Scientists as citizens and knowers in the detection of deforestation in the Amazon

Abstract

This paper examines how scientists deal with tensions emerging from their role as providers of objective knowledge and as citizens concerned with how their research influences policy and politics in Brazil. This is accomplished through an ethnographic account of scientists using remote sensing technology, of their knowledge-making activities and of the broader socio-political controversies that permeate the detection of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. Strategies for mitigating uncertainty are central aspects of the knowledge practices analyzed, bringing controversies 'external' to the laboratory 'into' the lab, making these boundaries conceptually problematic. In particular, the anticipation of alternative interpretations of rainforest cover is a crucial way that scientists bring the world into the lab, helping to shed light on how scientists, usually seen and analyzed as isolated, are in fact often in constant dialogue with the broader political controversies related to their work. These insights help question the idea that the monitoring of deforestation through remote sensing is a form of secluded research, drawing a more complex picture of the dual role of scientists as knowledge producers and concerned citizens.

Traditional ecological knowledge in innovation governance: a framework for responsible and just innovation

“…While there is a quickly growing literature on responsible innovation beyond Europe (De Campos et al 2017;Fisher 2016;De Hoop, Pols, and Romijn 2016;Monteiro and Rajão 2017;Vasen 2017;Wong 2016;Doezema et al 2019), it remains far from clear how established frameworks such as AIRR should be adapted in globally heterogeneous cultural and political conditions. Contexts of TEK provide some of the clearest examples of these limitations as they involve negotiations of change that differ strongly from the 'speculative world of emerging technologies' (Hilgartner and Lewenstein 2004) that have dominated debates about responsible innovation in European and North-American contexts.…”

Deconstructing the Palm Oil Industry Narrative in Indonesia: Evidence from Riau Province

“…A study of the science/policy interface identifies the challenges faced by scientists in their roles as objective knowledge providers. 62 For instance, the use of remote sensing (high resolution images) to analyse forest cover needs to be linked to grounded truths that emerge from the work of ethnographers and anthropologists. A team of conservation biologists systematically mapped the peer-reviewed literature on forestry and found that no global datasets on community forestry exist, and that national inventories are rare.…”

Information from Earth Observation for the Management of Sustainable Land Use and Land Cover in Brazil: An Analysis of User Needs

“…To our knowledge, there have been few published studies on the use of EO for land use management in Brazil which included interviews with end-users, scientists and providers of EO [18][19][20]. This is despite INPE's pioneering activity on deforestation assessments using EO data since the 1970s [21].…”

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