Indigenous Deals – Cosmologies Negotiated in Environmental and Development Projects

Abstract Affected by the current context of neo-extractivism and the ongoing expansion of world market oriented agriculture and livestock breeding into primary forest areas, Indigenous organizations and communities are seeking support to protect their territories. Forced to enter into an environment of negotiation dominated by foreign cosmologies and paradigms, delegates of Indigenous organizations who participate in meetings outside their own, well known physical and spiritual territories and environments are constantly confronted with difficulties; they have to transmit messages of their own living context during those events, and, later on, provide information on the results to their own communities. At the same time, and based on extended experiences, they have developed a variety of different strategies to cope with these situations. This article draws on long-time expertise in the development cooperation in South America. Based on research stays and the monitoring of various processes among Indigeno...