**3. Environmental problems, climate change, and quality of life**

Climate change is the most severe, complex environmental problem affecting the planet and facing humanity in the twenty-first century. For thousands of years, the temperature remained at a global average that enabled the existence of humans and diverse species in a state of interdependence with ecosystem biodiversity. Since the beginning of the Industrial Age, there has been increasing temperature alteration as a result of global warming caused by increases in carbon dioxide emissions from the fossil energy mix that has dominated the Anthropocene Era [5] in which we live. Indeed, we went from an atmospheric CO2 concentration of 280 parts per million (ppm) in the pre-industrial age (reference date: 1750) to nearly 400 ppm in 2015, with an ensuing increase in the Earth's average temperature.

*Quality of Life - Biopsychosocial Perspectives*

pation in collective life ([3], p. 74).

**Education and acquisition of knowledge** Use of educational opportunities Acquisition of knowledge

**Employment and quality of work life**

Access to employment

**Free time and leisure** Use of time

**Physical environment** Housing conditions Access to services Environmental nuisances

**Social environment** Social integration

*OECD list of social indicators.*

**Personal safety** Risk exposure Threat perception

*Source: OECD [4].*

Income

**Ability to acquire goods and services**

**Health** Life span Life in good health

**Social concern Indicator**

environment, (7) personal safety and the administration of justice, and (8) partici-

Other quality-of-life models have also been developed in Europe. For example, Germany created the "SPES System of Social Indicators," which measures both objective and subjective needs, as well as the evolution of personal well-being ([1], p. 28). Well-being surveys are occasionally conducted, data from which are presented to the public via reports. The Universities of Frankfurt and Mannheim,

> • Life expectancy • Perinatal mortality rate • Temporary disability • Permanent disability

> • Regular schooling • Adult education • Functional literacy rate

• Unemployment rate • Involuntary part-time work • Discouraged workers • Average work duration • Commute time • Yearly paid vacations • Atypical schedules • Salary distributions • Fatal work accidents • Workplace hazards

• Free time

• Free time activities

• Income distributions • Low incomes • Material deprivation • Asset distribution

• Housing, interior space • Access to outdoor space • Basic elements of comfort • Proximity to certain services • Exposure to air pollution

• Noise exposure

• Fatal physical injuries • Severe physical injuries • Personal safety fears

• Suicide rate

**188**

**Table 1.**

Life has historically existed and reproduced—and been made possible—in a regulated and, to a certain extent, autoregulated system of interdependent relationships among living, dynamic ecosystems that constantly transform, especially upon reaching points or moments of saturation of a given stage of contradictory development tensions. The human being is only one of its inhabitants, which, distinguished from other species by the use of reason—particularly in the modern age—intervenes in and violently alters movements of reproductive energy in the biosphere, the diverse macrohabitat that houses and enables life, which human activity has brought past its limits of vulnerability.

Human beings have pushed the planet's ability to autoregulate to its limit. The damage has been so great that even if resource extraction, deforestation, food production, and air and ocean pollution ceased, the Earth would take more than a thousand years to recover from the damage that has been done to date ([6], p. 24). This situation reflects the complex moment in which humanity finds itself, in which it is urgent to implement policies to correct and halt the historical consequences of our exploitation of the Earth; these policies must focus on improving *quality of life* through an approach that considers the environmental and human spheres in an attempt to mitigate the effects of the severe damage done to date. Along the same lines, Lovelock [6] indicates the need for a coordinated international effort and a carefully planned project that takes charge of the consequences of environmental exploitation and implements new policies that allow past actions to be corrected, for example, replacement of fossil fuels with purer, renewable sources of energy.

Scientific research in recent decades, especially IPCC reports, which systematize and interpret thousands of international studies, have predicted and sounded the alarm about increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their impact on temperature and ocean-level increases and precipitation decreases in various parts of the Earth, as well as the intensification and frequent appearance of extreme climate phenomena such as droughts, heat and cold waves, intense rains, floods, fires, and landslides caused by torrential rain, along with more frequent and intense hurricanes. Extreme events are increasingly frequent and affect the whole world, especially Latin America and the Caribbean, degrading and threatening the quality of life of vast sectors of the population.

Various regions, towns, and countries have been affected lately by long, severe droughts. Such is the case with the State of São Paulo in Brazil, with 41 million inhabitants. Marcelo Cardoso, a representative of the Alliance for Water, an organization of ecologists that emerged amid the water crisis that affects many towns in Brazil, particularly the State of São Paolo, describes the water stress drama that affects thousands of urban families; thus: "Water is intimately linked to personal dignity. When one cannot wash herself, go to the bathroom, or take care of her children, she panics." ([7], p. 31).

