Getting our sea back

The Indigenous management of the commons has been the subject of considerable interest by the scientific community in recent decades. One area of growing interest is the study of how these groups organise and act to confront external development initiatives that threaten their livelihoods and the ec...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Carrasco-Bahamonde, Daniel|||0000-0002-3426-5563, Casellas, Antònia|||0000-0002-5252-1399, Araos, Francisco|||0000-0002-7713-8230
Format: article
Publication Date:2025
Country:España
Institution:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repository:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:310678
Online Access:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/310678
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2025.106705
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:ECMPO
Coastal governance
Marine conservation
Indigenous resurgence
Blue justice
Aquaculture
Chilo'e archipelago
Chile
Description
Summary:The Indigenous management of the commons has been the subject of considerable interest by the scientific community in recent decades. One area of growing interest is the study of how these groups organise and act to confront external development initiatives that threaten their livelihoods and the ecosystems that sustain them. This article examines the challenges and opportunities created by a law in Chile that establishes Indigenous Marine Areas, which allows Indigenous peoples to manage marine and coastal areas to protect their customary uses. Integrating insights from critical geography and political ecology on commons governance, Indigenous resurgence, and local social-ecological well-being, this study aims to advance understanding of how Indigenous peoples respond to the socio-ecological impacts of aquaculture in southern Chile under the new law. The analysis focuses on the changes in the access and use of coastal marine space and resources. The findings illustrate that establishing these Indigenous Marine Areas fosters alternative models of territorial development and marine conservation, thereby contributing to local socio-ecological well-being. Despite the socio-territorial intricacy of these processes and the opposition from global industries such as salmon aquaculture, the study concluded that the law has the potential to significantly broaden the range of actors, knowledge, and practices involved in the governance of coastal and marine commons, thereby promoting equity in access to and management of marine spaces and resources.