• Energy Research
• Open Access close
• Closed Access close
• Open Source close
• Embargo close
• 11. Sustainability close
• Spanish close

Context: Colombia consumes natural gas in different sectors, especially in the ones that are residential and vehicular transport. Gas consumption serves as backup for power generation in situations of reduced hydroelectric capacity. Nowadays, gas reserve levels have been reduced and it is essential to ensure the uninterrupted supply of the resource. To achieve such objective, there are some alternatives which are difficult to implement at the same time, given the limited financial budget and implementation times that they demanded. In this way, several studies have advanced in the application of models to prioritize alternatives for both supplying power and reducing emissions in the generation, especially regarding the evaluation of energy sources and technology selection for supply. Method: The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) based in the Delphi method to define preferences according to the experts judgment, was applied to evaluate the selection of alternatives supply of natural gas in Colombia, considering technical, environmental and social criteria, which is reliable and policy oriented to guarantee supply of resources in the country. Results: Once the model was applied, we evaluated the criteria and alternatives for infrastructure to support gas supply, finding that reliability is the most relevant criterion as well as alternative of building the ‘Regasification Pacific Plant’ followed by the construction of the ‘Buenaventura-Cali pipeline’ and the ‘Storage Plant in Bogotá'. Conclusions: As the results indicate, in Colombia efforts should be focus on imports of the resource through the construction of regasification plants and pipelines to facilitate transport inland to demand points. The latter may help decision makers facing various alternatives to ensure the supply of this resource, which is relevant to various economic sectors, including generation of electricity in the country. Language: Spanish

Purpose: The objective of this study is to understand how the learning process of sustainability occurs within the context of the harvesting practices of a forest-based company. Originality/value: The study contributes to understanding the learning process of sustainability under the approach of practice when demonstrating how the knowledge of sustainability is created and reproduced from the practices established by a group. In practical terms, the narrative of the flow of knowing and learning has the potential of assisting managers and educators to structure more integrative corporate education projects, in which the initiatives are integrated into the practices of the occupational communities. Design/methodology/approach: This is a qualitative research of descriptive nature, through a single-case study in a forest harvesting operation in a Brazilian company that has sustainability at the core of its business strategy. It was adopted as collection instruments the in-depth observation, the semi-structured interview, and the documental research, which were analyzed through the thematic analysis of narratives. Findings: The results suggest that, in the given context, the learning process of sustainability happens in a combination of the processes of creation and dissemination of knowledge conducted by the company and the practices developed within the occupational communities. There are indications that, in a social construction process, new working models are learned, based on an entanglement of planning, safety, and discursive practices, activating the knowledge-in-practice of sustainability. / Objetivo: O objetivo deste estudo é compreender como a aprendizagem para a sustentabilidade acontece no contexto das práticas de colheita de uma empresa de base florestal. Originalidade/valor: O texto contribui para a compreensão da aprendizagem para a sustentabilidade na perspectiva da prática ao evidenciar como o saber sobre sustentabilidade é criado e reproduzido a partir das práticas estabelecidas por um grupo. Em termos práticos, a narrativa do fluxo do conhecer e do aprender tem potencial para auxiliar gestores e educadores na estruturação de projetos de educação corporativa mais integradores, nos quais as iniciativas estejam integradas às práticas das comunidades ocupacionais. Design/metodologia/abordagem: Trata-se de uma pesquisa qualitativa de caráter descritivo, por meio de estudo de caso único em uma operação de colheita florestal de uma empresa brasileira que tem a sustentabilidade no núcleo de sua estratégia de negócios. Como instrumentos de coleta, adotaram-se a observação direta, a entrevista semiestruturada e a pesquisa documental. Os dados foram analisados a partir da análise temática de narrativas. Resultados: Os resultados indicam que, no contexto investigado, a aprendizagem da sustentabilidade se dá em uma conjugação dos processos de geração e disseminação de conhecimento conduzidos pela empresa e nas práticas desenvolvidas nas comunidades ocupacionais. Há indicativos de que, em um processo de construção social, novos modos de trabalho são aprendidos, sustentados por um entrelaçamento de práticas de planejamento, de segurança e discursivas, ativando o saber em prática da sustentabilidade.

