Experiences of Socio-Environmental Organizations and Movements in the Framework of Environmental Justice in Curicó, Chile and Antioquia, Colombia: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

This chapter presents the results of the exploratory qualitative research “Experiences of environmental justice of socio-environmental organizations and movements in Curicó-Chile and Antioquia-Colombia,” carried out in 2020. The study allowed us to identify the purposes and foundations of social movements in the struggle for environmental justice in their territories. This gave us a glimpse of their link with social work intervention in general and specifically with leadership and organization for sustainability. The findings show that collective action is the articulating axis of socio-environmental organizations and movements, which constitutes a social force for the struggle against environmental inequality, defense of territory, and water.

1. Introduction

This chapter seeks to present the practices and the knowledge of socio-environmental organizations have developed and acquired relating to environmental justice. This can be connected to social work in general and specifically to sustainable leadership and organizations in social work. In this chapter, the research methodology is presented first, followed by a brief contextualization that includes shows legislative and institutional advances in both Chile and Colombia that address sustainability, environmental justice, and socio-environmental problems. The findings are based on the thoughts and opinions of the leaders of socio-environmental organizations and movements, and they are organized into the following two categories: (i) the purposes of the socio-environmental organizations and movements, and (ii) the beliefs that support their action. Finally, there is a discussion and the conclusions are presented. The conclusions show that the organizations are a collective social force against environmental inequality and discover that the information that emerges from the practices and knowledge of socio-environmental movements should be included in social work education considering its connections with sustainable leadership and organizations.

The attention to environmental social work began at the origin of the profession with Jane Addams and the Hull House [1, 2, 3, 4]. In addition, it is important to consider the work of Mason et al. [5] and Krings et al. [6] because of their analyzes related to the history and scope of environmental social work scholarship. Importantly for this chapter, the Krings study found that no papers were published in social work English-language journals related to environmental topics in South America between 1991 and 2015.

In Germany, the Information sdienst Sozialarbeit [Social Work Information Service] [7], a socialist magazine that incorporated the views of various left and alternative movements, organized the first debate that explicitly highlighted the connection between ecology and social work. In addition, this gave rise to the idea of a paradigm shift toward an ecosocial approach in social policy and social work by transforming the social question into an ecosocial question ([8, 9, 10]; cited by [3]). In North America, the debate on whether to incorporate an ecosocial approach began later. In this tradition, academics, such as Soine [11], Berger and Kelly [12], Hoff and Pollack [13], and Hoff and McNutt [14], took the position that the critical application of the ecosocial approach highlights the importance of considering the natural environment and the finite nature of natural resources as fundamental pillars for social policy formulation [3].

Dewane [15] states that the first mention of the importance of the natural environment in the social work practice can be found in the 1995 Social Work article by Berger and Kalley entitled Habitat Destruction Syndrome. In 1996, Park discussed the role of social workers in the environmental movement in the Social Work article The Person is Ecological: Environmentalism of Social Work [15]. Besthorn and Saleebey (2003 cited by Dewane, [15]) assert that social work “has always had an ambivalent understanding of its relationship with the natural world” (p. 20). Since social workers know that context is a prime determinant of quality of life, the deteriorating natural world must become an integral part of the practice of social work.

Kemp [16] indicates that the focus on person and environment has been a defining element of social work’s professional identity. The code of ethics of the International Federation of Social (2005) states that social work intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments. The code of ethics of the International Federation of Social Workers [17] states that social work intervenes at the points where people interact with their environment. In addition, McKinnon highlights, (2008) the codes of ethics for the social work profession in countries, such as India, Chile, and El Salvador, also make the links between environmentalism and social work practice clear. Since the earliest formal beginnings of the profession, social workers have understood that the place where people live profoundly influences how they live and it also has implications for equity, social justice, and health. Translating this understanding into practice, however, has proven to be difficult. Moreover, as Saleebey [18] has noted, “the person-environment perspective is part of the axiological structure of the profession.” (p. 8) Since the profession’s earliest formal beginnings, social workers have understood that the place where people live profoundly influences how they live and has profound implications for equity, social justice, and health.

