Between Cooperation and Conflict: A Social-Ecological Perspective on the Impacts of COVID-19 in South-western Amazonia

The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the great acute challenges facing humanity and we are only beginning to comprehend its consequences. This article aims to better understand the impacts of the pandemic on the interplay of land use change, ecosystem services, human agency, conflict and cooperation, with a focus on civil society organizations (CSO) and criminal networks. To achieve this aim, we first review the general literature and then focus on the south-western Amazon and, in particular, the border region of Peru, Brazil and Bolivia. We use a mixed-method approach based on literature review and stakeholder conversations. Our findings suggest that the pandemic is having mixed effects: on the one hand, governments use their power to impose restrictions on fundamental rights, limit the freedom of the population and undermine its agency. On the other hand, alternative structures to the central state, particularly strong CSO and criminal organizations, have gained power when governments have failed to fulfil people’s needs. Overall, the pandemic acted as a catalyst of change, both globally and in the south-western Amazon.