łacińska. Kwartalnik analityczno-informacyjny, t. 3, nr 97, 5–17.
UNDP, 2013, Understanding social conflict in Latin America, United Nations Development Programme, La Paz.
Additional information
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