In addition, international associations have created various working groups to develop, promote, and strengthen environmental justice. The European Association of Schools of Social Work (EASSW), for example, created a special interest group called Ecosocial Work in Social Work Education. Likewise, one of the four pillars set out by the International Federation of Social Work in their Global Agenda for 2010–2020-namely, “working toward environmental and community sustainability”-specifically identifies environmental issues and has generated numerous conferences, congress workshops, symposiums, and events that expand and develop on this theme.

Social work academics should renew existing social work models and perspectives to take environmental problems into account, particularly their consequences on the most vulnerable people. This will improve the capacity of social workers to tackle environmental injustices by proposing collaborative solutions to address them. Due to the extent of the environmental crisis, it is important to act immediately. Leff (cited in Cantú [19, 20, 21]), makes explicit that it is indispensable “to begin through education as a total and integral process that allows for the development of every human being and the discovery of mechanisms to reexamine the behavior and social practices that threaten the ecological and cultural conditions of environmental sustainability” (p. 40). Translating this understanding into practice, however, has proven to be difficult.

Addressing this challenge must begin with comparative research to identify curricular experiences that incorporate an environmental justice perspective and have previously been successful. This will require activating processes of exchange and dialog among academic communities on the best ways to respond to this common challenge. Specifically, sharing experiences and relevant data will help academics to save considerable time, and thus, initiate the necessary adjustments and transformations in social worker training programs. Ideally, these processes of exchange and dialog should focus on two key topics: first, course content and pedagogical strategies and, second, routes to institutionalize an academic culture that promotes environmental justice in the curriculum.

The academic literature concerning environmental issues and education in social work reveals a small but significant flow of work seeking to link ecology and sustainability with the traditional social justice concerns of the profession. This type of literature, however, is only used peripherally in social worker training programs compared to literature that focuses on the main concerns of the profession.

2. Methodology

The methodological design for this exploratory study is qualitative, with an ethnographic approach. Given the context of the Covid-19 global pandemic, the technique used to carry out this research was semi-structured distance interviews using videotelephony software. In the case of Chile, four leaders (one woman and four men) were interviewed through the Microsoft Teams platform, and in the case of Colombia, the five leaders interviewed (two women and three men) were carried out through the Zoom platform. In relation to the ethical aspects, the Faculty of Social and Sciences Economic supports the research at Universidad Católica de Chile as it complies with the ethical standards of the university considering that, all the participants gave verbal consent to participate in the research.

The organizations that participated from Chile were as follows: (i) Movimiento por el Agua y el Territorio, its leader is an agricultural technician, (ii) the Consejo Ecológico Comunal de Molina, its leader is a high school professor, (iii) the Escuela Agrícola Palquibudi, its leader is a professor, and (iv) the Organización No Gubernamental Sur Maule its leader is a Social Worker. In Colombia, the participating organizations were: (i) Sembradoras de Territorios, Aguas y Autonomías, its leader is a farmer, (ii) Asociación Campesina Antioqueña, its leader is a farmer, (iii) Vigías del río Dormilón, its leader is a fisherman, (iv) Asociación Campesina del Valle del río Cimitarra, its leader is an agricultural technician, and (v) Movimiento Ríos Vivos its leader is a farmer.

The analysis of the information was carried out through the qualitative data collected from the accounts of the leaders interviewed through relevant and accurate quotations. More specifically, the analysis technique used was the comparative method, which consists of developing coding, and analysis of the data in a systematic way, comparing categories, assumptions, and properties that emerge through the coding and analysis process. Thus, this technique is the constant comparison of similarities and differences that are identified in qualitative data, with the aim of discovering patterns that are repeated. Therefore, after the interview transcription process, the interviews were analyzed by means of coding, this implies that the information was divided into categories, which allows to identify the similarities and differences in the information, and thus, be able to develop a complete analysis [22].

