Recontextualizing Post-Growth in Latin America: Achievements, Obstacles, and Opportunities in Venezuela, Ecuador, and Bolivia

• In Event: Contending Visions of the Nation and Political Parties in Latin America: the Effects and Influence

Abstract

Latin American social movements and civil society networks were crucial in supporting the electoral victories of Left wing governments in Venezuela, Ecuador, and Bolivia. Central to the political strategies of these movements and networks was advancing a series of post-growth proposals, including Buen Vivir, post-extractivism, social and solidarity economies, and other forms of localized political and economic autonomy. The initial commitments by Chavez, Correa, and Morales to improve well-being without replicating historically unsustainable and destructive pathways to industrial development (a core principle of post-growth) created a politics of possibility around these proposals. Their governments implemented notable redistributive economic policy measures, nationalized natural resources, constitutionalized post-growth principles (e.g. rights of Mother Earth, non-economic conceptions of quality of life, plurinationality, etc.), spearheaded regional cooperation and integration through ALBA, UNASUR, CELAC, etc., and upheld environmental justice agendas in international arenas (e.g. prior informed consent, right to development, climate debt, etc.). However, notwithstanding these achievements, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Bolivia continue to be characterized by fiscal dependence and macroeconomic prioritization of growth-centric policies sustained by extractive activities. In addition, they are now rife with socio-environmental conflict. The implications of this scenario for the social movements and networks that continue to uphold post-growth involve facing new barriers including: deepened structural entrenchment in extractivism, the cooptation of post-growth proposals by extractivist governments, the division of once-unified popular fronts, shifting electoral constituencies, and the emergence of new economic elites. This challenging context requires revisiting the achievements, obstacles, and opportunities of movements struggling to advance post-growth futures.

Author

• Rebecca Hollender