Residency period: August 1, 2015 to July 31, 2016
IEAT resident, professor Raoni Guerra Lucas Rajão is professor of Social Studies of Science and Technology at the Department of Production Engineering at UFMG and member of the Graduate Program in Production Engineering (Social Studies of Technology and Expertise line) at the same institution , and visiting professor at the University of Bremen (Germany). He also works in the Graduate programs in Analysis and Modeling of Environmental Systems (UFMG) and Social and Political Sciences of the Environment (Radboud University/Holland), having already participated as co-supervisor in the Graduate programs in Education ( UFMG) and Sustainability Leadership (Cambridge University/England). He holds a degree in Computer Science from the University of Milan-Bicocca (Italy) and a Master and Doctorate in Organization, Work and Technology from the University of Lancaster (England). Since his master’s degree, he has dedicated himself to the study of the relationship between technology, science and public policies, with emphasis on evaluating policies to control deforestation and payment for environmental services. He currently coordinates two research projects funded by FAPEMIG and CNPQ and is a research productivity fellow at the same institution.
TRANSDISCIPLINARY PERSPECTIVES ON THE MANAGEMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES IN MINAS GERAIS: SEEKING INTEGRATION BETWEEN TECHNOLOGY, ORGANIZATIONS AND POLICIES.
The objective of the research project is to examine, from a transdisciplinary perspective, the management of payment for environmental services (PES) in the state of Minas Gerais, with particular focus on the markets for quotas of environmental reserves (CRAs) and credits for carbon by avoided deforestation (REDD+) in order to contribute to the mitigation of climate change and the water crisis in the state. To explore this subject, the proponent will collaborate with UFMG researchers in two major areas of knowledge. In the context of hard sciences and engineering, quantitative studies will be carried out that seek to evaluate ex post and ex ante the effect of environmental policies in force and/or under discussion at the federal and state level. For this, modeling tools, data from satellite images and primary quantitative data obtained from questionnaires will be used. Within the social sciences, the organizational and political dynamics related to the development and implementation of these environmental management policies in Minas Gerais will be analyzed through interviews and participatory observation of key actors. These two components will then be confronted using a socio-technical approach that aims at transdisciplinarity by integrating collective intelligence from Production Engineering, Social Studies of Science and Technology, Economics, Geoprocessing, Landscape Ecology and Remote Sensing. Based on this research, it is intended to advance the academic debate and influence the development of environmental policies and contribute to the debate surrounding the management of environmental services at state and federal levels.