3. Contextual background for Chile and Colombia

3.1 Progress toward sustainability in Chile

According to Bergamini et al. [23], the most important event in terms of environmental care in Chile occurred in 1994, when the General Bases of the Environment Law (No. 19,300) was passed, which established a broad framework for environmental protection in Chile. As Piña [24] suggests, and as its name indicates, the law defined the fundamental principles of environmental regulation. Its main objective was to begin the process of digitizing and consolidating environmental regulations in the country; at that time, the responsibility for this type of regulation was dispersed among various state agencies. In 2010, the law was reformed and the new law (No. 20.417) created the Ministry of the Environment [25, 26] (known by its Spanish acronym, MMA) together with the Environmental Assessment Service (SEA) and the Superintendency for the Environment (SMA).

The MMA is in charge of promoting sustainable development. The main objective of the ministry is to improve the quality of life of Chileans through the creation of new public and social policies that allow the efficient regulation of citizen practices, as well as promote environmental education in the country [27, 28].

With regard to environmental problems in Chile, there is evidence of a growing depletion of natural reserves and resources. It has therefore been necessary to adopt measures in this respect, as highlighted by Gentes [29, 30], “the increase in environmental conflicts, together with the growing iniquities and externalities of the neoliberal system with regard to resources and environment, led to the search for a broad consensus and the concertation of multiple interests and actors” (p. 3).

Because of this search for a consensus and concertation, major progress has been made on environmental issues. Moyano et al. [31, 32] note that important and highly political debates on the climate crisis have been induced, and these debates have given rise to the enactment of a series of laws that have given life to an institutional framework that promotes good practices and has been guiding Chile toward sustainable development.

Nevertheless, regarding Law No. 20.417, Piña [24] notes that in the 20 years since its formulation and implementation, the system has not undergone any major changes and, therefore, the law should be comprehensively revised. The objective should be a root and branch strengthening of the framework, according to the new demands of society, so that it can achieve an institutionality that is validated by citizens and recognized by all sectors, and can adapt to the various scenarios produced by modernity.

A 2019 report from the MMA [28] states that the government’s main environmental objectives for the 2018–2021 period were to improve the well-being and quality of people through sustainable development. And that this development is grounded in economic growth, care for the environment, and social equity. To this end, citizens must have access to more information on environmental issues in Chile and the planet, and actions and plans should be based on scientific knowledge [28]. The government’s plan focused on five areas: environmental institutions, air quality, biodiversity, the circular economy and waste management, and climate change.

The perceptions of Chile’s population relating to environmental issues were revealed in the First National Survey on the Environment, carried out in 2014. The study shows that, of the 5000 people surveyed, 86% believed that climate change is the result of human activity and that its consequences will affect their daily lives [27]. Moreover, 33% of those interviewed, the highest proportion, believed that the main environmental problem is air pollution, 21% pointed to rubbish and dirt in the streets, and 11% selected noise pollution [27].

It should be noted that environmental issues in Chile are beginning to gain momentum and are gradually becoming a national concern, which is “allowing historical environmental problems to be identified and recognized” [33, 34]. As a result, numerous regulations have emerged that, according to the ESA, aim at environmental protection, preserving nature, and conserving the environmental heritage. These regulations imposed a requirement that stipulated compliance must be accredited by the project owner at the time of assessment.

In October 2020, the Chilean people voted for the drafting of a new Political Constitution of the Republic through a national plebiscite; an unprecedented occurrence in the country’s history. The following year, in May 2021, 155 members were elected to the Constitutional Convention, the body that will propose a new text for the country’s political constitution within a maximum period of 12 months. The selection included equal representation for men and women (78 men and 77 women) and 17 representatives from Chile’s indigenous peoples. The Constitutional Convention is ongoing and the new constitution will be submitted for ratification by a plebiscite. The content of the constitution is guided by seven “thematic commissions,” one of which is focused on the environment, the rights of nature, common natural resources, and the economic model. Thus, there is a good chance that the new constitution will enshrine environmental protection as a constitutional principle.

