The international workshop “Governance and Infrastructure in the Amazon: Dialogues on research opportunities and impact analysis” took place in Cobija, Bolivia on May 13 – 16, 2019. It was jointly organized by the University of Florida’s Governance and Infrastructure in the Amazon Project, the Amazon Dams Network, and the Amazon University of Pando’s Area of Biological and Natural Sciences and International Relations Department.
The overarching objective of the event was to promote dialogue between different social actors regarding the development of hydropower in the Amazon, with a focus on research and impact analysis, and the formation of a Community of Practice and Learning. This event focused on the region known as Alto Madera, or Upper Madera, a river basin housing the Amazon’s largest tributary – stretching from eastern Bolivia and southern Peru into western Brazil. The workshop brought together researchers, academics, urban and rural community leaders, and indigenous, NGO, and government representatives from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, and the United States.
The first day of the event consisted of talks and panels open to the broader public that presented research and projects on governance and social, environmental and economic impacts of infrastructure development on local populations, especially hydroelectric dams. The talks and panels were followed by a competitive poster session that showcased regional research.
The following days were open only to invited workshop participants and consisted of various interactive activities that generated discussion, reflection, and plans for the future. The first of these was the construction of a timeline of regionally pertinent events that built on baseline information generated by interviews with participants conducted prior to the workshop.
Participants then worked in small groups on a participatory mapping exercise to identify and discuss threats and existing or potential actions related to infrastructure development. The results of each group were then synthesized on a large map in plenary, resulting in a rich discussion of differing visions of the most threatened areas and resources, which were geographically clustered up and down the region’s rivers, focusing attention on regional infrastructure plans that include dams, waterways, and ports.
This activity was followed by the construction of a power-interest matrix wherein participants worked in groups to identify relevant stakeholders in the governance of infrastructure in this region of the Amazon. This was followed by placing these actors on two matrices, one based on actors’ interests, and the second on their actual power (according to participants’ perception). Discussion in plenary highlighted overlaps and discontinuities between the relative power and interest of the various stakeholders, identifying gaps for focus and empowerment.
Following this regional analysis, each participating organization presented to the group their tools, strategies, experiences, and lessons learned in the study, promotion, and enactment of environmental governance in the region. This dialogue helped to integrate the group across national, disciplinary, and institutional boundaries. A final step of this activity was envisioning and elaborating future collaborations between workshop participants.
The workshop concluded with the construction of a ‘Roadmap 2020’ wherein participants identified issue-areas where they see themselves working with the other members of our nascent Community of Practice and Learning. The roadmap includes exchange opportunities, agreements for joint actions that include knowledge management (between academic, social, governmental and non-governmental institutions, community organizations, local leaders, indigenous peoples and other actors), and research opportunities. The workshop successfully developed dialogues across boundaries, focusing on collaborative learning and research coordination, and set the stage for further synergy between the capacities and knowledge of the diverse participating institutions.
