Domestication of Amazonian landscapes

Abstract

In the popular imagination, Amazonia is a natural biome, which denies the existence and agency of Indigenous Peoples who arrived at least 13, 000 years ago. This essay will demonstrate that Amazonia is a web of socio-ecological interactions, as a result of the domestication of landscapes and populations of species. The practices involved in the domestication of landscapes are simple, yet based on deep knowledge, and respectful of non-humans. Indigenous Peoples combine horticulture and landscape domestication, as well as sedentary lifestyles and mobility. The Mebêngôkre (Kayapó) and Baniwa practice more horticulture, while the Nukak and Zo’é are more mobile, and the domestication of their landscapes reflects these differences. Domesticated forests produce as much food as swiddens and fallows, all leading to forest maintenance or regeneration. These practices suggest that national and global societies can learn to produce food in the standing forest, which would contribute to mitigating the effects of the Anthropocene.