Affects and Territorial Resistances to Extractivism: Socio-community Organizations and (In)justice in Nahuelbuta, Chile

Abstract

This article analyzes the ways in which socio-community organizations construct territorial actions in the Nahuelbuta region of Chile, using a qualitative approach based on focused and semi-structured interviews, complemented by sentiment analysis techniques applied to various individuals connected to these organizations. Methodological tools from grounded theory are combined with a critical reading of territory as a space of conflict, meaning, and agency. The study identifies facilitators such as community cohesion, female leadership, and institutional linkages, as well as structural obstacles like insecurity, gender discrimination, and environmental degradation. Through a sentiment analysis matrix, the article reveals how emotions—such as pride, frustration, or fear—mediate and shape territorial practices. The findings are discussed in light of conceptual frameworks such as territorial (in)justice, southern epistemologies, and Latin American political ecologies, proposing a situated interpretation of collective action. This approach allows for an understanding of territory not merely as a physical space, but as a social and affective fabric where meanings, resources, and ways of life are contested. The article contributes to enriching the debate on community agency and bottom-up territorial construction.