Epistemic Marginality, Higher and Environmental Education in Colombia

espanolComo consecuencia de su riqueza y diversidad ecologica y cultural, muchos paises Latinoamericanos sufren de la explotacion de sus recursos naturales y de conflictos ambientales. Estos problemas son el resultado de muchos factores interconectados: cosmovisiones divergentes sobre la tierra y el territorio y los intereses competitivos derivados de ellas (la tierra y la naturaleza de la vida con un significado simbolico versus la tierra y sus recursos con un significado de mercancia),multiples sistemas juridicos (pluralismo juridico), distintas relaciones sociales y estrategias y tecnologias divergentes para transformar la naturaleza. En Colombia, entre otros paises, estos factores son en gran medida responsables de la emergencia e intensificacion del uso insostenible de recursos naturales, por ejemplo, por el aumento de actividades extractivistas como la mineria y las practicas agricolas al estilo de la revolucion verde, ambas privilegiadas en el actual modelo convencional y neoliberal de desarrollo, con graves consecuencias sobre el del medio ambiente, tanto biofisico o natural como cultural (simbolico, social, economico, politico y tecnologico). Las estrategias para resolver estos problemas requieren una reflexion critica del papel de la educacion superior y, en particular, de la educacion ambiental, junto con sus fundamentos epistemicos que representan diversos planteamientos desde la ecologia, el desarrollo y el medio ambiente. Asumimos que la educacion superior y ambiental son aspectos claves, agentes politicos y protagonistas para el fortalecimiento de ideologias e intereses que tendrian que ser diversificados para aumentar la participacion politica y disminuir las desigualdades sociales. EnglishDue to their ecological and cultural wealth and diversity many Latin American countries suffer from the exploitation of natural resources and environmental conflicts. These are furthered by many interconnected factors: divergent world views on land and territory and the competitive interests that stem from them (land and nature as livelihood with symbolic meaning vs. land and its resources as commodity), multiple legal systems (legal pluralism), different social relations and equally divergent strategies and technologies to transform nature. In Colombia among other countries, these factors are largely responsible for the emergence and intensification of the unsustainable resource use and the exploitation of natural resources, for example through an increase of extractive activities such as mining and agricultural practices in the style of the green revolution. Both are privileged in the current conventional and neoliberal model of development, with serious destructive consequences for the natural and cultural environment (symbolic, social, economic, political and technological). Strategies to solve the mentioned problems need a critical reflection on the epistemic foundations that represent diverse perspectives on ecology, development and the environment. We assume that higher and environmental education are important aspects, political agents and protagonists for the enforcement of ideologies and interests, and should therefore be diversified to increase political participation and decrease social inequalities.