The Center is hosted by the French Institute of Andean Studies (IFEA), present in Lima since 1948. An important event in which the Andean pole Lima participates are the Days of Young Americanists (JJA), organized by the CEMCA and the Mexico center since 2010 and since 2015, alternating the organization with the IFEA. This major event for young Americanist research aims to promote the production of works in the humanities and social sciences in the Americas and to contribute to the dialogue between young researchers by offering a space for reflection and analysis. This event is also an opportunity for the Andean Lima center to strengthen its links with other centers of the Institute of the Americas as well as with researchers from CEMCA (Center for Mexican and Central American Studies) and Casa Velázquez.
Discover in 180 seconds the thesis of Valentine ARTANO-GARMENDIA, coordinator of the Andean Lima Center (2023-2026), PhD student at the Université Paris 1 Panthéon – Sorbonne (ED 434)
PhD dissertation topic : « The Waorani people through contact: geography of a conflict. » under the direction of François-Michel LE TOURNEAU
The recently contacted Waorani people of Ecuador's Amazon region have been at the heart of the oil ambitions of the Ecuadorian state and multinational companies since the 1950s. In 2019, the Waorani won a landmark lawsuit against the state, temporarily limiting oil activities on their territory. This success has made the Waorani a symbol of environmental struggle, yet the people are divided: while some communities denounce ecological damage, others are dependent on oil revenues and support extractivism. A third, isolated group defends its territory from any incursion.
Valentine Artano-Garmendia's research proposes to integrate space as a relevant variable in the analysis of the complex situation of the Waorani people, and to complement anthropological studies with a geographical perspective. The study of the people's territorial mobilities and trajectories will enable us to analyze how internal and external dynamics shape, in their interdependence, the strategies of the different communities. The situation of the Waorani, far from being isolated in the Amazonian panorama, will enable us to reconsider the question of development and the use of natural resources among indigenous peoples, a crucial issue at a time when climate change must imperatively be combated.
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