Biocultural diversity and gender: Productive trajectories of peasant women in Chiloé

Abstract

This article discusses the current situation of peasant women in Chiloé Island, through the description of eight productive trajectories. The base of this work is that women today lead the conservation of biocultural heritage of their territory, and thus represent a key actor for development proposals aimed at sustainability and cultural identity. The research process, developed in 2013, used the following methods: in-depth interviews, and passive and participant observation within an ethnographic methodology. Among the research findings, it can be seen that currently peasant women have formed networks where local knowledge and biodiversity inherited by past generations meets contemporary practices to create new projects for family, community and regional development, including conservation of biocultural heritage of their territories.