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Papers by Donald Cole

GI_Forum, 2019

This paper identifies spatial patterns of body mass index (BMI) and obesity in the Metropolitan D... more This paper identifies spatial patterns of body mass index (BMI) and obesity in the Metropolitan District of Quito, Ecuador, by applying spatial autocorrelation. We identified BMI hotspots in eastern rural parishes, and hotspots of obesity in northern urban parishes. We then explored associations between distances to food outlets, physical activity and smoking (independent variables), and BMI and obesity (BMI > 30) (dependent variables) by applying global regressions (GR) and geographical weighted regressions (GWR). Smoking was found to be significantly negatively associated with BMI and obesity. Distance to supermarkets was found to be negatively associated with obesity.

Health in the Anthropocene: Living Well on a Finite Planet, 2019

The current ecological crisis can be understood as a crisis in the way that (particularly the ric... more The current ecological crisis can be understood as a crisis in the way that (particularly the richest and most powerful) humans relate to other humans and the wider Earth community. This crisis is the result of complex interactions between political and economic systems, habituated forms of behaviour, cultures, and modalities of consciousness rooted in a sense of separation, the desire to control, dominate, exploit, and consume. Such forms of consciousness are fostered and propagated by economic, political, and cultural systems which are themselves underpinned by such consciousness.

Large-scale, quantitative studies demonstrate that moving towards more ecological worldviews and modalities of consciousness-particularly those marked by a strong affective connection with the more-than-human world-is associated with adopting more sustainable lifestyles and engaging in pro-environmental political action. Based on a recent qualitative study, the kind of consciousness associated with committed environmental educators and activists is often marked by a sense of interconnection and community, inter-subjectivity, empathy, flow, an extended sense of life, rootedness in place, and a more encompassing sense of time. Transformative learning theory similarly notes that ecological consciousness entails moving beyond an instrumental worldview to an embodied, intersubjective mindset marked by a deep sense of connection with the powers of the living Earth. The latter are themselves perceived as sources of ecological wisdom. Insights from neurophysiology and the embodied mind suggest that this kind of consciousness can be cultivated via a combination of attention, imagination, practice, story-telling, and immersion in supportive communities of practice.

In this paper, examples of a variety of approaches for cultivating ecological consciousness will be considered including the use of meditative ecological practices, land-based learning, work with sustainable agriculture, and the "Work that Reconnects". Reflecting on these approaches, we will conclude by setting out areas for further exploration of ecological consciousness and ways it may be developed.

Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique, Jan 27, 2016

Funding options for global health research prominently include grants from corporations, as well ... more Funding options for global health research prominently include grants from corporations, as well as from foundations linked to specific corporations. While such funds can enable urgently-needed research and interventions, they can carry the risk of skewing health research priorities and exacerbating health inequities. With the objective of promoting critical reflection on potential corporate funding options for global health research, we propose a set of three questions developed through an open conference workshop and reflection on experiences of global health researchers and their institutions: 1) Does this funding allow me/us to retain control over research design, methodology and dissemination processes? 2) Does accessing this funding source involve altering my/our research agenda (i.e., what is the impact of this funding source on research priorities)? 3) What are the potential "unintended consequences" of accepting corporate funding, in terms of legitimizing corporat...

Management Decision, 2003

... The Authors. Louise Lemieux-Charles, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Wendy .... more ... The Authors. Louise Lemieux-Charles, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Wendy ... quality. This finding supports Westphal et al.'s (1997) observation that conformity to accepted quality practices leads to greater legitimacy. ...

Canadian journal of occupational therapy. Revue canadienne d'ergothérapie, 2004

Considerable controversy and limited information surrounds the use of performance-based functiona... more Considerable controversy and limited information surrounds the use of performance-based functional assessments for determining an injured worker's ability to function at work. Amidst a variety of protocols, philosophies and tools, the key aspects of different assessment approaches are described and compared across a range of assessment provider organizations. Qualitative and quantitative strategies were used to generate an in-depth understanding of the different assessment practices among 23 Southern Ontario assessment providers. Assessment approaches share common elements and variations that can be described along the continua of five dimensions: nature of assessor-evaluee interactions, fixed or flexible protocol delivery, efforts to contextualize, perceptions and use of evidence, and provider organizational environment. These approach dimensions are offered as a focus for appraising practices. Assessors need to reflect upon to what extent they are using a whole person, client-centred approach directed by clinical reasoning amidst a market driven industry.

