Environmental legislation and social representation of human populations at the Upper Xingu

• Grant number: 15/14457-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: December 01, 2015
• End date: August 31, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology - Applied Ecology
• Agreement: Belmont Forum
• Principal Investigator: Alex Vladimir Krusche
• Grantee: Fernanda Viegas Reichardt
• Host Institution: Centro de Energia Nuclear na Agricultura (CENA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 13/50180-5 - Xingu: integrating land use planning and water governance in Amazonia: towards improved freshwater security, AP.PFPMCG.TEM

Abstract

The proposal aims to investigate if the environmental legislation is an effective tool for promoting water security in the Upper Xingu Basin, considering social, environmental, cultural, economic and epistemological aspects of the study area. The Upper Xingu Basin [51 million hectares] is among the main basins of the Amazon River Basin- the most extensive water network of the planet. The Upper Xingu Basin [17 million hectares] is in a transition area between two different biomes. The region faces disputes over wealth control and problems related to deforestation and socio-biodiversity. The legal protection of the waters of the Xingu demands an epistemological pluralism approach that embraces the hydrological cycle of water and riparian forests, as well as the socio-cultural diversity, with its meaning, uses and knowledge. Accordingly, the study aims to legally question the management of the Xingu River Basin so that its implementation does not result in the reduction of key aspects for the protection of biological and sociocultural diversity. The study aims to contribute to one of the most basic human concerns: access to water. (AU)