The aim of this investigation is to show the sustainability features of the chinampa practice in the Valley of Mexico: Xochimilco, applying a FODA diagnosis in order to reveal the environmental transcendence of this particular agricultural model. It is possible to determine that the development of the chinampa has basically two components: the native and social. The first one constitutes the local ecosystem composed by shallow water lakes that are included in a great surface across the valley of Mexico. The second one concerns to the social aspect; which is how the work gets organized, the cultural practices and the implementation of methods and agricultural technologies that are the result of the thousand-year-old wisdom of the autochthonous groups of the chinampa zone. Which has helped to support the integration of the members of the family, as well as providing self-employment and a self sustained source of food, these features show that this system of agricultural production is sustainable in the environmental, social and economic aspects. Nevertheless the chinampa production is affected by diverse aspects as the development of modern agriculture technologies, the urban growth and pollution of the water.

In this issue we address the practice of rainwater harvesting in different settings, presenting experiences from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Paraguay. Some of the papers were originally presented at the IX International Meeting of the WATERLAT-GOBACIT Network“Water, Rights, and Utopias: priorities in the process of democratization of water politics“, João Pessoa, Paraiba, Brazil, 3-7 September 2018. Article 1 was authored by David Sauri, from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain, co-editor of this issue. The article provides an overall introduction to the topic of rainwater harvesting. Article 2, by Martin Sanzana Calvet, Institute of Strategic Studies for Human Development (INEDH), Concepción, Bio-Bio, Chile, addresses the practice of fog catching in arid and semi arid regions of Chile. In Article 3, Daniel Tagle-Zamora, University of Guanajuato, Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico, presents findings from research on the implementation of public policies oriented at the provision of rainwater catchment technologies, mostly for domestic use ,in several municipalities of the semi arid State of Guanajuato, Mexico. Article 4 was co-authored by Roberto de Sousa Miranda, Federal University of the interior of Pernambuco and Federal University of Campina Grande, Paraiba, Brazil, and Laiany Tassila Ferreira, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Brazil.The article discusses the implementation of a national plan to provide rainwater cisterns in the semi arid region of North eastern Brazil, with emphasis on the experience of the State of Paraiba. Finally, Article 5, by Ana Maria Attias Sole and Ricardo Lombardo Lopez, from the North-eastern National University, Resistencia, Chaco, Argentina, provides an overview of the historic legacy of water practices and technologies inherited fromthe“syncretism”between indigenous communities (Tupi-Guarani), and the Jesuit territorial expansion that took place between the early seventeenth and the mid eighteenth centuries in a large region of South America encompassing parts of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. The article focuses mainly on examples from Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, and provides insights into the significance of historical-cultural research in the production of knowledge about rainwater technologies and the associated culture and practices, which also contributes to our network’s Thematic Area 7, Water-related Art, Communication, Culture, and Education.

Current discourses on the exploitation of energy sources, sustainability, and the possibility to keep increasing production and growth in global advanced capitalism are embedded within the neoliberal geopolitics of the energy-militaryindustrial-complex and generate social conflicts around the dominant dynamics of capitalist exploitation of human and environmental energy resources. Exploring this issue, in this article, I report the experience of ‘Energy Independent Caroline Town' as the pilot case of a broader research project of 18 month between Calabria (Italy) and US. Trying to understand critical aspects, reasons and self-narrations for defining as a ‘success' or a ‘failure' a local energy transition initiative, I looked at this experiment, which is considered in literature and by most of the participants as a case of successful communitarian energy transition, bringing attention to the participation of inhabitants in energy sustainable local plans. Thus, considering participation as the key dimension for successful initiatives of local energy transition, the main questions that organize the work are: ‘who decides' in local energy policy, and can ‘the local' decide its own energy independency'? What can enable the local to decide its own energy autonomy and so, like little David(s), try to fight, and even break free of, giant Goliath(s)?

El siglo XXI es el siglo de la sostenibilidad ambiental y de la lucha contra el cambio climático. El cambio climático va a condicionar políticas públicas y acciones privadas en todo el mundo para alcanzar el objetivo de reducción de emisiones establecidos en los acuerdos internacionales (Kyoto, París). El objetivo de este trabajo es llevar a cabo una revisión de los efectos ya constatados del cambio climático en la región mediterránea, así como las medidas de adaptación y mitigación a corto-medio plazo para hacer frente al calentamiento global, como son la adaptación de los espacios urbanos (escala local), y la mejora de la enseñanza sobre este fenómeno. Según la Agenda 2030, y concretamente los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible, el nº13 (“Acción por el clima”), establece dos acciones principales que los países deben culminar en 2030: la aprobación de leyes y planes de mitigación y adaptación, y la puesta en marcha de programas educativos. Finisterra, Vol. 58 N.º 122 (AOP) (2023)

