During this special Political Ecology seminar, Yasmin Penha Moral and Heliene Macedo de Araújo will talk about their research looking at alternative agricultural models and how agroforestry practices reconfigure territory.
- Researcher
- PhD student
- Date
- Thursday 13 Feb 2025, 16:00 - 17:15
- Type
- Seminar
- Spoken Language
- English
- Room
- Room 4.39
- Location
- International Institute of Social Studies

Agroforestry systems and alternative land use: analysis of autonomy in agroecosystems in the Areia Branca Community (São Paulo, Brazil)
By Yasmin Penha Moral
Mainstream agriculture, derived from the Green Revolution, has resulted in ecological, social and economic issues, including deforestation, climate change, and land conflicts.
Among alternative agricultural models, agroforestry stands out for its potential to enhance biodiversity and food production through specific techniques. Therefore, this research focuses on agroforestry systems as an alternative land-use strategy.
The study examines the potential and challenges of achieving agroecosystem autonomy within the Areia Branca Community in Southern São Paulo State, Brazil.

Urban agroforestry, sociomaterial agency and territorial development processes
By Heliene Macedo de Araújo
The research, conducted through fieldwork at the Ecomuseum Campos de São José in São José dos Campos, Brazil, adopts a relational and dynamic perspective of territory, treating it as a sociomaterial instance in constant transformation. The idea of 'territorial becoming' emerges as a crucial theoretical tool to explore territorial dynamics, revealing complex processes of creation, resistance and innovation.
The study analyzes how agroforestry practices, carried out by different actors, both human and non-human, reconfigure the territory, affecting its spatial organization and natural resource management. The findings highlight how emerging practices contribute to the revitalization of territories and the generation of sustainable development alternatives, offering new perspectives on the challenges of sustainable development and social and territorial organization.
- Related links
- Political Ecology research