The progress and challenges faced in the Colombian context in relation to the protection of the environment, ecosystems, and habitability in balance with nature are presented below.

3.2 Context on the regulatory framework that governs environmental issues in Colombia

The Political Constitution of Colombia of 1991 has been called the “green constitution” or “ecological constitution.” According to Melo [35], the constitution is in line with the main international concerns on environmental protection and biodiversity. Moreover, it recognizes that the fundamental right to a healthy environment is of paramount interest and extensively develops this notion.

Accordingly, the charter in “its principles, mandates, and obligations are aimed at (i) protecting the environment in an integrated manner and (ii) ensuring a model of sustainable development.” (Melo, 2018, p. 289) In 1993, 2 years after the constitution was enacted, law 99 was passed by the Colombian government in which sustainable development was defined as follows:

That which leads to economic growth, a better quality of life, and social well-being, without depleting the renewable natural resource base on which it is sustained, and without damaging the environment or the right of future generations to use it according to their own needs (Law 99, 1993, n.p).

Given this definition, it could be said that Colombia’s constitution deems environmental protection as a right and a necessary condition for the survival of communities and territories. Law 99 of 1993 [36] also created the National Environmental System (SINA), which enables the implementation of the general environmental principles set out in the Political Constitution of Colombia of 1991 and Law 99 of 1993 [36] itself. The SINA is made up of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, the National Environmental Licensing Authority (ANLA), 26 regional autonomous corporations, seven sustainable development corporations, six urban environmental authorities, territorial entities, research Institutes, the National System of Science, Technology and Innovation, and the special administrative unit of the Natural National Parks System, which are all bodies dependent on the Ministry.

3.3 Biodiversity and selected information on environmental problems in Colombia

According to Sánchez [37, 38], Colombia’s biodiversity represents “10% of the world’s flora and fauna, 20% of the planet’s bird species, 1/3 of the primate species of tropical America, more than 56,000 registered species of phanerogams plants and nearly a thousand permanent rivers” (p. 83).

The National University of Colombia (cited by [39]), indicates that the country has “unlimited water in terms of availability for all Colombians, as [it has] an annual average rainfall that is well above the world average, there are approximately 720,000 river basins and around 10 rivers with permanent flows” [39]. Indeed, a 2015 report by the Global Water Partnership recognized Colombia as the country with the third largest freshwater reserves in the world.

In the same year, however, the United Nations ranked the country 24th in the world in terms of its water quality and availability, and according to 2014, National Water Study carried out by Colombia’s Ministry for Environment, the country’s water resources are in a critical state.

Given this context, the outlook seems less than encouraging, and this situation has been compounded by the environmental licenses granted for the construction of medium- and mega-sized hydroelectric power plants, which have affected the surrounding ecosystems and, therefore, the local communities, in terms of disease, poverty, and displacement.

Additionally, there is a public debate in Colombia about hydraulic fracturing. Commonly called fracking, an unconventional drilling method to extract natural gas and oil that produces harmful environmental and social impacts. The insistence on unconventional extraction of hydrocarbons by large multinational oil companies is generally accompanied by promises of “local development,” but the exact opposite usually occurs. One example of this is “the Magdalena Medio region, where the fracking studies or pilot projects are set to be carried out, has ended up being established as a sacrifice zone” [40].

Sacrifice zones are the contradictions generated under the pretense of development. Too often, the revenues and profits of project owners are protected while surrounding communities are unprotected against public health issues, poverty, and armed conflict.

Another issue related to the extraction of hydrocarbons is the integrity failures that lead to the loss of the ecosystem. The case that best illustrates the implications of integrity failure, and the one most frequently referred to in Colombia, occurred in March 2018 in La Fortuna, a rural area of Barrancabermeja, at the Lizama 158 well. Over 29 days, more than 550 barrels of oil, water, mud, and gas leaked into the surrounding area affecting the 49 bodies of water that flow into the Magdalena river, including the La Lizama creek and the Sogamoso river, and damaging ecosystems, animal life and the surrounding communities [40].

