Rural Communities in Ecuador: Relationships between Culture, Nature, Disasters, Tourism, and Cultural Heritage (Phase 1)

This research project addresses the limited access rural populations have to governmental policies concerning culture, heritage, environmental protection, and community tourism, contrasting centralized official culture with popular cultural expressions maintained under precarious conditions. The study aims to analyze the struggles over meaning and local practices across four specific rural communities (Manabí, Esmeraldas, Imbabura), selected due to their relevance concerning the impact of the 2016 earthquake and their community tourism experiences. The methodology involves an exhaustive literature review followed by in-depth ethnographic investigation, utilizing open-ended interviews, participant observation, and focus groups to reconstruct living memory and understand the social actors' perspectives. The final analysis will employ Clifford Geertz's dense description to unravel the structures of signification behind social actions related to culture, risk, and tourism. The expected outcome is an anthropological interpretation contrasting popular views with social theories, offering clarity on the popular management of heritage and the transformation of social norms following critical events like natural disasters.<br/><br/><b>Goal</b>: <br/>To investigate and analyze, from an anthropological perspective, the struggles over meaning surrounding the practices and visions of four rural communities regarding cultural heritage, community tourism, and the relationship with nature and risk. The goal is to incorporate anthropological criteria to clarify the issues arising from diverse views and practices concerning popular culture, local heritage, and community management.<br/><br/><b>Research lines</b>: <br/>Heritage and culture