Zingando nos saberes de Caetanos de Cima.

Abstract

This dissertation is entitled “Zingando nos Saberes de Caetanos de Cima” (Rowing in the knowledge of Caetanos de Cima), because during its evolution it pursued the description and comprehension of the forms of knowledge on the fishery, the agriculture, and the art of Caetanos de Cima, establishing a discussion on the relevance of these aspects for its ecological, social and cultural sustainability. The term “zigando” (“rowing”) refers to a metaphor by the author, as she compares her views on knowledge of the researched community with the motion of the sea, which is driven by the force and the dance of the fisherman. This research considered that, not only for science but also for society, it is crucial to know the forms of knowledge that exist within the complex of reality, understanding that there is no superiority on the knowledge dimension, but that these kinds of knowledge complement each other, making necessary a study that questions and understands the popular knowledge. This research intends to clarify the following points: description of the local scenery; identification of the social actors; understanding of the survival strategies (fishery, agriculture and art) which manifest themselves in the community; and verification of the inter-relationships between the local forms of knowledge and the ecological, social and cultural sustainability of Caetanos de Cima. Multi-referential and qualitative analyses were the methods used to describe and interpret the forms of knowledge mentioned. The methodology was characterized by active observation, where the author became embedded with the social actors involved in the study. This close relationship between the author and the social actors became of profound importance for the description and reflection of the researched knowledge. The research was divided by the following phases: a) Bibliographical review and study of related works: b) Field research, of multi-referential nature, characterized by the study of the local knowledge of the community of Caetanos de Cima; and c) Analysis and reflection of the forms of knowledge studied in terms of sustainability. Furthermore, this research concluded that the forms of knowledge – which manifest themselves in the survival strategies (fishery, agriculture and art) of Caetanos de Cima – contribute to the ecological sustainability and mainly to the cultural sustainability of the community because there is a balance between the fisherman-farmer-artisan and the environment. However, it must be recognized that some of the traditional practices have negative impacts on the environment, even though these negative impacts are still not as harmful as the impacts caused by the socalled ‘modern’ practices. It is also important to point out that the knowledge of fishery, agriculture and art is not sufficient to guarantee the sustainability of the community, given that other forms of knowledge become relevant through the multireferential individuals of Caetanos de Cima – forms of knowledge that need to be introduced in an analysis of the sustainability which considers other dimensions of the local reality.