In the face of this discouraging outlook relating to fracking in Colombia, resistance to the extractive industries that operate under the pretext of development has produced a united citizenry and anti-fracking activism [that] has managed to mobilize the population by creating, alongside the social force opposing the extractive model, a compelling discourse in defense of water, territory, and health, that challenges the country to think of other ways of life more in harmony with nature [41].

Although a review of the legal background shows that the Colombian state has an explicit interest in sustainability and the protection of ecosystems, environmental conflicts have emerged that reveal the disconnection and negligence of the current regulations with the reality and needs of the territories and the people who live there.

4. Findings

In this section, the thoughts and opinions of the leaders who represent the nine socio-environmental organizations and movements that participated in the research will be presented. These results can be considered as a contribution to the involvement that social work should make in the development of perspectives on leadership and organization. From the accounts of these leaders, it is possible to identify key categories that reveal their experiences. The categories are the (i) purposes of the socio-environmental organizations and movements, and (ii) the beliefs that support their action.

4.1 Category 1: the purposes of the environmental organizations and movements

4.1.1 Resistance in defense of water and territory: an opportunity to regain hope

Through the accounts made by the nine leaders, it is possible to identify some coincidences in the purposes of the Colombian and Chilean socio-environmental movements and organizations. Mention is made of the values assumed by such organizations, their network structure, and the complex epistemic communities that make them up [42]; in which very diverse fields of knowledge and action intervene. These organizations have assumed an effective mode of operation through different strategies public policy advocacy, “grassroots” work in communities (rural, urban, semi-urban, and indigenous), education programs, and activism. They show diversification of mechanisms to achieve change, despite the uncertain present and future outlook.

Socio-environmental movements and organizations arise in spite of the evident risk and the impacts generated by human action in their territory. The defense of water and territory is articulated despite corporate extractivist projects that do not consider environmental effects. Organizations emerge spontaneously around common purposes; their demonstrations seek to raise awareness and generate urgent and necessary changes. In terms of the environmental problem in Chile, there is evidence of a growing depletion of natural reserves and resources, which has necessitated the adoption of certain measures. In addition, in Chile, some organizations consider that education and the promotion of knowledge help awareness-raising and provide a basis for action.

The testimony of the Chilean leaders is presented first followed by the views of the leaders in Colombia. For the socio-environmental organizations and movements in Chile, the purposes of each organization can be observed through the following statements.

The representative of the Movimiento por el Agua y el Territorio stated:

“The Movimiento por el Agua y el Territorio is a movement aimed to at defending water in the territory. Its origin in a movement called Aguante la Vida (Hold on to Life), which emerged in the period after the 2010 earthquake period…the purpose of the movement was born out of a desire to provide a voice for all the movements and people, getting them together to defend the territory and the water”.

In the same consciousness, the interviewee for the Consejo Ecológico Comunal de Molina gave the following account:

“The Consejo Ecológico de Molina began informally in 1988 and was recognized as formal organization in 1991. Its main concern with the issues of global warming, landfills, and the protection of the Parque Inglés…so that it became a protected area and then a national park thanks to our work and the work of other people, and some authorities. The Consejo Ecológico is an ecological community organization made up of private individuals…it has no political party affiliation and its objectives include environmental protection, education, and the reporting of environmental misconduct.”

The participant for the Escuela Agrícola Palquibudi explained that “The purpose of the Escuela Agrícola Palquibudi is to offer a diploma in rural development. First of all, the school is free, it is a quality institution and it is a non-profit institution: those are our three characteristics. And we also consider ourselves to be autonomous and independent…we do not receive money from the state or from companies.”

The leader of the Organización No Gubernamental Sur Maule recounted that: “We are focusing on the areas of territory and sustainable communities; over the years, we have also been developing other initiatives that have to do with urban sustainability and waste management. Additionally, we have been working in the area of ecological agriculture in the city, so urban agriculture and the urban garden as an experience, which is something we have developed in the Independencia neighborhood of Talca. In general, we are trying to develop an approach that allows us to definitively propose an alternative vision of sustainability, based on the idea that sustainability is generated from the surrounding area rather than simply adopting an idea of sustainable development, which is something else from our point of view.”

