Indigenous peoples, resources and governance. An analysis of the Indigenous consultation as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment of the Añihuerraqui hydroelectric project, Araucanía Region, Chile | Investigaciones Geográficas
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Indigenous peoples, resources and governance. An analysis of the Indigenous consultation as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment of the Añihuerraqui hydroelectric project, Araucanía Region, Chile

Authors

  • Johanna Höhl Heidelberg Center para América Latina. Centro de Excelencia en Investigación y Docencia, Chile.
No. 59 (2020)
https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-5370.2020.56885
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Abstract

Governance allows for a holistic approach to interactions between the state, the market and civil society by including non-traditional groups in the analysis of social development. This theoretical perspective considers Indigenous peoples as a relevant actor in the decision-making processes around the use of natural resources. The Indigenous consultation created as part of Chile’s environmental institutionality in 2013 was conceived as a space for articulation and negotiation with the aim of empowering Indigenous positions and demands. However, the different visions of nature that are articulated within the framework of the Indigenous consultation make the environmental impact assessment in Indigenous territories more complex. Likewise, the mechanism does not consider the heterogeneity within and between indigenous communities in the same territory, nor does it comply with assigning them greater control over the natural resources in their territories. Against this background, it is worth asking how the Indigenous consultation is validated and legitimized in the face of Indigenous peoples and what is its contribution to the redefinition of their role in the negotiation processes around extractive projects in their territories. Through the analysis of the Indigenous consultation as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment of the Añihuerraqui hydroelectric project, this article shows the division of the affected Indigenous communities, as well as the limitation of their participation in the decision-making process, generating uncertainty among the actors involved.

Keywords:

Chile , governance , hydroelectricity , indigenous peoples.
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How to Cite
Höhl, J. (2020). Indigenous peoples, resources and governance. An analysis of the Indigenous consultation as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment of the Añihuerraqui hydroelectric project, Araucanía Region, Chile. Investigaciones Geográficas, (59), 28–40. https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-5370.2020.56885
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