Social Technologies in riverside communities: delay or technological correspondence to the Amazon Biome?

Abstract

This article aims to present technologies created by agroextractivist communities and how they can represent a technological development process more closely linked to the characteristics of the Amazon biome. In this region, the dominant conception of technological development labels the technologies created by traditional communities as “backward.” This perception leads to the imposition of external technologies that are not suited to the characteristics of the territory and tend to overlook their impact on nature and local culture. In light of this, it becomes important to conduct research that seeks to shed light on the technologies developed by agroextractivists, enabling a better understanding of their applications and impacts, free from labels and prejudices. Therefore, this work analyzes the diversity of technologies built by agroextractivists and seeks to observe the process of their construction, highlighting their implications for the territory. For this purpose, we adopt the Social Technology (ST) approach. A case study was conducted to identify the diversity of technologies in an agroextractivist community in the Amazon. The study was based on lived experiences, participant observation, and secondary data. It was observed that, contrary to the label of “backwardness,” the technologies of agroextractivists represent a centuries-old process of building technological adaptations to the territory and demonstrating responsibility toward nature.