Inovação social no meio rural: do acampamento na antiga Fazenda Annoni até a Cooperativa de Produção Agropecuária Cascata Ltda (COOPTAR)

Abstract

The research carried out in this thesis aimed to analyze the social innovation developed in a collective of farmers that make up the Cooperativa de Produção Agropecuária Cascata Ltda (COOPTAR), investigating its transformational potential over a 30-year trajectory. COOPTAR is an enterprise of the solidarity economy of agricultural cooperation, constituted by families of farmers seated in one of the blocks of land originated from the old Farm Annoni, in the municipality of Pontão / RS, who experience an integral cooperative system, in which the land and the means of production are owned and used collectively. This collective was created from an intense and emblematic process of social mobilization that presents a history of conflicts and years of resistance, in the search for the right to work and live on the land, generating a new form of economic, social and cultural experience, in response to the deep scarcity of resources and the need to achieve economic viability for their families' livelihoods. The theoretical-methodological framework used the concept of transformative social innovation proposed by Avelino et al. (2014) and Haxeltine et al. (2017), which is distinguished from the perspective of instrumental social innovation. In the context of social innovation in the transformative perspective, social innovation in solidarity economy practices and social innovation in rural areas were addressed, linking the three fields, as the solidarity economy presents transformative potential and many solidarity economic enterprises are found in rural areas. The research was characterized as qualitative, with a case study procedure, with data collection instruments: bibliographical and documentary review, observation and semi-structured interviews. The data were analyzed using the content analysis technique. The findings showed that social innovation in the transformative perspective was confirmed in the experiences of COOPTAR, due to the creation of a new culture of collective action, based on democratic practices and the development of knowledge and skills that involve new ways of producing and living. Among the main transformations, the following stand out: the shift towards cooperative and ecological production, the qualification of physical structures (work, homes and living spaces), the development of the sense of collectivity with respect and appreciation of individuality, the significant reduction in gender inequalities, an improvement in the quality of life, the ability of families to self-sustain and the adhesion of the new generation for the continuity and permanent improvement of the cooperative. The study concludes that social innovation in the transformative perspective involved the development of a culture of innovation, in addition to the fact that the ongoing formation processes (within the scope of the MST) and the collective and self-managed practice of the solidarity economy were facilitators in the generation of this culture.