Transdisciplinary Research in Action in Latin America and the Caribbean

This case study compendium, published by the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), documents seven transdisciplinary (TD) research projects across Latin America and the Caribbean. It serves as a training resource for the IAI's TD Academy, focusing on integrating scientific knowledge with local and traditional knowledge systems to address global environmental change (GEC). The document emphasizes 'epistemic justice' and the shift from 'ecosystem services' to 'Nature’s Contributions to People (NCP)' to better include marginalized voices and non-monetary values of nature.

• The MAP-Fire project addressed wildfire risks in the Amazon across Peru, Brazil, and Bolivia by creating a geo-referenced spatial database platform and translating technical remote sensing data into accessible formats, including a book titled 'É Fogo!' for elementary students.
• In Panama, a community-based monitoring project in the San San Pond Sak and La Amistad International Park territories empowered Ngäbe communities to monitor freshwater fish, birds, and terrestrial mammals, including the endangered Central American tapir.
• The Jamaican Women in Coffee (JAWiC) project improved the livelihoods of women farmers in the Blue Mountains of St. Thomas and St. Andrew through training in soil management, organic farming, and pest control, resulting in reported increases in coffee production and reduced pest incidence.
• The El Limón Community Conservation and Environmental Education Program in Mexico's Sierra de Huautla Biosphere Reserve utilizes a field station to co-design conservation and education programs, prioritizing community-led initiatives over federal government-managed models.
• The Sanear Amazônia project in Brazil implemented community-based public sanitation for traditional extractivist and ribeirinhos populations, building over 3,000 water and sanitation technologies for approximately 15,000 people, which led to a 65% average decrease in diarrhea morbidity among children.
• In Uruguay, the Solís Grande Stream watershed project used a 'territory-based approach'—visiting every household—and 'collective synthesis' to establish a protected area and a management plan through the APA Administrative Commission.
• The Social Water Management initiative in Colombia's Coello and Cucuana river basins used 'Citizen Action Conversatory' (CAC) mechanisms to create binding agreements between communities and institutions, which contributed to banning the La Colosa Regional Mine in 2017.
• A synthesis of the seven case studies identifies critical transdisciplinary skills, including the need for 'bridge builders' or liaisons to manage diverse team dynamics, the importance of co-creating objectives with communities, and the necessity of translating scientific findings into accessible products.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2025). Transdisciplinary Research in Action in Latin America and the Caribbean. https://www.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/TD%20Books/English/TD_Case_Studies_CompleteBook.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Transdisciplinary Research in Action in Latin America and the Caribbean. 2025. https://www.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/TD%20Books/English/TD_Case_Studies_CompleteBook.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Transdisciplinary Research in Action in Latin America and the Caribbean |date=2025 |url=https://www.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/TD%20Books/English/TD_Case_Studies_CompleteBook.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2025transdisciplinary, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Transdisciplinary Research in Action in Latin America and the Caribbean}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2025}, url = {https://www.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/TD%20Books/English/TD_Case_Studies_CompleteBook.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }