Scalar dissonances, knowledge-making, sense of urgency, and social narratives about the future. Contours of the climate change debate in Latin America

This article aims to situate climate change by examining three scalar dissonances between global and local knowledge-making and policy action. The three dissonances - the knowledge production and policy meaning-making nexus, the politics of urgency, and the politics of building socio-climatic future pathways - engage deeply with the emergent literature that deals with climate change from the perspective of Human Geography Studies and the Social Studies of Science and Technology (STS). By posing guiding questions and through examples primarily from Latin American countries, this paper lays out a research agenda that advances geographical sensitivity, allowing us to better understand the other geographies of climate science production, circulation, and information use. Furthermore, it highlights the unresolved political and interdisciplinary tensions in accommodating global narratives in regions of the Global South. Este artigo tem como objetivo situar a mudanca climatica examinando tres dissonancias escalares entre a producao de conhecimento e a acao politica nos niveis global e local. As tres dissonancias (1. o nexo entre a producao de conhecimento e a formulacao de politicas, 2. a politica da urgencia e 3. a politica de construcao de caminhos socioclimaticos futuros) estao intimamente ligadas a literatura emergente que aborda as mudancas climaticas sob a perspectiva dos estudos de Geografia Humana e Ciencia, Tecnologia e Sociedade (CTS). Por meio de exemplos, principalmente de paises latinoamericanos, e de perguntas orientadoras, este artigo estabelece uma agenda de pesquisa para avancar na construcao de uma sensibilidade geografica que estuda a dinamica em outras geografias da producao, circulacao e uso de informacoes climaticas. Ele tambem aponta para as tensoes politicas e interdisciplinares nao resolvidas em torno da compreensao e da apropriacao de narrativas globais nas regioes do Sul Global. Este articulo tiene por objetivo situar el cambio climatico examinando tres disonancias escalares entre la elaboracion de conocimiento y la accion politica a nivel global y local. Las tres disonancias (1. El nexo entre la produccion de conocimiento y la formulacion de politicas, 2. La politica de urgencia, y 3. La politica de construccion de vias de futuro socio-climaticas) se vinculan estrechamente con la literatura emergente que aborda el cambio climatico desde la perspectiva de los estudios en Geografia Humana y de Ciencia, Tecnologia y Sociedad (CTS). Por medio de ejemplos, principalmente de paises latinoamericanos, y de preguntas orientadoras, este documento establece una agenda de investigacion que permite avanzar en la construccion de una sensibilidad geografica que estudie las dinamicas en otras geografias de la produccion, circulacion y del uso de la informacion climatica. Asimismo, esta agenda senala las tensiones politicas e interdisciplinarias no resueltas en torno al entendimiento y apropiacion de las narrativas globales en las regiones del Sur Global.

Automated summary

This article examines three dissonances between global and local knowledge-making and policy action in order to situate climate change. It engages deeply with the emergent literature that deals with climate change from the perspective of Human Geography Studies and the Social Studies of Science and Technology. Through examples, primarily from Latin American countries, and guiding questions, this paper lays out a research agenda that advances geographical sensitivity and highlights the unresolved political and interdisciplinary tensions in accommodating global narratives in regions of the Global South.