Ontological Battlefields: Illegal Gold Mining and Environmental Governance in the Colombian Amazon.

Summary

This thesis offers an ontological and epistemic interrogation of environmental governance in the Colombian Amazon, focusing on illegal gold mining as both an ecological and ontological disruption. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, the research engages the ‘ontological turn’ to challenge Western-centric notions of nature as inert and resource-bound. Instead, it foregrounds Indigenous conceptualisations of Nature as a living, relational entity, intimately connecting humans and non-humans through reciprocity and care. By engaging with Indigenous concepts such as abundance, territorial health, and the tactical appropriation of Rights of Nature, the study elucidates how mining activities fracture local cosmologies and food systems, undermining the socio-ecological fabric essential for Indigenous survival. Importantly, it also highlights how Indigenous communities actively respond, reinterpreting and mobilising legal and cosmological tools to defend their territories.

The thesis introduces a number of ontological concepts to advocate for governance models that recognise multiple ways of world-making and resist the imposition of mononaturalist, extractivist logics. It argues for a pluriversal approach that situates Indigenous epistemologies and ontologies at the centre of conservation and policy debates, thus addressing fundamental power asymmetries and epistemic injustices. This work contributes to debates on political ontology, environmental justice, and the decolonisation of conservation. Ultimately, it provides a lens for reimagining governance in the Amazon and beyond, calling for transformative engagements that honour relational worlds and foster truly equitable ecological futures. This thesis thus stands as a critical scientific contribution towards more inclusive and just environmental governance paradigms.