Water scarcity is a consequence of climate change, which, in the case of Brazil, has been exacerbated by the devastation of the Amazon rainforest to make way for soy and livestock. Indeed, the highly economically important agroindustry consumes almost 70% of the country's water, transferring approximately 112 billion liters of freshwater abroad each year. It is known that the Amazon produces a large amount of moisture; currently 18% of the Amazon is logged and 29% degraded ([7], p. 32). Similarly, various Latin American countries are subjected to extreme events such as droughts or drastic decreases in precipitation, including Chile (10 years of megadroughts), Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, and Central American countries, as are the Andes region and Latin America in general. For instance, the United Nations considers Chile and Mexico vulnerable to climate change because they meet seven of the nine requirements to be declared as such.

**191**

*Quality of Life from the South, Local Knowledge, Socio-Ecological Relationships, and Citizen…*

In this context, it is heartening that the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change [8], which brought together representatives of 195 nations in Paris, reached an accord that could partially halt the irreversible advance of global climate change. Indeed, the Paris Accords of December 2015 heed some of the warnings of scientists and open doors to the promotion of renewable energy, highlighting the need to generate resilience capacities in developing countries through environmental education and knowledge and technology transfer and obligating developed countries to contribute financial resources to support the mitigation and adaptation policies of the developing countries most affected by climate change. The accords compel the protection of the most vulnerable sectors of the population, the poor, and ecosystems and emerge as a means of reducing the greenhouse effect by implementing policies to reduce global gas emissions: "Recognizing that deep reductions in global emissions will be required in order to achieve the ultimate objective of the Convention and emphasizing the need

One of the most debated topics in prior conferences and in the Conference of the Parties in Paris was the provision of resources to grapple with climate change mitigation and adaptation processes, especially in the developing countries most vulnerable to extreme events. The conference adapted financial measures that will hopefully be met and actually contribute to halting climate change. The measures include: "... prior to 2025 the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement shall set a new collective quantified goal from a floor of USD 100 billion per year, taking into account the needs and priorities of developing countries" ([8], p. 9). Similarly, "Developed country Parties shall provide financial resources to assist developing country Parties with respect to both mitigation and adaptation in continuation of their existing obligations under the

To conclude the accords, the Conference of Parties expressed its concern regarding the food supply, which is severely threatened by the effects of climate change around the world: "Increasing the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions develop-

Finally, the Conference of Parties in Paris highlighted the universal nature of the problem and impact of climate change—almost as if it were an attribute of humanity or the age itself—and thus the need to adopt adaptation measures while taking into account and respecting the human rights of indigenous communities, local communities, women, and vulnerable groups: "Acknowledging that climate change is a common concern of humankind, Parties should, when taking action to address climate change, respect, promote and consider their respective obligations on human rights, the right to health, the rights of indigenous peoples, local communities, migrants, children, persons with disabilities and people in vulnerable situations and the right to development, as well as gender equality, empowerment

As we have shown, although the accords are very necessary, in practice they have arrived too late. For decades governments have turned a blind eye to studies, and the clear warnings of scientists and groups of ecologists seriously worried about the climate change problem and its consequences for economic activity, quality of life,

There is thus an urgent need to implement new processes and accords among international organizations committed to fighting and mitigating climate change, with concern for the *quality of life* not only of the current population but also of

ment, in a manner that does not threaten food production." ([8], p. 24).

of women and intergenerational equity." ([8], p. 23).

and the protection of the planet.

future generations.

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88953*

for urgency in addressing climate change." ([8], p. 2).

Convention" ([8], p. 31)*.*

*Quality of Life from the South, Local Knowledge, Socio-Ecological Relationships, and Citizen… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88953*

In this context, it is heartening that the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change [8], which brought together representatives of 195 nations in Paris, reached an accord that could partially halt the irreversible advance of global climate change. Indeed, the Paris Accords of December 2015 heed some of the warnings of scientists and open doors to the promotion of renewable energy, highlighting the need to generate resilience capacities in developing countries through environmental education and knowledge and technology transfer and obligating developed countries to contribute financial resources to support the mitigation and adaptation policies of the developing countries most affected by climate change. The accords compel the protection of the most vulnerable sectors of the population, the poor, and ecosystems and emerge as a means of reducing the greenhouse effect by implementing policies to reduce global gas emissions: "Recognizing that deep reductions in global emissions will be required in order to achieve the ultimate objective of the Convention and emphasizing the need for urgency in addressing climate change." ([8], p. 2).

