Collective Action and Civilian Agency in Conflict: Peasant Strategies for Peacebuilding in Rural Colombia
| dc.contributor.author | Davila Saad, Andrea | en |
| dc.contributor.committeechair | Peters, Joel | en |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Poets, Desiree | en |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Luke, Timothy W. | en |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Kitchens, Karin E. | en |
| dc.contributor.department | Public Administration/Public Affairs | en |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-06-03T08:09:38Z | en |
| dc.date.available | 2025-06-03T08:09:38Z | en |
| dc.date.issued | 2025-06-02 | en |
| dc.description.abstract | This dissertation uses a mixed-methods approach to examine how peasant associations and agricultural cooperatives contribute to violence prevention and peacebuilding in Colombia's conflict-affected rural areas. Grounded in the agrarian question, it combines municipal-level data analysis with testimonies and a regional case study to explore how collective action and civilian agency shape conflict dynamics and foster local resilience. The findings highlight the role of rural organizations not only in resisting armed actors, but in constructing alternative economic that support long-term peace from below. | en |
| dc.description.abstractgeneral | In Colombia's countryside, land has long been a source of inequality and conflict. Known as the "agrarian question," this refers to how land, resources, and political power have historically been concentrated in the hands of a few, leaving small farmers marginalized and rural communities exposed to violence. This dissertation explores how rural people—through peasant associations and agricultural cooperatives—have responded not only with resilience, but with organized efforts to build peace and protect their way of life. Analyzing municipal level data from across Colombia, the study finds that in areas hardest hit by the armed conflict, stronger local organizing—especially through agricultural cooperatives—is associated with lower levels of violence. However, this relationship is not uniform. The findings suggest that cooperatives may offer particular protection in places where state presence is weak and communities have developed internal cohesion. Still, these organizations are not immune to co-optation or collapse; their ability to endure depends on broader conditions of political support, economic stability, and territorial justice. Through testimonies from rural Colombians and a case study in Sur del Tolima—a region deeply affected by conflict but rich in cooperative organizing—the dissertation reveals how people resisted armed groups through quiet acts of refusal, protected one another through informal networks of trust, and cultivated economic alternatives grounded in solidarity and care. These stories challenge the idea that peace only comes through official agreements or external aid. Instead, peace emerges from below, in the day-to-day efforts of communities who plant together, decide together, and persist together—often against overwhelming odds. Ultimately, the study shows that collective action is not just protest or survival. It is also a form of local governance, memory-keeping, and economic imagination. In a landscape marked by uncertainty, rural Colombians continue to defend their right to live, work, and build futures on their own terms. | en |
| dc.description.degree | Doctor of Philosophy | en |
| dc.format.medium | ETD | en |
| dc.identifier.other | vt_gsexam:43317 | en |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/10919/135016 | en |
| dc.language.iso | en | en |
| dc.publisher | Virginia Tech | en |
| dc.rights | In Copyright | en |
| dc.rights.uri | http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ | en |
| dc.subject | Collective Action; Civilian Agency; Social and Solidarity Economy; Peasant Associations; Agricultural Cooperatives | en |
| dc.subject | Economic Alternatives; Conflict-Affected Rural Areas; Peacebuilding | en |
| dc.title | Collective Action and Civilian Agency in Conflict: Peasant Strategies for Peacebuilding in Rural Colombia | en |
| dc.type | Dissertation | en |
| thesis.degree.discipline | Planning, Governance, and Globalization | en |
| thesis.degree.grantor | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | en |
| thesis.degree.level | doctoral | en |
| thesis.degree.name | Doctor of Philosophy | en |
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