Land use change dynamics in Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining areas in the Brazilian Amazon

• Grant number: 20/07985-6
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): July 01, 2020
• Effective date (End): October 31, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Sociology - Other specific Sociologies
• Cooperation agreement: Belmont Forum
• Principal researcher: Lúcia da Costa Ferreira
• Grantee: Luciana Massaro
• Home Institution: Núcleo de Estudos e Pesquisas Ambientais (NEPAM). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 18/50033-6 - Sustainability transformations in artisanal and small scale gold mining: a multi actor and trans regional perspective, AP.R

Abstract

Artisanal and small-scale mining is an activity driven by poverty, found mainly in remote areas of developing countries. At the same time, this activity represents the livelihood of millions of people and has the potential to contribute to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. An understanding of how the dynamics of mining in Brazil can lead to transformations towards sustainability requires an analysis of spatial divisions and territorial overlaps that consider the local and regional historical characteristics of land use. This post-doctoral research project aims to develop an interdisciplinary and spatial investigation into the multiplicities of human-environment interactions in the context of small-scale gold mining. The main objectives are: i) to map the changes in land use and coverage caused by the mining activity in relation to the other activities on the territory through satellite images from three regions of the Brazilian Amazon (Lourenc'o, AP; Tapajos, PA and Peixoto de Azevedo, MT); ii) analyse the consequences of mining as a means of local livelihood by comparing the data obtained by remote sensing and the social research to be carried out in the region. From an analysis of how local communities are organized in relation to the spatial distribution of resources and mineral extraction processes, it becomes interesting to understand what are the tensions that arise between communities in relation to land use; how different social actors (miners, farmers, indigenous communities, etc.) relate and overlap in the same region; what is the role of the state (at its various levels) in relation to local actors and how does this relationship translate into a conflict for land occupation. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

CALVIMONTES, J.; MASSARO, L.; ARAUJO, C. H. X.; MORAES, R. R.; MELLO, J.; FERREIRA, L. C.; DE THEIJE, M. Small-scale gold mining and the COVID-19 pandemic: Conflict and cooperation in the Brazilian Amazon. EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES AND SOCIETY-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL, v. 7, n. 4, p. 1347-1350, NOV 2020. Web of Science Citations: 0.