One of the most debated topics in prior conferences and in the Conference of the Parties in Paris was the provision of resources to grapple with climate change mitigation and adaptation processes, especially in the developing countries most vulnerable to extreme events. The conference adapted financial measures that will hopefully be met and actually contribute to halting climate change. The measures include: "... prior to 2025 the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement shall set a new collective quantified goal from a floor of USD 100 billion per year, taking into account the needs and priorities of developing countries" ([8], p. 9). Similarly, "Developed country Parties shall provide financial resources to assist developing country Parties with respect to both mitigation and adaptation in continuation of their existing obligations under the Convention" ([8], p. 31)*.*

To conclude the accords, the Conference of Parties expressed its concern regarding the food supply, which is severely threatened by the effects of climate change around the world: "Increasing the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions development, in a manner that does not threaten food production." ([8], p. 24).

Finally, the Conference of Parties in Paris highlighted the universal nature of the problem and impact of climate change—almost as if it were an attribute of humanity or the age itself—and thus the need to adopt adaptation measures while taking into account and respecting the human rights of indigenous communities, local communities, women, and vulnerable groups: "Acknowledging that climate change is a common concern of humankind, Parties should, when taking action to address climate change, respect, promote and consider their respective obligations on human rights, the right to health, the rights of indigenous peoples, local communities, migrants, children, persons with disabilities and people in vulnerable situations and the right to development, as well as gender equality, empowerment of women and intergenerational equity." ([8], p. 23).

As we have shown, although the accords are very necessary, in practice they have arrived too late. For decades governments have turned a blind eye to studies, and the clear warnings of scientists and groups of ecologists seriously worried about the climate change problem and its consequences for economic activity, quality of life, and the protection of the planet.

There is thus an urgent need to implement new processes and accords among international organizations committed to fighting and mitigating climate change, with concern for the *quality of life* not only of the current population but also of future generations.

*Quality of Life - Biopsychosocial Perspectives*

brought past its limits of vulnerability.

vast sectors of the population.

children, she panics." ([7], p. 31).

seven of the nine requirements to be declared as such.

Life has historically existed and reproduced—and been made possible—in a regulated and, to a certain extent, autoregulated system of interdependent relationships among living, dynamic ecosystems that constantly transform, especially upon reaching points or moments of saturation of a given stage of contradictory development tensions. The human being is only one of its inhabitants, which, distinguished from other species by the use of reason—particularly in the modern age—intervenes in and violently alters movements of reproductive energy in the biosphere, the diverse macrohabitat that houses and enables life, which human activity has

Human beings have pushed the planet's ability to autoregulate to its limit. The damage has been so great that even if resource extraction, deforestation, food production, and air and ocean pollution ceased, the Earth would take more than a thousand years to recover from the damage that has been done to date ([6], p. 24). This situation reflects the complex moment in which humanity finds itself, in which it is urgent to implement policies to correct and halt the historical consequences of our exploitation of the Earth; these policies must focus on improving *quality of life* through an approach that considers the environmental and human spheres in an attempt to mitigate the effects of the severe damage done to date. Along the same lines, Lovelock [6] indicates the need for a coordinated international effort and a carefully planned project that takes charge of the consequences of environmental exploitation and implements new policies that allow past actions to be corrected, for example, replacement of fossil fuels with purer, renewable sources of energy. Scientific research in recent decades, especially IPCC reports, which systematize and interpret thousands of international studies, have predicted and sounded the alarm about increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their impact on temperature and ocean-level increases and precipitation decreases in various parts of the Earth, as well as the intensification and frequent appearance of extreme climate phenomena such as droughts, heat and cold waves, intense rains, floods, fires, and landslides caused by torrential rain, along with more frequent and intense hurricanes. Extreme events are increasingly frequent and affect the whole world, especially Latin America and the Caribbean, degrading and threatening the quality of life of

Various regions, towns, and countries have been affected lately by long, severe droughts. Such is the case with the State of São Paulo in Brazil, with 41 million inhabitants. Marcelo Cardoso, a representative of the Alliance for Water, an organization of ecologists that emerged amid the water crisis that affects many towns in Brazil, particularly the State of São Paolo, describes the water stress drama that affects thousands of urban families; thus: "Water is intimately linked to personal dignity. When one cannot wash herself, go to the bathroom, or take care of her

