Pasando del qué hacer al con quién hacerlo: el caso de la apropiación social del conocimiento y tecnologías en el Alto Putumayo, Colombia

Alto Putumayo, in southwestern Colombia, is located in the foothills of the Andes Mountains as a transition zone between the Andean and Amazonian ecosystems. This subregion is distinguished by its mountainous landscapes, biodiversity, and the presence of peasant communities and the Inga and Kamëntsá Indigenous peoples. Its economy is mainly agricultural and livestock, with dairy and guinea pig production. In this context, this article proposes to stimulate innovation through interventions that improve the social appropriation of knowledge and technologies to make the most of the strategic advantages of local production. For this purpose, a social network analysis approach and social perception studies were used. The results indicate that the social appropriation of knowledge and technologies should focus on strengthening social legitimization and collaboration among major actors, by promoting public communication as a tool to improve local productive culture, especially in the dairy sector. This is crucial for transforming production systems into more sustainable models that respond to the urgent need to adapt to the climate crisis.