In 2007, President Rafael Correa proposed the unique idea to refrain from oil extraction in one of the most biologically diverse areas of the world and home to indigenous groups, the ITT block of...Show moreIn 2007, President Rafael Correa proposed the unique idea to refrain from oil extraction in one of the most biologically diverse areas of the world and home to indigenous groups, the ITT block of the Yasuní National Park. It was seen to be building on the concept of Buen Vivir, following a new pathway towards a new vision of society and development. However, in 2013, it all came tumbling down when President Correa decided to terminate the historic initiative. The paradoxical position of the government, both responsible for the implementation and dependent on exploitation for its finance has often been part of the discussions surrounding the initiative. This thesis provides a critical discourse analysis of the official political speeches of Rafael Correa in order to allow for a new understanding of how the Yasuní-ITT initiative failed. This thesis aims to explore the development strategy of Rafael Correa by analysing how is Buen Vivir appropriated in the official political discourse with regards to the Yasuní-ITT initiative.Show less
En el Ecuador, las repetidas crisis financieras, políticas y económicas se conviertieron en el caldo de cultivo en el que una gran cantidad de la población comenzó a idear estrategias que le...Show moreEn el Ecuador, las repetidas crisis financieras, políticas y económicas se conviertieron en el caldo de cultivo en el que una gran cantidad de la población comenzó a idear estrategias que le permitiese afrontar la agobiante situación del momento. Para fines del 99 y comienzos del 2000 una gran cantidad de ecuatorianos encontraron en la migración a España la estrategia decisiva que les ayudaría a paliar la crisis económica y sacar adelante a sus familias. Dicha migración se distinguió de procesos migratorios anteriores debido a la masiva presencia de la mujer, pero esta vez no como acompañante de su pareja, sino, como cabeza del proceso migratorio.Show less
The rise of awareness on environmental issues has led to a shift from traditional development towards sustainable development, which includes environmentalism. Sustainable development has been...Show moreThe rise of awareness on environmental issues has led to a shift from traditional development towards sustainable development, which includes environmentalism. Sustainable development has been highly debated among countries at several UN conferences dating back to the first Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) in 1992. The most recent global agreement is embodied in the Paris Agreement, signed in 2015, which is a climate agreement within the framework of sustainable development. However, the main problem of global treaties is that it is hard to satisfy all parties. The Paris Agreement includes developed and developing countries, which both have different concerns and ideas on development in general. Consequently, developing countries have come up with their own local alternatives towards sustainable development for instance Buen Vivir in Ecuador. Buen Vivir, often translated as ‘Good Life’ in English, is an Ecuadorian form of eco-politics included in Ecuador’s constitution in 2008, based on the indigenous concept of Sumak Kawsay. This paper will make a comparative analysis between the global approach (the Paris Agreement) and the local approach (Buen Vivir) in order to examine which of the two alternatives form a more feasible way for Ecuador towards sustainable development. The paper concludes that even though both approaches have their flaws, the local approach is more in line with the objectives of sustainable development in the case of Ecuador.Show less
Our demand for cheap food also has a large impact on the producers in the South; they are working under severe pressure to keep the production costs low, resulting in crop-prices below minimum...Show moreOur demand for cheap food also has a large impact on the producers in the South; they are working under severe pressure to keep the production costs low, resulting in crop-prices below minimum level, child labour, and the use of chemicals. The Fairtrade Labelling Organization claims to improve the working conditions of those farmers. The main goal of this thesis is to show the impact of the certification on cacao producers and their families in Ecuador, and which role cooperatives have in the Fairtrade network. The corresponding hypothesis was that the cacao producers in Ecuador have more access to social services and education, due to the improvement of their livelihoods with the certificate, while the Fairtrade benefits are a complex process, and the role of cooperatives is crucial.Show less
Located in the upper Napo basin in the western Amazonian region of Ecuador, the Yasuní National Park is widely considered to be one of the most biologically diverse places on earth. In June 2007,...Show moreLocated in the upper Napo basin in the western Amazonian region of Ecuador, the Yasuní National Park is widely considered to be one of the most biologically diverse places on earth. In June 2007, Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa Delgado introduced the proposal known as the Yasuní-ITT initiative which aimed to put a moratorium on any future drilling in the area in exchange for compensation from the international community to the tune of US$3.6 billion over a period of approximately 10 years. Although the initiative received overwhelmingly positive and favorable reactions from governments and organizations around the globe, it was cancelled in 2013 by Correa due to lack of funding. The controversy over Correa’s conclusion of the Yasuní-ITT initiative has been a part of larger discussions occurring within Ecuador over the past few decades concerning changing rights, new forms of representation, and alternatives to the traditional