Water scarcity is a consequence of climate change, which, in the case of Brazil, has been exacerbated by the devastation of the Amazon rainforest to make way for soy and livestock. Indeed, the highly economically important agroindustry consumes almost 70% of the country's water, transferring approximately 112 billion liters of freshwater abroad each year. It is known that the Amazon produces a large amount of moisture; currently 18% of the Amazon is logged and 29% degraded ([7], p. 32). Similarly, various Latin American countries are subjected to extreme events such as droughts or drastic decreases in precipitation, including Chile (10 years of megadroughts), Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, and Central American countries, as are the Andes region and Latin America in general. For instance, the United Nations considers Chile and Mexico vulnerable to climate change because they meet

**190**

The environment affects and determines the circumstances of societal and individual life. All people need and deserve to live in healthy environments free of pollution and danger. Unfortunately, the current landscape is a long way from providing these ecosystem services: underdeveloped countries are disadvantaged in terms of environmental conditions and poverty, with enormous effects on the quality of life of their inhabitants. Thus, thought must be given to sustainable, socioecological development with consciousness, focused on diminishing the effects of the environmental crisis currently affecting the planet and quality of life. We believe that climate change is very important when debating and studying quality of life, as it is a determining factor in the future of humanity.

### **4. Quality of life in the South: the Latin American debate**

The topic of quality of life arose much later in the Latin American debate, specifically in the post-dictatorship period in the 1980s, during which a profound re-democratization process unfolded, allowing the emergence of new social movements that were also concerned with improving quality of life, reviving past axioms on social matters. They included new union, environmental, human rights, student, women's, and ethical movements. Amid this period of democratization and social effervescence, concern for quality of life and its improvement in Latin American countries arose and developed.

The Latin American debate on quality of life is currently closely tied to the need to overcome high levels of inequality, vulnerability, and poverty, which exist in practically every country. According to poverty data measured in Latin America between 2010 and 2014 [9] by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL), while inequality in the region continues to grow, poverty and extreme poverty levels are decreasing.

This poverty reduction process has made relative improvements in most countries in the region, which have been accompanied by an improvement in quality of life compared to the prior situation. Indeed, the poverty gap in the analyzed period decreased at high annual rates and fell faster than the poverty rate in countries such as Uruguay (−15.9%), Peru (−12.3%), Chile (−10.5%), Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Colombia, and Bolivia (a drop of between about 8 and 10%) ([9], p. 20). Meanwhile, poverty severity decreased in the same countries to an annual equivalent rate of between 9 and 14% ([9], p. 20).

While the data demonstrate that poverty has decreased, wealth distribution indices have indicated increasing inequality, which could be explained by the current globalization process—along with the implementation of neoliberal privatization policies—which has accelerated the global and regional trend of increasingly uneven wealth distribution, the most acute manifestation of which is in Latin America, translating into new segments of the population being excluded from the basic conditions and services and thus having a lower quality of life. Although it is true that certain resources are scarce and superexploited around the world, the exclusion processes are neither explained nor justified by this scarcity, but rather by wealth and asset accumulation favored by an instrumental rationale that hegemonizes the actions of capital and private interests, the media, and the most influential political class in the world.

Ulrich Beck portrayed the new global reality early on as the dawning of the second modernity, which he identifies and defines as a difficult-to-govern "world risk society." He maintains that control problems can lead to a state of "organized irresponsibility" regarding the risks affecting the planet: "… the new prominence of risk connects, on the one hand, individual autonomy and insecurity in the

**193**

*Quality of Life from the South, Local Knowledge, Socio-Ecological Relationships, and Citizen…*

labor market and in gender relations, and, on the other hand, the sweeping influence of scientific and technological change. World risk society opens public discourse and social science to the challenges of ecological crisis, which, as we now know, are global, local, and personal at one and the same time. Nor is this all. In the 'global age,' the theme of risk unites many otherwise disparate areas of new transnational politics with the question of cosmopolitan democracy: with the new political economy of uncertainty, financial markets, transcultural conflicts over food and other products (BSE), emerging 'risk communities,' and, last but not least, the anarchy of international relations. Personal biographies as well as world politics are getting 'risky' in the global world of manufactured

This risk in the global society is undoubtedly among the important subjective factors that influence quality-of-life indices and individual perceptions. Nonetheless, poor segments of the population have developed new abilities to survive in a flexible, unstable, inequitable, unprotected, rootless, and fractured world, seeking with their own actions to mitigate their hardship and improve their quality of life in the short and long term. Many of their actions remain in the sphere of precariousness and instability, although some manage to establish themselves

