Situating adscriptions of value on Nature's Contributions to People : The case of traditional farmers in San Pedro, Paraguay.

This thesis focus on the unidimensional adscriptions of value behind industrial soybeans production in Paraguay. The thesis aims to present non-economic Nature’s Contributions to traditional farmers’ quality of life, the role of farmers’ traditional knowledge to display these contributions and the efficiency of such knowledge regarding high productive demands. From a theoretical framework based on nature’s contributions to people, ecosystem services, knowledge systems and conservation, the thesis formulates the following research questions: 1) What drives the prioritization of a single economic value on nature’s contributions to people in rural Paraguay? 2) What is the value of non-economic nature’s contributions, and what is the role of traditional farmers on displaying these values? The study mostly relies in primary data obtained through semi-structured interviews conducted during fieldwork period in the study area of San Pedro, Eastern Paraguay. The results present a plural assessment on nature’s contributions and the adaptation of small farmers to modern farming techniques. The thesis concludes that a perspective dominated by unidimensional value can be socially motivated within the rush for development in Paraguay, a concept tied to economic growth and modernization. In addition, nature’s contributions displayed by small farmers suggest that community-based conservation could represent a more sustainable approach for the farmers’ needs and the current environmental challenges of the country