Paleontology and Environmental Justice: Making Connections Through Political Ecology

Abstract

Far from studying only beings from the past, Paleontology is a current science which can situate human existence in the context of the global environmental crisis before inequalities and socio-environmental conflicts which occur in Brazilian paleontological sites. Aiming to discuss possible connections between Paleontology and Environmental Justice, this essay arises from a survey on environmental conflicts existing in the paleontological sites in Minas Gerais. Stemming from the issues found and the contribution of the Political Ecology theoretical framework, the struggle for territory and decoloniality is discussed as crucial dimensions for a view that seeks to restore the populations’ right to their (paleo) territories. The connections between these fields are presented here as references for the fight against the social inequalities found in paleontological sites, such as those in Minas Gerais, and for the inclusion of their communities in participatory management.