Gouverner l'environnement dans des régions frontalières : coopération et conflits dans les bassins du fleuve San Juan (Costa Rica-Nicaragua) et du fleuve Sixaola (Costa Rica-Panamá)

Abstract

Governing environment in borders regions? Dynamics of cooperation and conflicts on the basins of San Juan River (Costa Rica-Nicaragua) and Sixaola River (Costa Rica- Panama) The Central American isthmus is particularly affected by the politic discontinuity caused by ten dyads dividing the region into seven states. Borders’ regions are characterized by economic and social marginalization, but also by their natural wealth as they gather the most important protected areas and watersheds of the Isthmus. This natural wealth is currently attracting the attention of a wide range of national, regional as well as international actors who initiate numerous binational and cross-border cooperations in order to encourage the development and conservation of these border regions. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze how collective actors (NGOs, cooperatives, associations, ministries and indigenous authorities among others) acting at different scales influence the environmental management of border areas in Central America. We study the interplay of actors around the dynamics of cross-border cooperation and conflicts that occur in shared basins of San Juan River (between Costa Rica and Nicaragua) and Sixaola River (between Costa Rica and Panama).