As we have mentioned, income distribution in most Latin American countries—and around the world—has deteriorated. In neoliberalism income distribution and redistribution are forbidden words, taboos, simply unnecessary: "… the collapse of collective redistribution claims (and more generally, the replacement of the criteria of social justice by those of respect for difference reduced to cultural distinction) and the growth of inequality running wild are intimately related. There is nothing incidental about this coincidence. Setting claims for recognition free from their redistributive content allows the growing supply of individual anxiety and fear generated by the precariousness of 'liquid modern' life to be channeled away from the political area – the sole territory where it could crystallize into redemptive action and therefore be dealt with radically – by blocking its social

Development as such must overcome the narrow concept of "growth" or "productivism" based only on economic or income factors in order to encompass a more holistic vision linked to socio-environmental protection and promotion of quality of life, that is, quality of life not associated with the unlimited accumulation of wealth and assets. Material goods are necessary and essential in life, but equally indispensable are intangible values related to freedom, democracy, the landscape, beauty, culture, solidarity, human coexistence, friendship, and participation. Here the idea of a sustainable development model based on ethical environmental and human values such as respect for nature and its own laws of conservation and reproduction; respect for human rights; respect for freedom; guaranteed equal access to education, health, infrastructure, and recreation; and the right to democratically participate and decide fundamental public matters of concern to subjects

Stable, decent, and quality work is undoubtedly an important determining factor

in improving quality of life, as well as a central element of social sustainability. Precarious or unstable work destroys the identity of the individual who does it, transforming it into a mere provider of daily sustenance, something disposable, replaceable, and expendable, negatively affecting psychological well-being and quality of life. By contrast, quality work generates social security, stability, and peace. Work that adds value, in which highly-qualified workers enjoy autonomy and make decisions, as exists in developed countries [12], fosters the subjectivity of the individual, increases quality of life, and advances social progress. Latin America currently presents high

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88953*

over time, blazing trails of progress and hope.

uncertainties." [10].

sources." [11].

and citizens comes into play.

*Quality of Life from the South, Local Knowledge, Socio-Ecological Relationships, and Citizen… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88953*

labor market and in gender relations, and, on the other hand, the sweeping influence of scientific and technological change. World risk society opens public discourse and social science to the challenges of ecological crisis, which, as we now know, are global, local, and personal at one and the same time. Nor is this all. In the 'global age,' the theme of risk unites many otherwise disparate areas of new transnational politics with the question of cosmopolitan democracy: with the new political economy of uncertainty, financial markets, transcultural conflicts over food and other products (BSE), emerging 'risk communities,' and, last but not least, the anarchy of international relations. Personal biographies as well as world politics are getting 'risky' in the global world of manufactured uncertainties." [10].

This risk in the global society is undoubtedly among the important subjective factors that influence quality-of-life indices and individual perceptions. Nonetheless, poor segments of the population have developed new abilities to survive in a flexible, unstable, inequitable, unprotected, rootless, and fractured world, seeking with their own actions to mitigate their hardship and improve their quality of life in the short and long term. Many of their actions remain in the sphere of precariousness and instability, although some manage to establish themselves over time, blazing trails of progress and hope.

As we have mentioned, income distribution in most Latin American countries—and around the world—has deteriorated. In neoliberalism income distribution and redistribution are forbidden words, taboos, simply unnecessary: "… the collapse of collective redistribution claims (and more generally, the replacement of the criteria of social justice by those of respect for difference reduced to cultural distinction) and the growth of inequality running wild are intimately related. There is nothing incidental about this coincidence. Setting claims for recognition free from their redistributive content allows the growing supply of individual anxiety and fear generated by the precariousness of 'liquid modern' life to be channeled away from the political area – the sole territory where it could crystallize into redemptive action and therefore be dealt with radically – by blocking its social sources." [11].

Development as such must overcome the narrow concept of "growth" or "productivism" based only on economic or income factors in order to encompass a more holistic vision linked to socio-environmental protection and promotion of quality of life, that is, quality of life not associated with the unlimited accumulation of wealth and assets. Material goods are necessary and essential in life, but equally indispensable are intangible values related to freedom, democracy, the landscape, beauty, culture, solidarity, human coexistence, friendship, and participation. Here the idea of a sustainable development model based on ethical environmental and human values such as respect for nature and its own laws of conservation and reproduction; respect for human rights; respect for freedom; guaranteed equal access to education, health, infrastructure, and recreation; and the right to democratically participate and decide fundamental public matters of concern to subjects and citizens comes into play.

