Collaborative Research: Brazil's Direct Action Land Reform Movement: Environmental Impacts and Socio-spatial Dynamics

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This project addresses Direct Action Land Reform (DALR) in the Brazilian Amazon. DALR is defined here as a social and political process involving mobilization of the poor, the contentious occupation of public or private lands, and the formalization of land holdings in the wake of occupation. DALR is a widespread social movement in present-day Brazil spearheaded by organizations, like the Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (MST), that have grown impatient with the federal government's efforts at land reform. DALR is to be distinguished from state-led efforts at settlement, which have a long history in the country. This research project is motivated, in particular, by possible environmental impacts associated with DALR, since movement occupations are increasingly targeting land in the Amazon Basin. The research activities involve fieldwork in Para and Rondonia, two states in the Brazilian Amazon where DALR is particularly prevalent. The primary objective is to shed light on this unstudied, important factor in the region's land cover change processes. The project employs a suite of methods to improve and systematize a comprehensive understanding of three significant aspects of DALR, namely the strategic use of space by movement leaders, alterations in classical migratory patterns that have resulted from DALR, and environmental implications associated with land occupations in the Amazon. These methods include (1) key informant interviews to document the spatial strategies used by movement leaders; (2) demographic analysis of census microdata to assess DALR related migration impacts; (3) regression analyses to compare deforestation on properties with and without DALR land occupations; and (4), household surveys on land occupation sites to assess migration histories, agricultural experience, and land use practices. Although much research has addressed tropical deforestation, little is known about the impact of social movements on this process of land cover change Filling this knowledge gap will complement previous research and is essential for full comprehension of the factors driving loss of forests in the Amazon and in other parts of the tropical world affected by politically-inspired land settlement. In addition, the multifaceted nature of DALR makes research on this topic important for understanding political movements and democratization, as well as frontier migration patterns. The project will likely have impacts reaching beyond academic contributions because DALR has become a subject of debate among policymakers and civil society constituencies in Brazil. In particular, this research bears implications for regional development and conservation initiatives in that country. If DALR provides social benefits to the rural poor while leading to deforestation and unsustainable land use, the research will help document the need to restructure agrarian and land reform in Brazil in the interests of both social welfare and environmental sustainability.