COMMUNITY GOVERNANCE OF ARAPAIMA HARVESTING IN THE AMAZON:AN ANALYSIS IN LIGHT OF OSTROM’S PRINCIPLES
Abstract
Community-based management of arapaima (Arapaima gigas) constitutes one of the main contemporary conservation strategies associated with income generation in the Amazon, being situated within the debate on the governance of common-pool resources. This article analyzes the governance of arapaima harvesting in the São João do Araçá Community, at Lake Babaçu, in the municipality of Itacoatiara, Amazonas, in light of the eight governance principles formulated by Elinor Ostrom. The analysis is grounded in the understanding that the sustainability of management depends on the capacity for collective action and on the construction of locally legitimized institutions, especially in contexts marked by intermittent state presence and recurring external pressures. The research adopts a qualitative approach, designed as a single case study, combining semi-structured interviews with key actors, document analysis, and direct observation of management practices. Data were examined through theory-oriented thematic analysis, using Ostrom’s principles as interpretive analytical categories. The results indicate the existence of a hybrid governance arrangement in which access boundaries and ecologically congruent rules show greater consolidation, while collective choice, monitoring, and sanctions operate functionally but remain concentrated among few actors. Principles such as conflict resolution, recognition of the right to organize, and nested enterprises reveal structural fragilities associated with the absence of stable multilevel governance. It is concluded that the governance of arapaima harvesting is functional yet institutionally vulnerable, depending on the strengthening of deliberative participation and on the articulation between community action and permanent public policies.
Author Biographies
Mestre em Ciência e Tecnologia para Recursos Amazônicos, Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Itacoatiara-AM, Brasil.
Mestranda em Ciências, Tecnologia e Saúde, Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Itacoatiara-AM, Brasil.
Doutora em Ciências do Ambiente e Sustentabilidade na Amazônia, Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Itacoatiara-AM, Brasil.
Mestra em Ciência e Tecnologia para Recursos Amazônicos, Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Itacoatiara-AM, Brasil.
Mestranda em Ciência e Tecnologia para Recursos Amazônicos, Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Itacoatiara-AM, Brasil.
Mestranda em Ciência e Tecnologia para Recursos Amazônicos, Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Itacoatiara-AM, Brasil.
Doutora em Ciências da Educação, Universidade Nihon Gako-PI, Fernando de la Mora, Paraguai.
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