Edith Kauffer : Sediments, politics and policies in the Usumacinta river basin: sand and gravels from the main river and its Mexican tributaries

On The May 25, 2021

10:00 to 12:00
visio conference

What do we mean by politics and policy issues related to sediments? The seminar deals with a three points-proposal: a theoretical perspective, analytical viewpoints and a political and legal advocacy attempt.

It will focus on the three following points:

  • A theoretical reflection about politics and policies that focuses on sediments in order to discuss the main concepts and a general proposal for sediments.
  • From this theoretical perspective, some different analytical axes for the past 2018-2020 fieldwork that were developed along the last months.
  • Some proposals for the Mexican water policy that enable to politicize the notion of sediments as well as to sustain their importance for water management and to make a difference between industrial sand mining and local stakeholders’ small scale extraction.
Edith Kauffer is a senior professor and researcher at the Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social (CIESAS) in San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapas, in Southern Mexico. and a 2020-2021 Fellow at the Collegium de Lyon.

Illustration: Edith Kauffer