Extractivism as Catch-all Concept for Latin America? Commodity Rents and Politics in Brazil, Chile and Venezuela

Beschreibung

In the article we examine recent socio-economic developments in Latin America. The continent has witnessed an increase in economic growth over the last decade and has managed to withstand the world financial crisis without a dramatic economic breakdown. This trend has largely been described as being based on the ongoing commodity price boom and on the intensification of resource extraction in Latin American economies. In some cases, these developments have been combined with rising investments into social policies. These developments, initiated by centre-left governments resulted in significant social improvements. Although this new- or progressive extractivism is therefore to be separated from the old extractivism where the generated profit went to a small elite, critics of this process see some main contradictions of the recent development: The dependence on the world market for commodities is intensified and the environmental damages are high. Based on these arguments, the extractivist alignment is diagnosed for the whole continent. Our aim is to question this assumption and to develop a differentiated understanding of the Latin American extractivism by using a political economy approach. Regulationst- as well neo-Gramscian considerations will be combined to work out the different characteristics of economic and political developments in Brazil, Chile and Venezuela, three countries usually characterised as (neo-)extractivist. We will challenge this characterisation based on the analysis of the dominant accumulation-models and the political conflicts concerning its regulation. In this context, the role and distribution of commodity rents is crucial for evaluating socio-political impacts of extractivist strategies. Additionally, we highlight the importance of accumulation strategies which not necessarily do rely on extractivist strategies, despite the commodity boom.

Zeitraum	4 Dez. 2014 → 6 Dez. 2014
Ereignistitel	1st Austrian Conference on International Resource Politics
Veranstaltungstyp	Keine Angaben
Bekanntheitsgrad	National