Dialogues between social and natural sciences: Contribution to the debate on socio-environmental conflicts

Abstract

In this article, I argue that attempting to solve real problems is a possible approach to bring social and natural sciences together, and suggest that – as Environmental Impact Assessment necessarily brings together social and environmental issues – this debate is a strong candidate for such a task. The argument is based on a general discussion about the possibilities and limitations of Environmental Impact Assessments, the social-environmental impacts of mining activities and three case studies. The analysis of the cases indicates possibilities and limitations of the dialogue between scientists from various areas – and of the collaboration with social movements and affected communities – in avoiding negative impacts of mining projects and, eventually, increasing their sustainability.