From Theory to Practice: Exploring Transformative Change in Latin America with LAPECS
Written by Rafael Lembi and edited by Anna Mayer Photo by Rafael Lembi
During a beautiful summer morning in Montréal, Canada, a friendly group of people gathered for a very special conference session hosted by researchers involved with the Latin American Network of the Program on Ecosystem Change and Society (LAPECS). Focusing on transdisciplinary, place-based research in Latin America, the session was devoted to exploring a pressing question of our times: What does transformation look like?
In a humorous and friendly atmosphere, Micaela Trimble and Rafael Calderón-Contreras, more popularly known as Mica and Rafa, were the official hosts of the session that aimed to explore deliberate efforts to produce positive change in Latin America. When opening the session, Mica and Rafa emphasized the relevance of using transformative change as the theoretical underpinning for applying transdisciplinary research methods. They highlighted the importance of place-based research in generating insight into the practice of transformation. The session featured six different presentations, encompassing case studies from Mexico, Chile, Uruguay
and Brazil.
In the first presentation, Rafa Calderón set the scene for the whole session by making it very clear what the departing point was going to be: deliberate, transformative change is possible, and Latin America is full of examples! Leveraging several insights that Rafa has gained as a part of his work with the transformative change assessment led by IPBES, he highlighted the relevance of reconnecting people and nature and co-constructing visions of desirable futures.
Next up was M. Azahara Mesa-Jurado. She stressed the importance of using creative and artistic approaches in transdisciplinary research to address the gap between rational knowledge and emotional connection with nature. Arts allow researchers and community partners to explore new possibilities in a playful manner. In her work in Mexico, she has applied participatory video and forum theater to create space for learning and building relationships.
The third presenter, Karina Boege gave insights into her work, in which she has applied the concept of transdisciplinary social-ecological innovation laboratories to extensive cattle ranching in Mexico. The learning community Red de Ganadería Sostenible was a key part of the project, in which researchers, ranchers and other partners gathered to co-design the means and manners to produce change, focusing on an approach that detailed the where, how and with whom of transformation. As an outcome of this project, demonstrative ranchers who were sustainability leaders created social learning spaces to inspire others in the region.
In the fourth presentation, Stefan Gelcich shared some insights from his long-term work on co-producing transformations in the governance of fisheries in Chile. Using a conservation approach called “territorial use right for fisheries” (TURF), Stefan reported on the history of the co-creation and institutionalization of a scalable TURF program in Chile. Through a combination of research, action and advocacy, fisher-led voluntary marine conservation has become a formally recognized, innovative model for conservation in Chile. The key message of the presentation was clear: if you do not create the innovations you want to see in the world, no one else will create them for you.
Micaela Trimble was the fifth presenter. She shared stories about three different projects involving water governance, small scale fisheries in Uruguay, and identifying ingredients for transdisciplinary processes. Mica‘s work brought together a really diverse group of people, including fishers, designers, and artists, and used a wide range of methods. She showed how common place-based methods (like photovoice) could be used on a larger scale, for example in Uruguay as a whole. Mica also emphasized the relevance of considering both intangible outcomes and tangible outputs in the process of transdisciplinary research.
The final presenter was Cristiana Seixas. In her talk titled “Transdisciplinarity: easier said than done”, Cris emphasized the importance of building capacity and training early-career professionals to engage with community partners in respectful and meaningful ways. The personal characteristics of the researcher are a very important part of transdisciplinarity that remains underexplored. Moreover, Cris shared about difficulties of aligning academic timelines and goals with those of transdisciplinary processes. Another difficulty is the lack of funding for pre- and post-fieldwork engagement. Finally, Cris acknowledged that we need diverse teams for co-production, as a broad range of skills are necessary to navigate transdisciplinary research.
After the presentations, the audience engaged with thought-provoking questions. For instance, how do leaders of transdisciplinary research projects engage with self-reflection? Moreover, a broad range of vocabulary is used to describe transdisciplinary research, including participatory research, action research, and co-production. How can researchers make sense of all these concepts to avoid “reinventing the wheel”? The lively discussions that followed the questions were interrupted due to the lack of time. However, Mica and Rafa made an invite to the broader community regarding a collective book (organized by LAPECS), entitled “Transdisciplinary research in social-ecological systems: transformations from the root”. The book will feature empirical chapters from those working in Latin America and will be published in Spanish in 2025. The sharing of LAPECS stickers was the cherry on top of a lovely session!
