Extractive economy and ecological crisis in Ecuador: Territorial reconfigurations, socio-environmental conflicts, and sustainable horizons [Economía extractivista y crisis ecológica en Ecuador: Reconfiguraciones territoriales, conflictos socioambientale]

Abstract

The research critically analyzes the impact of the extractive economy on Ecuador's environmental sustainability, focusing on its effects on territories, local communities, and strategic ecosystems. Using an interdisciplinary approach based on case studies, it examines the territorial reconfigurations driven by mining, oil, and other extractive industries, along with the emerging socio-environmental conflicts arising from pressure on natural resources. The analysis demonstrates how the logic of accumulation based on intensive extraction violates collective rights, deepens social inequalities, and accelerates processes of ecological degradation. However, it also identifies community initiatives, post-extractivist economic proposals, and alternative regulatory frameworks that open up possibilities for transitions toward more sustainable, equitable, and nature-friendly development models. It concludes that addressing the ecological crisis requires a structural rethinking of the national economic model and a political commitment to environmental justice.