Work (Reading, Mass.), 2011

Return to work after a leave on disability is a common phenomenon, but little is known about the ... more Return to work after a leave on disability is a common phenomenon, but little is known about the attitudes of employees or their supervisors towards the disability management process. We report on employee and supervisor feedback from one disability management experience. 389 consecutive employees from the Ontario offices of a single private Canadian insurance company returning to work from short-term disability, and their supervisors. We surveyed employees and their supervisors about their experience with, and attitudes towards, the disability management process. Of those surveyed, 88 employees and 75 supervisors provided data (response rates of 22.6% and 19.3% respectively). The majority of respondents (79.1% of employees and supervisors) endorsed positive attitudes towards their disability management experience. More than 25% of employees disagreed with the following three items: case managers contributed to recovery, case managers removed barriers to recovery, and sufficient support was provided in the return to work process. More than 25% of employees and managers reported that a commitment to modify an unhelpful work situation was not followed through. The majority of participating employees returning to work from short-term disability, and their supervisors, reported a high level of satisfaction with the disability management process. Areas that may benefit from attention include some aspects of case manager-employee interaction and ensuring that support during the return to work process is provided, including modification to work situations when appropriate.

Applied Ergonomics, 2006

In participatory ergonomic (PE) interventions, ''how'' effective participation by workplace parti... more In participatory ergonomic (PE) interventions, ''how'' effective participation by workplace parties can be achieved remains unclear. We conducted a case study of the dynamics of an ergonomic change team (ECT) process in a medium-sized (175 employees) automotive foam manufacturing plant. We present analyses of observer field notes and post-intervention interviews from which key elements on the dynamics of the ''how'' emerged: (1) impacts of facilitators' involvement and interests; (2) tensions in delimiting the scope of ECT activities; issues around (3) managing meetings and (4) realizing labour and management participation; and (5) workplace ECT members' difficulties in juggling other job commitments and facing production pressures. We highlight the ongoing negotiated nature of responses to these challenges by labour, management and ergonomic facilitator members of the ECT. We argue for greater examination of the social dynamics of PE processes to identify additional ways of fostering participation in ergonomic project implementation. r

Background: Intensive, periodic sessions are increasingly becoming a model for complementary rese... more Background: Intensive, periodic sessions are increasingly becoming a model for complementary research training. In 2004, the CCGHR began annual Summer Institutes for New Global Health Researchers (SI), to respond to a need among Canadian and Low and Middle Income Country (LMIC) researchers for training in strengthening partnerships, translating research into action, and developing global health research competencies. Our goal in the present study was to evaluate the extent to which the CCGHR's SI program has helped to train a new generation of global health researchers, impacted their career trajectories, as well as how the SI has supported participants in translating research into action.

Journal articles by Donald Cole

Political ecology pushes back against the apolitical and ahistorical ecologies frequently found i... more Political ecology pushes back against the apolitical and ahistorical ecologies frequently found in mainstream scientific accounts of nature and the environment, and has increasingly focused on how scientific knowledge is 'socially constructed.' In this article, we argue for political ecological engagement with the highly influential knowledge-to-action (KTA) movement in science about health and the environment. We introduce KTA using results of a survey conducted under the auspices of a Canada-Latin America-Caribbean 'ecosystem approaches to health' (ecohealth) collaboration, and then narrow our focus to a single illustrative ecohealth project, dealing with the health impacts of small-scale gold mining in southwestern Ecuador. We employ an ecology of knowledge framework for integrating insights from science and technology studies, illustrating the interacting actors, material artifacts, institutions and discourses involved in not only the generation but also the application of health-environment science. The origins of ecohealth research in the Americas reflect interacting epistemological and political factors, as sophisticated, complex systemic analyses of health-environment interactions occurred amidst increasing neoliberalization of knowledge production. Simultaneously, corporate actors such as large mining companies influenced both the distribution of health-damaging environmental conditions in the Americas, and the ways in which they were studied. This analysis motivates our advocacy of specifically political ecologies of health-environment knowledge, in which inequitable power dynamics and non-human actors are foregrounded in studies of the social production and application of science. The political ecology of knowledge framework that we envision would allow for simultaneous consideration of how societal contexts influence scientific knowledge production, and how the resulting knowledge can be better applied to protect the health of communities facing environmental injustice.

