Beyond the sham of the emancipatory Enlightenment: Rethinking the relationship of Indigenous epistemologies, knowledges, and geography through decolonizing paths

Clément, Virginie

doi:10.1177/0309132517747315

Cited by 33 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…It relies on strong relationships with community members and the establishment of partnerships with research participants which actively engage in knowledge creation processes (Kovach, 2009). CBR acknowledges multiple sources and ways of generating learning, including traditional and indigenous epistemologies (Clement, 2019;Howard, 2016). CBR seeks diverse voices, equitable and collaborative relationships with research participants and supports empowering relations benefiting the individual and the partnership levels (Hutchinson & Lovell, 2013).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grassroots waste picker organizations addressing the UN sustainable development goals

Gutberlet

2021

World Development

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Worldwide waste pickers work under deplorable conditions and are not recognized for their environmental and community services, by recovering and diverting recyclable materials from waste. Brazil has accumulated experiences of international relevance, particularly between 2004 and 2015, due to institutional and policy support for the Social and Solidarity Economy and the creation of a National Waste Pickers' movement. These conditions have favored the formation of new recycling cooperatives throughout the country. While there is still a wide spectrum of differences among these membershipbased organizations, they also have many characteristics in common and share similar values and objectives. This research aims to demonstrate that when organized and supported by public policies and inclusive governance these groups are able to tackle several of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This article presents results of a case study, conducted over the period of 5 months in 2018, involving 21 waste picker cooperatives in the metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil. Data collection included the application of a questionnaire to the leaders of the 21 cooperatives and site visits to their facilities, including informal conversations with members. Data was collected at the cooperatives and involved note taking and voice recording. The data was transcribed and tabled for the subsequent content analysis. The results demonstrate the impacts of the work of organized waste pickers on SDGs (goals # 1, 5, 8, 11 and 12). The study shows how these groups address social, economic and environmental targets, how they build resilience and reduce vulnerabilities. Many cooperatives still operate under precarious conditions, suffering from weak government commitments and neglect or from the volatility of the economy. Public policies and participation in governance are instrumental in acknowledging waste picker organizations and remunerating their services to thus unlock their full potential to further the progress on the implementation of SDGs. Political will is paramount for waste pickers to become the champions in the transition to more sustainable development.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grassroots waste picker organizations addressing the UN sustainable development goals

Gutberlet

2021

World Development

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“…English was introduced as the language of Our experiences growing up are by no way unique to our city, but speak to one of the many ways that people in Lalibela develop a deep spiritual relationship to the churches and the town itself. Like other indigenous perspectives, rather than being conceived as a tabula rasa, waiting to be authored or acted upon by human beings, the traditional beliefs of Ethiopians understand place to have agency that can impose demands on human beings (Deloria 2003;Basso 1996;Smith 2005;Clement 2017). As Vanessa Watts has written, "land is alive and thinking" (Watts 2013, p. 21).…”

Section: Tabot Is Understood Asmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lalibela: Spiritual Genealogy beyond Epistemic Violence in Ethiopia

Woldeyes

2019

Genealogy

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The rock hewn churches of Lalibela have special significance in the formation of Ethiopia’s consciousness as a sacred land of God’s covenant. Numerous local stories express the sanctity of Lalibela as a Heavenly Jerusalem on earth and the faithful use holy soil from the churches to cure the sick. Every year, thousands of Tewahido believers travel to receive blessings. Local scholars who studied decades in the indigenous education system serve as intermediaries between the sanctity of the place and the people, and transmit their knowledge to the younger generation. This paper traces this spiritual genealogy to the creation story in the Kebra Nagast regarding the Ark of the Covenant (Tabot) and relates it to Lalibela’s famous churches. It demonstrates the existence of enduring spiritual genealogy that considers place as alive and powerful. The paper also reflects on how the loss of indigenous sources of knowledges, particularly through the stealing or taking of manuscripts by foreign collectors, and the rise of a Eurocentric interpretation of the history of Lalibela challenges this millennial spiritual tradition. It argues that this has resulted in epistemic violence, the practice of interpreting local knowledge with a foreign lens in a way that reinforces colonial Eurocentric views that are then internalised within Africans themselves. Despite such challenges, it shows how the genealogy continues through the very identity and practice of local communities and individuals.

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“…The discussion in the following pages is also closely associated with the move to decolonize social sciences by centring Indigenous ontologies, naming lived realities which are not accounted for in dominant discourses of violence and colonialism (Holmes et al, 2015) and recognizing that the shadows of colonial oppression are always 'there' and still present in everyday forms of marginalization (Clement, 2019). As examined in the next section, the evolution of the Guarani-Kaiowa struggle and their ontological experience of being a unique Indigenous people contain elements of socio-spatial injustices that are nonetheless shared with the class-ethnicity nexus of other subaltern groups around the world and which also helps to produce the world.…”

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confidence: 99%

Ontological politics and the struggle for the Guarani-Kaiowa world

Ioris

2020

Space and Polity

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The article examines the political perspective of Indigenous peoples in their effort to resist aggression and reclaim back land and opportunities lost to mainstream development. The discussion is based on an investigation into how the Guarani-Kaiowa of South America have been able to maintain a socio-spatial identity, react to specific socio-spatial injustices and at the same time associate their struggle with the campaign of other Indigenous groups. This concrete example is instrumental for demonstrating the application of political ontology as a tool for interrogating the impacts of Western modernity, the advance of agrarian capitalism and commonalities with related subaltern politics.

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Beyond the sham of the emancipatory Enlightenment: Rethinking the relationship of Indigenous epistemologies, knowledges, and geography through decolonizing paths

Cited by 33 publications

References 84 publications

Grassroots waste picker organizations addressing the UN sustainable development goals

Grassroots waste picker organizations addressing the UN sustainable development goals

Lalibela: Spiritual Genealogy beyond Epistemic Violence in Ethiopia

Ontological politics and the struggle for the Guarani-Kaiowa world

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