development practices. Accompanying these new formulations of citizenship is the idea of ‘sumak kawsay’ or 'buen vivir,' a pluralistic concept stemming from an Andean indigenous cosmovisión which promotes indigenous knowledge, social welfare, democracy and living within ones means and in harmony with ones community, including not only humans but with all aspects of nature, including animals, plants and the elements While buen vivir is appealing to social movements, conservationists and leftist academics both within and outside of Ecuador for a myriad of reasons, the failure of the Yasuní-ITT initiative has cast doubts as to whether it provides an alternative political paradigm that can function economically on a national scale within the capitalist world structure in which we currently operate and exist. This thesis aims to analyze whether sumak kawsay can accomplish its goals of respecting nature within Ecuador while also economically benefitting both the state and the Ecuadorian people.Show less
Ecuador became the first country in the world to acknowledge the rights of nature in the constitution. However, Ecuador is dependent on the revenue generated by the export of (crude) oil. The...Show moreEcuador became the first country in the world to acknowledge the rights of nature in the constitution. However, Ecuador is dependent on the revenue generated by the export of (crude) oil. The regions where the oil deposits are located are found in fragile ecological environments, the Amazon rain forest for example. These regions are also home to many indigenous communities. These communities belong to the poorest section of Ecuadorean society, and the communities are also the first to be negatively affected by the exploitation of the oil fields. This essay strives to explain the effects of constitutional rights of nature on the economic position of the country. Environmental, and ecological challenges have risen to prominence in recent years. A majority of countries have signed the Paris Climate Accord in 2016. Ecuador was the first country to enshrine the rights of nature in the constitution. Other countries might follow and therefore research is needed to learn from the Ecuadorean experience. A special focus must lie on the trade position of developing countries when developing ecological policies, or rights of nature. Because trade is needed to develop and might clash with the intention of nature conservation.Show less
In deze studie zal de invloed van extractivisme op de economische ontwikkeling op nationaal en lokaal niveau sinds in Ecuador de aanstelling van Rafael Correa in 2007 beschreven worden. Het...Show moreIn deze studie zal de invloed van extractivisme op de economische ontwikkeling op nationaal en lokaal niveau sinds in Ecuador de aanstelling van Rafael Correa in 2007 beschreven worden. Het onderzoek zal gebaseerd worden op een casus-studie van Yasuní nationaalpark. Daarbij zal gekeken worden naar tegenstrijdigheden van het postneoliberaal beleid in relatie met olie-exploitatie.Show less
The biggest issue for Podemos and its Latin American connection, is their link to Venezuela. Many Spaniards, in particular conservative sympathisers, feel uneasiness towards the Latin American...Show moreThe biggest issue for Podemos and its Latin American connection, is their link to Venezuela. Many Spaniards, in particular conservative sympathisers, feel uneasiness towards the Latin American country because they consider it to be a radical dictatorship, in part because it has been presented in this way by the Spanish media. Podemos knows that any link to Venezuela will immensely damage the image the electorate have of it, thus preventing Podemos from appealing to the majority of Spaniards. It is this paper's objective to investigate and assess the extent to which Podemos and its leaders see the leftist populist regimes in Latin America as an inspiring example. To find out what exactly Podemos likes and dislikes about these Latin American countries, their leaders and the policies that have made them so popular. Is Podemos bringing twenty-first-century socialism to Spain? Does it plan on implementing similar policies? Is it copying the discourses used by Correa, Morales, Chávez and Maduro? What is the connection between Latin America and Podemos?Show less
The thesis argues that Buen Vivir (good living) proves to be a viable new form of environmental governance in Ecuador, which has undergone a significant process of norms socialization and shaped...Show moreThe thesis argues that Buen Vivir (good living) proves to be a viable new form of environmental governance in Ecuador, which has undergone a significant process of norms socialization and shaped environmental governance on a national and global level. The thesis brings together discusses on development, sustainable development and on environmental governance, as well as works that have looked at the topic of Buen Vivir. Methodologically, a constructivist transnational approach has been taken, which enables the view at environmental governance across spatial and institutional borders. Theoretically, it draws on concepts of transnational networks, including epistemic communities and advocacy networks, to explain the transfer of ideas. In addition to these concepts, the theoretical model of norm socialization from Risse and Sikkink is applied. After giving a historical background, which highlights the emergence of indigenous movements during the neoliberal 1980s and 1990s, the second chapter shows how the environmental values of these local movements became embedded in national policy under the concept of Buen Vivir, which can be seen in Ecuador’s constitution from 2008 and its National Development Plan. Chapter 3 is a detailed investigation of the transnational networks involved in the Ecuadorian Yasuni-ITT initiative, which set the start for a norm socialization process of Ecuadorian environmental governance from a national to a global level.Show less