L'écologie politique remet en question las explications apolitiques et anhistoriques fréquemment rencontrées dans les compte-rendu scientifiques sur la nature et l'environnement et met de plus en plus l'accent sur la manière dont la connaissance scientifique est socialement construite. Dans cet article, nous soutenons la pertinence de l'écologie politique pour le mouvement « du savoir à l'action », très influent dans les sciences de la santé de l'environnement. Nous présentons la perspective « du savoir à l'action » en nous appuyant sur les résultats d'une enquête menée dans le cadre d'une collaboration Canada-Amérique latine et Caraïbes sur les approches écosystémiques à la santé (écosanté), pour ensuite concentrer notre attention sur un unique projet écosanté, qui porte sur les effets sur la santé de l'extraction de l'or à petite échelle dans le sud-ouest de l'Équateur. Nous employons un cadre conceptuel d'écologie de la connaissance pour intégrer les idées des études en science et technologie et illustrons les interactions entre les actrices et acteurs, les artefacts matériels, les institutions et les discours impliqués non seulement dans la génération, mais aussi dans la reproduction de la science en santé et environnement. Les origines de la recherche en écosanté dans les Amériques reflètent l'interaction entre des facteurs épistémologiques et politiques, tandis que les analyses systémiques complexes et sophistiquées des interactions entre santé et environnement se sont déroulées dans un climat croissant de néolibéralisation de la production de connaissances. En parallèle, les acteurs corporatifs telles les grandes sociétés minières ont influencé tout autant la répartition des conditions environnementales nuisibles à la santé dans les Amériques que la façon dont elles ont été étudiées. Cette analyse motive notre défense d'une écologie spécifiquement politique de l'application de la connaissance en santé et environnement, au sein de laquelle les dynamiques inégales de pouvoir et les facteurs non humains sont mis de l'avant dans les études sur la production et l'application sociales de la science. Un cadre de l'écologie politique de la connaissance, comme nous proposons, permettrait de tenir compte simultanément de la manière dont les contextes sociétaux influencent la production de connaissances scientifiques et de la manière dont ces connaissances peut être mieux appliqués pour protéger la santé des communautés face à l'injustice environnementale.

La ecología política desafía a las ecologías apolíticas y ahistóricas que se sitúan con frecuencia en los postulados científicos de la naturaleza y el medio ambiente, y se ha centrado cada vez más en cómo se construye socialmente el conocimiento científico. En este artículo abogamos por un compromiso de la ecología política con el influyente movimiento ."conocimiento para la acción" (KTA por sus siglas en inglés) en la ciencia sobre la salud y el medio ambiente. Presentamos el KTA usando los resultados de una encuesta realizada en el ámbito de una colaboración Canadá-América Latina y el Caribe de "enfoques ecosistémicos en salud" (ecosalud) y, a continuación, dirigimos nuestra atención sobre un proyecto ilustrativo de ecosalud que trata sobre los efectos en la salud y el ambiente por la minería del oro a pequeña escala en el suroeste de Ecuador. Empleamos un marco analítico de la ecología del conocimiento para integrar las percepciones derivadas de los estudios de ciencia y de tecnología, ilustrando los agentes que interactúan, los artefactos materiales y las instituciones y discursos involucrados no solo en la generación, sino también en la aplicación de la ciencia salud-ambiente. Los orígenes de la investigación en ecosalud en las Américas reflejan la Journal of Political Ecology Vol. 24, 2017 694
interacción de factores epistemológicos y políticos como sofisticados y complejos análisis sistémicos de las interacciones salud-ambiente ocurridas en medio de la creciente neoliberalización de la producción del conocimiento. Al mismo tiempo, agentes empresariales, tales como grandes empresas mineras, influyeron tanto en la alteración de las condiciones ambientales perjudiciales para la salud en las Américas como en la forma en que los impactos se estudiaron. Este análisis motiva nuestra defensa específica de la aplicación de las ecologías políticas del conocimiento salud-ambiente en aquellos casos en los cuales dinámicas de poder no equitativas y agentes no humanos son colocados en primer plano en los estudios de la producción social y en la aplicación de la ciencia. El marco de la ecología política del conocimiento que proponemos permite considerar simultáneamente cómo los contextos sociales influyen sobre la producción del conocimiento científico, y cómo el conocimiento resultante se puede aplicar de mejor manera para proteger la salud de las comunidades que enfrentan la injusticia ambiental.