Historical sites declared as Typical Zones (TZs) – ‘’Zonas Típicas’’- in Southern Chile are subject to urban planning and conservation conflicts that address challenges in heritage restoration and development. The relevance attributed to conservation management in contemporary Chilean cultural policies faces the contextual relationships between institutionalized heritage sites, their definitions, and their territorial context. This research contextualizes the urban planning and cultural heritage definition in Southern Chilean cities where heritage assets are mostly wood-built that are over 100 old. It presents excerpts of a case study focused on the valorization of Valdivia’s TZs due to the projected bridge construction by the Public Works Ministry. The bridge access plans to use part of that historical area. Through cross-disciplinary research analysis, the paper considers the factors taken into consideration within the law on defining TZs and heritage values, and how they affect the protection of the areas of impact regarding the new bridge. The study observed the disconnection of the local definition of heritage, where public spaces and private property are separated concepts in the planning and heritage conservation process. It is therefore important to mention that the definition of heritage in the national legal framework should be connected with the perception and definition of space. Tangible, intangible and environmental values should be identified through the process of declaring TZs and follow territorial planning. Tentatively, this can help understand the entry points that can be used to develop and conserve the cultural landscape for the benefits of Wooden Cities. Interpreting the protected site as a dynamic context, a local model for the protection of heritage values in urban areas of southern Chile, tending towards global and sustainability frameworks, could be initiated.

Urbanization is developing in all areas of the planet. This process has an impact on the mobility of people in the city and the means to move both in metropolitan areas and in medium-sized cities. This article analyzes the evolution, between 2001 and 2019, of the motorized vehicle fleet in the communes of Chile in intermediate cities. Through the compilation and systematization of databases provided by official agencies and the use of statistical analysis, the explosive but heterogeneous increase of the vehicle fleet in the communes of such cities is made visible. This differentiated increase does not follow patterns related to urban hierarchy, poverty, income, or even those communes with a successful development model sustained by raw material exports. Based on the above, it is concluded that there are other multi-causal elements in the evolution of such vehicle fleet, such as inter-urban flows between communes, the morphology of the city or climatic conditions. These results invite us to reflect on the type of city that is being built and the problems in the sustainability of such growth for urban areas in the near future, due to the absence or weakness of pertinent territorial policies that favor other means of mobility.

Climate and market shocks impact on the livelihood strategies of families in Altiplano communities. A household survey of 360 families in the Altiplano sheds light how families participate in markets, cope with climate and market shocks, and their feelings of control over these events. Theory proposes that the higher levels of capitals and climate resilient activities will result in a greater sense of control and therefore lower sense of dread. Cluster analysis identified three groups by wealth and life cycle characteristics in each region, as well as clear differences in income, assets, and market production activities between and within regions. Coping strategies in region facing warming and drying trends has focused on loss of assets, such as sales of animals. While in both regions there is diversity of income sources, the major source of diversity in Ancoraimes is crop varieties. While in both regions climatic shocks have had a negative impact on production, this has been experienced in Ancoraimes by 99 to 100 percent of the families, which has implications in terms of coping mechanism that rely on community networks. The other region has also experienced high rates of production shocks, from 71 to 92 percent of household members in each group. Strategies to diversify to climate resilient activities have resulted in increased off farm activities, mostly migration, in the lower income, lower asset region, while the greater assets in livestock, which face a more stable market and ability to withstand climate shocks presents a bifurcated response. Comparison between groups identified in the clusters for each region found no significant differences between groups on climate shock and climate change perceptions, in both regions. The rating on the risk of climate shock hazards at the household level was above 4 in a scale of 1-5 where 4 meant a very high threat and 5 an extreme threat. Umala households ratings were higher for the shocks than for change in climate with an average of 3.79 for the latter, while in Ancoraimes most of the risks were rated from 3.70 to 3.92, with the exception of climate change that was around 4. Overall though, in both regions climate hazard perceptions are high. Market risks are also considered a threat but rated lower than climate. Dread of losing outside networks of support was ranked high by elderly men and women, as well as the change in climate, in Umala, with no differences in Ancoraimes, but higher rates of dread overall do to the significance of this income in their livelihood strategies. Finding to date are consistent with theory, in that the dread, a reflection of the coping or lack of coping mechanisms, is higher in terms of markets for livestock in Umala, and higher in terms of loss of remittances from family members in Ancoraimes. The study finds that coping mechanism are based on individual household strategies, rather than community or institutions. LTRA-4 (Practices and Strategies for Vulnerable Agro-Ecosystems)