Recorridos inscritos en el cuerpo: Mujeres, agua y defensa territorial en San Lorenzo (Nariño)

Abstract

The struggles for the defense of water in Colombia have been particularly strong in recent years, due to the collective work of social movements and grassroots organizations. Although there are more and more studies on territorial defense in the country, there is still insufficient recognition of the role of women in political participation and in relation to environmental struggles. Although progress has been made in this aspect from Feminist Political Ecology and other Latin American feminist currents, it is still necessary to establish with greater clarity the way in which peasant women participate in the different efforts for territorial defense. Thus, this article seeks to resolve the question of how the organization of peasant women in San Lorenzo (Nariño) influenced the processes of territorial and water defense in this municipality. In order to answer this question, a case study research was carried out using methods such as semi-structured interviews and body mapping. This work shows that, to the extent that the women of San Lorenzo articulated around issues such as seeds, food and women's rights, there was a constant participation and leadership in the processes of territorial and water defense in the Lorenceñas Las Gaviotas Family Network, of which they are founders. Also, multiple learnings are shown regarding the actions of women in relation to community care, their bodies, emotions and the importance of their recognition for individual and organizational political formation.