A ecologia política desafia às ecologias apolíticas e ahistóricas que se situam frequentemente nos postulados científicos da natureza e do meio ambiente, e tem-se centrado cada vez mais em como o conhecimento científico é socialmente construído. Neste artigo defendemos o compromisso da ecologia política com o influente movimento ."conhecimento para a ação" (KTA, pelas suas siglas em inglês) na ciência sobre a saúde e o meio ambiente. Apresentamos o KTA usando os resultados de uma enquete realizada no âmbito de uma colaboração Canadá-América Latina e Caribe de ."enfoques ecossistêmicos em saúde" (ecosaúde) e, em seguida, colocamos nossa atenção em um projeto ilustrativo de ecosaúde que trata dos efeitos na saúde da mineração de ouro em pequena escala no sudeste do Equador. Usamos um marco analítico de ecologia do conhecimento para integrar as percepções que provém dos estudos de ciência e de tecnologia, ilustrando os agentes que interagem, os artefatos materiais e as instituições e discursos envolvidos não só na geração, senão também na aplicação da ciência saúde-ambiente. As origens da pesquisa em ecosaúde nas Américas refletem as interações de fatores epistemológicos e políticos como sofisticados e complexos análises sistémicos das interações saúde-ambiente que aconteceram no meio da crescente neoliberalização da produção do conhecimento. Ao mesmo tempo, agentes empresarias, tais como grandes empresas mineradoras, influíram tanto na alteração das condições ambientais prejudiciais para a saúde nas Américas quanto na forma em que os impactos se estudaram. Esta análise motiva nossa defesa específica da aplicação das ecologias politicas do conhecimento saúde-ambiente naqueles casos nos quais dinâmicas de poder não equitativas e agentes não humanos são colocados no primeiro plano nos estudos sobre a produção social e a aplicação da ciência. O marco da ecologia política do conhecimento permite considerar simultaneamente como os contextos sociais influenciam a produção do conhecimento científico, e como o conhecimento resultante pode ser melhor utilizado para proteger a saúde das comunidades que enfrentam a injustiça ambiental.

GI_Forum, 2019

This paper identifies spatial patterns of body mass index (BMI) and obesity in the Metropolitan D... more This paper identifies spatial patterns of body mass index (BMI) and obesity in the Metropolitan District of Quito, Ecuador, by applying spatial autocorrelation. We identified BMI hotspots in eastern rural parishes, and hotspots of obesity in northern urban parishes. We then explored associations between distances to food outlets, physical activity and smoking (independent variables), and BMI and obesity (BMI > 30) (dependent variables) by applying global regressions (GR) and geographical weighted regressions (GWR). Smoking was found to be significantly negatively associated with BMI and obesity. Distance to supermarkets was found to be negatively associated with obesity.

Health in the Anthropocene: Living Well on a Finite Planet, 2019

The current ecological crisis can be understood as a crisis in the way that (particularly the ric... more The current ecological crisis can be understood as a crisis in the way that (particularly the richest and most powerful) humans relate to other humans and the wider Earth community. This crisis is the result of complex interactions between political and economic systems, habituated forms of behaviour, cultures, and modalities of consciousness rooted in a sense of separation, the desire to control, dominate, exploit, and consume. Such forms of consciousness are fostered and propagated by economic, political, and cultural systems which are themselves underpinned by such consciousness.

Large-scale, quantitative studies demonstrate that moving towards more ecological worldviews and modalities of consciousness-particularly those marked by a strong affective connection with the more-than-human world-is associated with adopting more sustainable lifestyles and engaging in pro-environmental political action. Based on a recent qualitative study, the kind of consciousness associated with committed environmental educators and activists is often marked by a sense of interconnection and community, inter-subjectivity, empathy, flow, an extended sense of life, rootedness in place, and a more encompassing sense of time. Transformative learning theory similarly notes that ecological consciousness entails moving beyond an instrumental worldview to an embodied, intersubjective mindset marked by a deep sense of connection with the powers of the living Earth. The latter are themselves perceived as sources of ecological wisdom. Insights from neurophysiology and the embodied mind suggest that this kind of consciousness can be cultivated via a combination of attention, imagination, practice, story-telling, and immersion in supportive communities of practice.