Through the opinions of the Colombian leaders, it is possible to identify the characteristics of the organizations, their struggles, and challenges. The Colombian organizations interviewed emerged to the defense of the local natural environment and a “resistance to water pollution and non-metallic mining with intensive exploitation,” (Vigías del Río Dormilón) as a result of the construction of small hydroelectric plants in eastern Antioquia and the Ituango Dam hydroelectric mega-project. The geological instability, soil erosion, and floods produced by the project necessitated the evacuation of the population to temporary shelters, which in turn caused the loss of domestic animals that could not be accommodated in the new location. All of the above generated social tension and conflict between the community and the departmental government. “This encouraged 15 grassroots organizations, made up of women, [members of the environmental education initiative] young defenders of water, barequeros and barequeras, muleteers, fishermen, and farmers located in the western Antioquia, Northern Antioquia, and Lower Cauca, who were adversely affected [by the Ituango Dam project] to unite and form the Movimientos Ríos Vivos.” (Movimiento Ríos Vivos).

Additionally, contrary to being a hope for the commercialization of agricultural products at fair prices and making a contribution to a more dignified life for the local inhabitants, “the companies that develop these types of projects constitute a threat to the peasant farming communities.” (Asociación Campesina del Valle del Río Cimitarra).

In those circumstances, organizations began to form through demonstrations and marches. The Movimiento Ríos Vivos held their first demonstrations in Valle Toledo, then walked from Ituango to Medellin and remained congregated at the University of Antioquia for 6 months to demand that the departmental government listen to them and stop the construction of the Ituango Dam. Similarly, the Vigías del Río Dormilón (which translates as Watchmen of the Dormilón River) was formed through “spontaneous reflections and meetings about the impacts of the construction of hydroelectric projects on the population.” (Vigías del Río Dormilón).

There is also the Asociación Campesina Antioqueña (ACA) that, following the peasant coffee strike, saw “the need for the community to organize and work collectively for the fight for rights. [the people] Work under the principles of a peasant economy, they realized that if they do not unite as a community they do not get anywhere.” (Asociación Campesina Antioqueña).

Knowing the aims of the organizations allow us to clarify and propose an intervention that is relevant to their reality and that contributes to overcoming the challenges they face. Furthermore, against a patterning of action that tended to verticalization and centralization in bureaucratic institutions, emphasis is given on decentralization, self-organization in non-hierarchical groupings, and the creation of horizontal alliances of potentially global reach among local groups who further similar interests: they have a “local” dimensión. Instead of asking for change, they produce the change itself in the form of alternative ways of socio-ecological organization, establishing novel material and cultural-symbolic patterns. The experiences presented in cases discussed in this chapter are alternative organizations that while contesting around capitalism, experiment with alternative ways of organizing [43].

In relation to leadership, environmental leadership is the only way to defend their territory. Because, in most cases, the proposals aim to be structured processes based on local characteristics, in order to improve the conditions or quality of life, and to transform the environment through the transformation of the customs of social groups. In addition, to strengthen the popular organizations that have been concerned with the relationship between ways of life and social-environmental situations.

4.2 Category 2: beliefs in action

The selected socio-environmental organizations and movements have the purpose of promoting citizen participation in issues of real importance, in this case, environmental justice. They also aim to educate and at the same time nurture the knowledge of the social actors belonging to the organizations or movements, generating support in the community, with the objective of improving the quality of life of the participants and the community in general. They respect nature and advocate for the noninvasion of nature, they propose a harmonious approach to environmental changes, and at the same time, a harmonious relationship between the environment and the lives of the people who inhabit an area. One key characteristic of these environmental organizations and movements is that they have strong value orientations and opposition to the environmentally invasive capitalist production model [44, 45].

