Paraguayan Indigenous Peoples and the Challenge of Citizenship

Abstract

We consider that citizenship education policies should be a product of a socially informed process where we must question whether it is possible to build a dialogue between cultures that do not share the same world-view. We must therefore reflect critically on what has resulted from the meeting of cultures in Latin America, and understand the fundamental knowledge of Indigenous Peoples which relates to their specific conceptualization of citizen education. This leads us to rethink the meaning of education, participation and the relationships between humans and the environment. To better understand the issues and challenges of citizenship education in this context, this chapter will focus on the case of the Indigenous Peoples of Paraguay. To do so, we will outline Indigenous epistemologies and worldviews, and identify the challenges of a truly intercultural dialogue between different epistemologies. This will allow us to envision culturally relevant citizenship education for Indigenous Peoples.