In this paper, examples of a variety of approaches for cultivating ecological consciousness will be considered including the use of meditative ecological practices, land-based learning, work with sustainable agriculture, and the "Work that Reconnects". Reflecting on these approaches, we will conclude by setting out areas for further exploration of ecological consciousness and ways it may be developed.

Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique, Jan 27, 2016

Funding options for global health research prominently include grants from corporations, as well ... more Funding options for global health research prominently include grants from corporations, as well as from foundations linked to specific corporations. While such funds can enable urgently-needed research and interventions, they can carry the risk of skewing health research priorities and exacerbating health inequities. With the objective of promoting critical reflection on potential corporate funding options for global health research, we propose a set of three questions developed through an open conference workshop and reflection on experiences of global health researchers and their institutions: 1) Does this funding allow me/us to retain control over research design, methodology and dissemination processes? 2) Does accessing this funding source involve altering my/our research agenda (i.e., what is the impact of this funding source on research priorities)? 3) What are the potential "unintended consequences" of accepting corporate funding, in terms of legitimizing corporat...

Management Decision, 2003

... The Authors. Louise Lemieux-Charles, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Wendy .... more ... The Authors. Louise Lemieux-Charles, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Wendy ... quality. This finding supports Westphal et al.'s (1997) observation that conformity to accepted quality practices leads to greater legitimacy. ...

Canadian journal of occupational therapy. Revue canadienne d'ergothérapie, 2004

Considerable controversy and limited information surrounds the use of performance-based functiona... more Considerable controversy and limited information surrounds the use of performance-based functional assessments for determining an injured worker's ability to function at work. Amidst a variety of protocols, philosophies and tools, the key aspects of different assessment approaches are described and compared across a range of assessment provider organizations. Qualitative and quantitative strategies were used to generate an in-depth understanding of the different assessment practices among 23 Southern Ontario assessment providers. Assessment approaches share common elements and variations that can be described along the continua of five dimensions: nature of assessor-evaluee interactions, fixed or flexible protocol delivery, efforts to contextualize, perceptions and use of evidence, and provider organizational environment. These approach dimensions are offered as a focus for appraising practices. Assessors need to reflect upon to what extent they are using a whole person, client-centred approach directed by clinical reasoning amidst a market driven industry.

Work (Reading, Mass.), 2011

Return to work after a leave on disability is a common phenomenon, but little is known about the ... more Return to work after a leave on disability is a common phenomenon, but little is known about the attitudes of employees or their supervisors towards the disability management process. We report on employee and supervisor feedback from one disability management experience. 389 consecutive employees from the Ontario offices of a single private Canadian insurance company returning to work from short-term disability, and their supervisors. We surveyed employees and their supervisors about their experience with, and attitudes towards, the disability management process. Of those surveyed, 88 employees and 75 supervisors provided data (response rates of 22.6% and 19.3% respectively). The majority of respondents (79.1% of employees and supervisors) endorsed positive attitudes towards their disability management experience. More than 25% of employees disagreed with the following three items: case managers contributed to recovery, case managers removed barriers to recovery, and sufficient support was provided in the return to work process. More than 25% of employees and managers reported that a commitment to modify an unhelpful work situation was not followed through. The majority of participating employees returning to work from short-term disability, and their supervisors, reported a high level of satisfaction with the disability management process. Areas that may benefit from attention include some aspects of case manager-employee interaction and ensuring that support during the return to work process is provided, including modification to work situations when appropriate.

Applied Ergonomics, 2006

In participatory ergonomic (PE) interventions, ''how'' effective participation by workplace parti... more In participatory ergonomic (PE) interventions, ''how'' effective participation by workplace parties can be achieved remains unclear. We conducted a case study of the dynamics of an ergonomic change team (ECT) process in a medium-sized (175 employees) automotive foam manufacturing plant. We present analyses of observer field notes and post-intervention interviews from which key elements on the dynamics of the ''how'' emerged: (1) impacts of facilitators' involvement and interests; (2) tensions in delimiting the scope of ECT activities; issues around (3) managing meetings and (4) realizing labour and management participation; and (5) workplace ECT members' difficulties in juggling other job commitments and facing production pressures. We highlight the ongoing negotiated nature of responses to these challenges by labour, management and ergonomic facilitator members of the ECT. We argue for greater examination of the social dynamics of PE processes to identify additional ways of fostering participation in ergonomic project implementation. r