From the interviews with representatives of the Chilean movements and organizations, the following beliefs emerge, starting with the representative from the Movimiento por el Agua y el Territorio, who said that their discourse is informed by “people who have written about political ecology…who has written a lot about social movements and social environmental movements.”

The participant from the Consejo Ecológico Comunal de Molina recounted that.

“we think that we have a political ecology because we are working to make this way of life a form of collective creation, of deep ecology as well, from valuing from the smallest being, always being concerned about all lives. In general, we think a lot about forms of life and organization of the indigenous people.”

The account from the Escuela Agrícola Palquibudi regarding beliefs was as follows:

“First popular education [education of the people] from Paulo Freire [the educator and philosopher], and the other theme comes from the fact that we are Buddhists…this is, we use an educational proposal from Makiguchi, the Japanese educator who created [and was first president of Sōka Kyōiku Gakkai, the predecessor of] Soka Gakkai International, and that is where the concept of ‘Soka education’ [value-creative education] comes from… So, we put these things together to be able to do things, and another informing principle is that all the founders are the daughters of farmers, so they are people who have a deep understanding of the problems of farmers.”

The leader of Organización No Gubernamental Sur Maule related that “The first big thing is that we start from the problematization the notion of development itself… To a certain extent, we conclude that the notion of development, historically speaking, ultimately constitutes the great colonizing project imposed upon Latin America and our people and our societies…From that problematization and to return to the idea of sustainable development, in terms of training, my education focused on the areas of political and sustainable ecology.”

Through the opinions of the Colombian leaders, it is possible to identify their beliefs, struggles, and challenges. One of the fundamental pillars of the Asociación Campesina Antioqueña is to retake the farmland and begin clean production using nonchemicals, natural fertilizers, and manures in the tradition of their ancestors because they recognize the environmental damage that chemicals cause to the land, water, and air. In addition, they seek to generate proposals for food sovereignty using insights from agroecology.

The Asociación Campesina Antioqueña also considers that the clean cultivation of crops is a key contribution to mitigate climate change and that to stop using chemicals and plastics contribute to the decontamination of the land. For this reason, they are working with the community to raise awareness through concrete actions focused on caring for water sources and cleaning up streams. Moreover, they are coordinating with other movements and organizations to defend water, which they value not as a resource but as a common good of humanity.

There is no doubt that this resistance is undertaken in order to live a dignified life in the territory they inhabit. In other words, the territory transcends the physical and is shaped by the social fabric that constitutes ways of living, fighting, connecting with others, working for daily sustenance, recreation, building history, and of relating to nature.

They defend their dignity as peasant farmers. They fight and demand from the State the protection and right to life of the community who defend their territory “and who lives are being killed simply for making demands, telling the truth, and defending their land.” (Asociación Campesina del Valle del Río Cimitarra).

Thus, when the inhabitants around the Cauca river cannot fish because the water levels are so low that the fish die, the community also withers because it has built significant links around the water insofar as the water and the artisanal forms of fishing give them life and are their livelihood.

The participant representing Movimiento Ríos Vivos related that the Ituango Dam Hydroelectric project “has left us without work, without means of subsistence, it has destroyed more than 4700 hectares of tropical dry forest, which is what we had in this canyon, so we continue to resist.”

In general terms, the organizations from Colombia expressed their discourse and beliefs related to autonomy, social and community participation, and environmental justice. They seek to harmonize the territory, humans, and nature, in order to survive on the planet as a species “because we are going through a civilizational and climate crisis, so this [harmonization] may happen, but human civilization is at high risk.” (Sembradoras de Territorios, Aguas y Autonomías).

From these accounts, it is possible to identify that, in the case of Colombia, the values that underpin the actions of the organizations and movements in this study are related to hope, dignity, and collaboration. Their leaders do not necessarily refer to defined theoretical currents and authors. In the case of Chile, the organizational leaders reveal that the beliefs that underpin their actions are related to some authors and philosophical, educational, and organizational currents, such as popular education, environmental movements, political ecology, and elements of sustainable development.

