Peasant knowledge as a strategy for rural development in the Serranía de los Yariguíes (Santander, Colombia)

Abstract

The knowledge of peasant communities is a potential for change for the rational management and protection of ecosystems, as it implies the production and linkage of the farmer as an actor within his own territory, in addition to the participation of the same in the conservation of the environment. A local participatory work was carried out, with the purpose of characterizing the knowledge of the peasants located in the Cinco Mil micro-watershed, Serranía de los Yariguíes (Santander, Colombia), making visible the contribution of this knowledge to the protection and conservation of strategic ecosystems. The results show that the recovery and appropriation of peasant knowledge represent sustainable strategies in the face of current agricultural production techniques, as well as actions to promote the rural development of the population of the Cinco Mil micro-watershed.