Background: Intensive, periodic sessions are increasingly becoming a model for complementary rese... more Background: Intensive, periodic sessions are increasingly becoming a model for complementary research training. In 2004, the CCGHR began annual Summer Institutes for New Global Health Researchers (SI), to respond to a need among Canadian and Low and Middle Income Country (LMIC) researchers for training in strengthening partnerships, translating research into action, and developing global health research competencies. Our goal in the present study was to evaluate the extent to which the CCGHR's SI program has helped to train a new generation of global health researchers, impacted their career trajectories, as well as how the SI has supported participants in translating research into action.

Political ecology pushes back against the apolitical and ahistorical ecologies frequently found i... more Political ecology pushes back against the apolitical and ahistorical ecologies frequently found in mainstream scientific accounts of nature and the environment, and has increasingly focused on how scientific knowledge is 'socially constructed.' In this article, we argue for political ecological engagement with the highly influential knowledge-to-action (KTA) movement in science about health and the environment. We introduce KTA using results of a survey conducted under the auspices of a Canada-Latin America-Caribbean 'ecosystem approaches to health' (ecohealth) collaboration, and then narrow our focus to a single illustrative ecohealth project, dealing with the health impacts of small-scale gold mining in southwestern Ecuador. We employ an ecology of knowledge framework for integrating insights from science and technology studies, illustrating the interacting actors, material artifacts, institutions and discourses involved in not only the generation but also the application of health-environment science. The origins of ecohealth research in the Americas reflect interacting epistemological and political factors, as sophisticated, complex systemic analyses of health-environment interactions occurred amidst increasing neoliberalization of knowledge production. Simultaneously, corporate actors such as large mining companies influenced both the distribution of health-damaging environmental conditions in the Americas, and the ways in which they were studied. This analysis motivates our advocacy of specifically political ecologies of health-environment knowledge, in which inequitable power dynamics and non-human actors are foregrounded in studies of the social production and application of science. The political ecology of knowledge framework that we envision would allow for simultaneous consideration of how societal contexts influence scientific knowledge production, and how the resulting knowledge can be better applied to protect the health of communities facing environmental injustice.

L'écologie politique remet en question las explications apolitiques et anhistoriques fréquemment rencontrées dans les compte-rendu scientifiques sur la nature et l'environnement et met de plus en plus l'accent sur la manière dont la connaissance scientifique est socialement construite. Dans cet article, nous soutenons la pertinence de l'écologie politique pour le mouvement « du savoir à l'action », très influent dans les sciences de la santé de l'environnement. Nous présentons la perspective « du savoir à l'action » en nous appuyant sur les résultats d'une enquête menée dans le cadre d'une collaboration Canada-Amérique latine et Caraïbes sur les approches écosystémiques à la santé (écosanté), pour ensuite concentrer notre attention sur un unique projet écosanté, qui porte sur les effets sur la santé de l'extraction de l'or à petite échelle dans le sud-ouest de l'Équateur. Nous employons un cadre conceptuel d'écologie de la connaissance pour intégrer les idées des études en science et technologie et illustrons les interactions entre les actrices et acteurs, les artefacts matériels, les institutions et les discours impliqués non seulement dans la génération, mais aussi dans la reproduction de la science en santé et environnement. Les origines de la recherche en écosanté dans les Amériques reflètent l'interaction entre des facteurs épistémologiques et politiques, tandis que les analyses systémiques complexes et sophistiquées des interactions entre santé et environnement se sont déroulées dans un climat croissant de néolibéralisation de la production de connaissances. En parallèle, les acteurs corporatifs telles les grandes sociétés minières ont influencé tout autant la répartition des conditions environnementales nuisibles à la santé dans les Amériques que la façon dont elles ont été étudiées. Cette analyse motive notre défense d'une écologie spécifiquement politique de l'application de la connaissance en santé et environnement, au sein de laquelle les dynamiques inégales de pouvoir et les facteurs non humains sont mis de l'avant dans les études sur la production et l'application sociales de la science. Un cadre de l'écologie politique de la connaissance, comme nous proposons, permettrait de tenir compte simultanément de la manière dont les contextes sociétaux influencent la production de connaissances scientifiques et de la manière dont ces connaissances peut être mieux appliqués pour protéger la santé des communautés face à l'injustice environnementale.

