Understanding institutional change mechanisms for land use

Lessons from Ecuador’s history

Bibliographic Data

ID11463522
AuthorsClaudia Coral (0000-0001-7802-3171, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin), Wolfgang Bokelmann (0000-0003-3659-5715, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin), Michelle Bonatti (0000-0001-8511-5365, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, corresponding author), Robert Carcamo (0000-0002-4960-9883, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin), Stefan Sieber (0000-0002-4849-7277, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin)
Year2021
Volume108
Pages105530
Publication date2021-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueLand Use Policy (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0264-8377 • E-ISSN: 1873-5754
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.landusepol.2021.105530
OpenAlexW3172255712
LanguageEN
Citations received6
References cited65

Ecuador constitutes a fascinating case study to explore land policies and reforms. Since colonial times, it has experienced prolonged and ongoing struggles to transform land institutions. This paper investigates how, across levels, historic institutional factors affected land-use decision making in the Mindo parish and western foothills of Pichincha, Ecuador, as perceived by its landowners. Following techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory, we identify four main periods of institutional change related to land by relying on the narratives of landowners. These periods are: a) colonial institutions – hacienda feudal modes of production; b) the way toward an Agrarian Reform and Colonization Law; c) rural development after the Agrarian Reform; and d) forest conservation incentives versus ‘neo-extractivism’ practices. We reconstruct and explore these in light of the existing literature. Along with individual and collective perceptions, we are also concerned with the drivers underlying these institutional changes and the structure of these changes. Lastly, we discuss and provide conclusions on the key issues that help us explain institutional change in the study area, including theoretical explanations about cognitive variation (cultural-cognitive), power relationships, individual ability to change and perceive, as well as the system’s capacity to reorganize, persist, and reproduce

Agrarian reform · Agrarian society · Agriculture · Archaeology · Colonialism · Economics · Foothills · Geography · Incentive · Institutional change · Land reform · Land tenure · Market economy · Narrative · Political economy · Political science · Sociology · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management · Land Rights and Reforms · Law · Public Administration