The wisdom of hindsight: a comparative analysis of timelines of environmental governance of infrastructure across the Pan-Amazon

Alexandra N Sabo, Department of Geography, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
Marliz Arteaga, Tropical Conservation and Development Program (TCD) Center for Latin American Studies, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA; School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
Andrea B Chavez Michaelsen, Tropical Conservation and Development Program (TCD) Center for Latin American Studies, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA; School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
Carolina O. Jordão, Tropical Conservation and Development Program (TCD) Center for Latin American Studies, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA; School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
Sinomar Ferreira da Fonseca Junior, Tropical Conservation and Development Program (TCD) Center for Latin American Studies, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA; School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
Vanessa Luna-Celino, School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
Pamela Montero Alvarez, Tropical Conservation and Development Program (TCD) Center for Latin American Studies, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA; School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA; School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
Stephen Perz, Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5751/ES-12683-270128

Full Text: HTML   
Download Citation

Abstract

The planning and implementation of infrastructure projects is a long-term enterprise that involves debates over the many positive and negative impacts. Previous work has examined questions about conditions for effective environmental governance of infrastructure, but has typically focused on individual projects and short time frames. We therefore pursued an historical approach to environmental governance of infrastructure projects across multiple cases, taking up examples of highways and dams in the Amazon. Through multi-stakeholder workshops, conservation partners developed historical timelines of events concerning governance of infrastructure in four regions within the basin. Timelines permit analysis to identify periods of particular dynamism, improvements and declines in governance effectiveness, identification of influential stakeholders and events, and conditions that define the effectiveness of governance. We conclude with lessons within and across cases about conditions and strategies for effective environmental governance of infrastructure.

Key words

Amazon; Bolivia; Brazil; Colombia; governance; infrastructure; Peru; timeline

Copyright © 2022 by the author(s). Published here under license by The Resilience Alliance. This article is under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You may share and adapt the work provided the original author and source are credited, you indicate whether any changes were made, and you include a link to the license.