Territorial and Community Networks in the Face of the Polycrisis in Uruguay: Women Caring for Life in Extractivist Contexts

In Latin America, extractivist processes have intensified, positioning the region as a supplier of raw materials and agro-industrial products, while establishing megaprojects for the global market. The impacts of the deepening neodevelopmental model and extractivist strategies on bodies-territories are numerous. Indeed, a clear consequence of the current ecological, social, and economic crises is the detrimental effect on these bodies-territories. We propose to contribute to this session by sharing the results of our experience working with community networks formed by rural women in Uruguay. We are colleagues who serve as professors at the public University, operating from a critical feminist extension perspective. We stand in solidarity with the community resistance efforts of women in various agro-extractivist contexts.

Women organize to care for and support their communities and families, defending more-than-human lives against the polycrisis, masculinization, and the patriarchalization of their territories. In the western and northern regions of the country, these community efforts confront the impacts of soybean and forestry agribusiness, which lead to health deterioration, land concentration, and land foreign ownership. In the southern and eastern areas, they tackle problems such as water contamination, soil poisoning, and indiscriminate logging of riverine forests tied to agribusiness and real estate speculation. Further east, herbicides are sprayed over waterways, schools, and homes as rice and, more recently, soybean production expands, compromising the health of water, soil, and bodies-territories. Through this project, we aim to strengthen the networks of care and support among women fighting for their territories, creating spaces to collaboratively develop resistance strategies.