La ecología política desafía a las ecologías apolíticas y ahistóricas que se sitúan con frecuencia en los postulados científicos de la naturaleza y el medio ambiente, y se ha centrado cada vez más en cómo se construye socialmente el conocimiento científico. En este artículo abogamos por un compromiso de la ecología política con el influyente movimiento ."conocimiento para la acción" (KTA por sus siglas en inglés) en la ciencia sobre la salud y el medio ambiente. Presentamos el KTA usando los resultados de una encuesta realizada en el ámbito de una colaboración Canadá-América Latina y el Caribe de "enfoques ecosistémicos en salud" (ecosalud) y, a continuación, dirigimos nuestra atención sobre un proyecto ilustrativo de ecosalud que trata sobre los efectos en la salud y el ambiente por la minería del oro a pequeña escala en el suroeste de Ecuador. Empleamos un marco analítico de la ecología del conocimiento para integrar las percepciones derivadas de los estudios de ciencia y de tecnología, ilustrando los agentes que interactúan, los artefactos materiales y las instituciones y discursos involucrados no solo en la generación, sino también en la aplicación de la ciencia salud-ambiente. Los orígenes de la investigación en ecosalud en las Américas reflejan la Journal of Political Ecology Vol. 24, 2017 694
interacción de factores epistemológicos y políticos como sofisticados y complejos análisis sistémicos de las interacciones salud-ambiente ocurridas en medio de la creciente neoliberalización de la producción del conocimiento. Al mismo tiempo, agentes empresariales, tales como grandes empresas mineras, influyeron tanto en la alteración de las condiciones ambientales perjudiciales para la salud en las Américas como en la forma en que los impactos se estudiaron. Este análisis motiva nuestra defensa específica de la aplicación de las ecologías políticas del conocimiento salud-ambiente en aquellos casos en los cuales dinámicas de poder no equitativas y agentes no humanos son colocados en primer plano en los estudios de la producción social y en la aplicación de la ciencia. El marco de la ecología política del conocimiento que proponemos permite considerar simultáneamente cómo los contextos sociales influyen sobre la producción del conocimiento científico, y cómo el conocimiento resultante se puede aplicar de mejor manera para proteger la salud de las comunidades que enfrentan la injusticia ambiental.

A ecologia política desafia às ecologias apolíticas e ahistóricas que se situam frequentemente nos postulados científicos da natureza e do meio ambiente, e tem-se centrado cada vez mais em como o conhecimento científico é socialmente construído. Neste artigo defendemos o compromisso da ecologia política com o influente movimento ."conhecimento para a ação" (KTA, pelas suas siglas em inglês) na ciência sobre a saúde e o meio ambiente. Apresentamos o KTA usando os resultados de uma enquete realizada no âmbito de uma colaboração Canadá-América Latina e Caribe de ."enfoques ecossistêmicos em saúde" (ecosaúde) e, em seguida, colocamos nossa atenção em um projeto ilustrativo de ecosaúde que trata dos efeitos na saúde da mineração de ouro em pequena escala no sudeste do Equador. Usamos um marco analítico de ecologia do conhecimento para integrar as percepções que provém dos estudos de ciência e de tecnologia, ilustrando os agentes que interagem, os artefatos materiais e as instituições e discursos envolvidos não só na geração, senão também na aplicação da ciência saúde-ambiente. As origens da pesquisa em ecosaúde nas Américas refletem as interações de fatores epistemológicos e políticos como sofisticados e complexos análises sistémicos das interações saúde-ambiente que aconteceram no meio da crescente neoliberalização da produção do conhecimento. Ao mesmo tempo, agentes empresarias, tais como grandes empresas mineradoras, influíram tanto na alteração das condições ambientais prejudiciais para a saúde nas Américas quanto na forma em que os impactos se estudaram. Esta análise motiva nossa defesa específica da aplicação das ecologias politicas do conhecimento saúde-ambiente naqueles casos nos quais dinâmicas de poder não equitativas e agentes não humanos são colocados no primeiro plano nos estudos sobre a produção social e a aplicação da ciência. O marco da ecologia política do conhecimento permite considerar simultaneamente como os contextos sociais influenciam a produção do conhecimento científico, e como o conhecimento resultante pode ser melhor utilizado para proteger a saúde das comunidades que enfrentam a injustiça ambiental.