Abstract

Humanity is facing a systemic change, manifested from the social to the environmental that impacts men and women in a differentiated way. In this context, the questions arise: what is the role of women in the growing struggles and resistance against extractivism, in defense of water and territory in the Ecuadorian province of Azuay? What are their underlying motivations that drive them to resist challenges generated by mining, water management, and livelihoods that governments and transnational corporations impose through a discourse of development in the cantons of Cuenca, Nabón, and Girón? To identify and examine resistance strategies, from a Feminist Political Ecology perspective, data was collected through interviews with women from five rural and four urban collectives about their participation using the Power and Interests Matrix. Their struggle transcends the environmental, advocating for a change in the socioeconomic and political systems that promote collective well-being and the protection of natural resources as priorities. Their activism reflects a deep commitment to the preservation of water and the environment that dignify the livelihoods of communities.