Protecting Communities Exposed to Agrochemicals

During the last months, we have started a project to make a mapping of socio-environmental conflicts in relation to the use of agrochemicals in urban, peri-urban and rural areas of the Argentinian Pampa geographical region. Through the use of surveys, we look to identify problem cases, a description of their characteristics, local information, their geolocation, normative and jurisprudence, among other risk criteria.

We have selected to investigate the last 10 years (2007-2017) to understand how the processes of community organization and resistance to the implementation of the agro-industrial model, have been developed in the region.

This mapping aims to develop a tool that contains important data that can be used to educate, inform and make apparent these conflicts. This tool is within a development plan that seeks to guarantee the right to education, information, and citizen participation in order to empower communities to be themselves to demand for the respect of their rights to the local authorities or in the courts, thus promoting access to environmental justice.

We believe that this project would contribute directly to the advancement of sustainable development and sustainable policy. The possibility of carrying out this survey and the development of this tool that will be reflected in a map of socio-environmental conflicts, will add another level to our work: the diffusion and visibility of these cases along with the use of this platform by affected communities.

This new level of work will be complemented directly with our efforts and will be constituted as a useful tool for the empowerment of communities, citizens and organizations for the purpose of demanding the protection of their rights.