Protecting the Forest Beings that Protect Us: The Cosmo-Political Challenge Kawsak Sacha Poses to Ecuador's Extraction-Based Development

Abstract

Sarayaku, an Amazonian Kichwa community in Pastaza province, Ecuador, is suspected to be rich in oil reserves. This fact has generated outside interest in the region and in turn pushed Sarayaku Runa (Sarayaku people) to defend their territory against state-led extractivist projects. In this context, the conflict in Sarayaku territory, among the state, multinational oil companies and the Indigenous Peoples who inhabit it, goes beyond natural resources. In an effort to distance themselves from the current use of terms such as buen vivir and Pachamama rights, Sarayaku Runa are now inventing new legal and social concepts, such as Kawsak Sacha.