5. Discussion and conclusions

Understanding the practices and assimilating the knowledge of social movements and organizations that operate within the framework of environmental justice in the Department of Antioquia, Colombia and Curicó, Chile allows the following two categories to come into focus: (i) the purposes of the socio-environmental organizations and movements, and (ii) the beliefs that support their actions.

In each category, the testimonies show that the demands of these movements are mainly connected to the defense of water and territory, the territory where they live but that they also inhabit. They are movements of hope. These movements and organizations have a commitment that is created and recreated in the search for their autonomy and by learning to live differently. They aspire to generate their energy and daily sustenance from their immediate reality. They share a resistance to the consequences of “development” and to the businesses that operate or want to operate invasive and environmentally damaging projects in their territories. Here, the defense of water and territory is one of social and environmental justice and protection of the ecosystem, which means “staying in the territory, but with a dignified life.”

The socio-environmental organizations and movements have the characteristic of synthesizing, more than others, the values and demands that circulate in the concerns of social movements. Far from being total movements, and perhaps far from fully assuming cultural creativity, they encompass a diverse and vast horizon, and within them, there are those who do grassroots work in communities, in favor of a better relationship between women and men, between human beings, and with the environment. Sometimes with little or no resources, they manage to transform the life situation of more and more people. Without taking the limelight, sometimes anonymously, and by assuming values and practices in daily life, at a personal level, they manage, with optimism, to make transformations.

In Chile and Colombia, these organizations linked to socio-cultural movements respond to a particular historical, social, cultural, political, and economic reality. Likewise, work in this region focuses to a large extent on the themes of democracy, citizenship, the fight against poverty, human rights, and community development.

The new culture, a product of the emerging cultural shift, implies moving from goods to services, moving away from a quality of life based on material resources, shifting our patterns toward personal development and community services, and reducing energy consumption. For many, this means returning to a sacred conception of nature, the planet, and life, always linked to models of cooperative action to halt and reverse environmental destruction. The community of life implies assuming that one is part of something bigger. And that taking care of nature is taking care of oneself. This awareness goes hand in hand with building democratic, just, participatory, sustainable, and peaceful societies.

It is of utmost importance to investigate various manifestations of the emerging cultural change in both countries, in order to understand how the new paradigm is expressed, how people with creative values configure and see themselves, and what potential for transformation grassroots organizations have. Given the characteristics and the historical moment, our countries are going through in order to get environmental justice.

The reflections on the experiences of socio-environmental organizations and movements from social work open up new research and perspectives on environmental intervention and action in the communities is therefore considered relevant to delve deeper into the subject and to construct pertinent proposals that are coherent with their realities. Having some approximations to the experience’s socio-environmental organizations and movements in Chile and Colombia, is possible to understand important aspects to consider and incorporate into social work education and intervention.

Environmental leadership is assumed as a relational process, in which the subjects exchange knowledge, experiences, customs, ways of feeling and perceiving, and values, among others, in horizontal ways of feeling and perceiving, values, among others, in a horizontal manner (distributing burdens, powers, knowledge, and others in other roles), in order to reflect on environmental situations, to transform these same ways of relating between subjects and other environmental elements that are seen as situations environmental elements, and that are seen as priority situations in historical moments of the community. This means that environmental leadership fosters citizen participation in the recognition of environmental situations in the environment and intentional and well-founded action to transform their realities.

Taking into account the above, the construction of the environmental leader’s profile is a complex process, with multiple aspects, types of knowledge (by its nature), methodologies and knowledge (due to its nature), methodologies, perspectives, and conditions, among others. Only one way of contributing to learning or one way of teaching. Based on the results of the research reviewed the priority is training in reflection, exchange of experiences, organization reflection, exchange of experiences, organization, administration, coordination, dynamism, capacity for promotion, innovation, planning, execution, and transformation of environmental situations in specific contexts in specific contexts; broadening and complexifying the profile of the environmental leader.