Interactive learning spaces for small producers in Latin America

CLAUDIA BASTIDA MERCADO; ANASTACIO GARCÍA MARTÍNEZ; GUILLERMO SÁNCHEZ

Ankara

Conferencia; The 11th GLOBELICS International Conference; 2013

Middle East Technical University; GLOBELICS

Inclusive development is the main challenge, especially in Latin America countries, in order to fight against exclusion raised from neoliberal policies implemented along the ?90s decade. Two case studies are presented in order to discover and analyse the set of relationships emerging to address economic and social inclusion issues. In the first place, the milk small producers at the Loma Blanca community in Almoloya Juarez, Mexico State, Mexico is studied. Then, the case of olive small producers at Aimogasta, La Rioja, Argentina is presented. The information is collected taking in mind a complementary approach built from the evolutionary economic theory, actor-network theory, social construction of technology and localized agri-food systems. The obtained information was interpreted through a deductive / inductive process and then depicted by applying the social networks method. The results showed that even though both cases presented different pattern of relationship, they have some common points. Idiosyncrasy, cultural and bad / good experiences lived in the past are the most relevant ones. Public policy should harmonize such factors with their mean objectives in order get success as social and economic inclusion tools. In that way interactive leaning spaces can be visualized in both cases and new intervention strategies can be projected for future cases starting with these experiences.