Stable, decent, and quality work is undoubtedly an important determining factor in improving quality of life, as well as a central element of social sustainability. Precarious or unstable work destroys the identity of the individual who does it, transforming it into a mere provider of daily sustenance, something disposable, replaceable, and expendable, negatively affecting psychological well-being and quality of life. By contrast, quality work generates social security, stability, and peace. Work that adds value, in which highly-qualified workers enjoy autonomy and make decisions, as exists in developed countries [12], fosters the subjectivity of the individual, increases quality of life, and advances social progress. Latin America currently presents high

*Quality of Life - Biopsychosocial Perspectives*

countries arose and developed.

extreme poverty levels are decreasing.

lent rate of between 9 and 14% ([9], p. 20).

political class in the world.

The environment affects and determines the circumstances of societal and individual life. All people need and deserve to live in healthy environments free of pollution and danger. Unfortunately, the current landscape is a long way from providing these ecosystem services: underdeveloped countries are disadvantaged in terms of environmental conditions and poverty, with enormous effects on the quality of life of their inhabitants. Thus, thought must be given to sustainable, socioecological development with consciousness, focused on diminishing the effects of the environmental crisis currently affecting the planet and quality of life. We believe that climate change is very important when debating and studying quality of

The topic of quality of life arose much later in the Latin American debate, specifically in the post-dictatorship period in the 1980s, during which a profound re-democratization process unfolded, allowing the emergence of new social movements that were also concerned with improving quality of life, reviving past axioms on social matters. They included new union, environmental, human rights, student, women's, and ethical movements. Amid this period of democratization and social effervescence, concern for quality of life and its improvement in Latin American

The Latin American debate on quality of life is currently closely tied to the need

This poverty reduction process has made relative improvements in most countries in the region, which have been accompanied by an improvement in quality of life compared to the prior situation. Indeed, the poverty gap in the analyzed period decreased at high annual rates and fell faster than the poverty rate in countries such as Uruguay (−15.9%), Peru (−12.3%), Chile (−10.5%), Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Colombia, and Bolivia (a drop of between about 8 and 10%) ([9], p. 20). Meanwhile, poverty severity decreased in the same countries to an annual equiva-

While the data demonstrate that poverty has decreased, wealth distribution indices have indicated increasing inequality, which could be explained by the current globalization process—along with the implementation of neoliberal privatization policies—which has accelerated the global and regional trend of increasingly uneven wealth distribution, the most acute manifestation of which is in Latin America, translating into new segments of the population being excluded from the basic conditions and services and thus having a lower quality of life. Although it is true that certain resources are scarce and superexploited around the world, the exclusion processes are neither explained nor justified by this scarcity, but rather by wealth and asset accumulation favored by an instrumental rationale that hegemonizes the actions of capital and private interests, the media, and the most influential

Ulrich Beck portrayed the new global reality early on as the dawning of the second modernity, which he identifies and defines as a difficult-to-govern "world risk society." He maintains that control problems can lead to a state of "organized irresponsibility" regarding the risks affecting the planet: "… the new prominence of risk connects, on the one hand, individual autonomy and insecurity in the

to overcome high levels of inequality, vulnerability, and poverty, which exist in practically every country. According to poverty data measured in Latin America between 2010 and 2014 [9] by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL), while inequality in the region continues to grow, poverty and

life, as it is a determining factor in the future of humanity.

**4. Quality of life in the South: the Latin American debate**

**192**

levels of unemployment and loss of centeredness and work meaning. Workdays have lengthened, and prevailing poverty means that more than one job is required. Most of the population cannot sustain itself on flexible and precarious work. As André Gorz expresses it well, "We are leaving work-based society behind without replacing it by any other form. Each of us is aware, emotionally and intellectually, that we are potentially unemployed, potentially under-employed, potentially insecure or temporary workers, potential 'part-timers" [13]. Work has become a "scarce" good, necessitating a rethinking of it. A new concept of work is required, redefining it as, for example, community and environmental activities of social value and meaning that undoubtedly improve quality of life.

Another important aspect related to quality of life, which has not been taken into consideration in traditional theory, is the human need for landscapes and green areas. Studies carried out by Jorge Rojas [14] between 2001 and 2003 demonstrate the importance of the landscape—a fundamental element in the organization and sustenance of the daily lives of citizens—in quality of life. Our sense of belongingness to the nature manifests itself in our desire to return to it, in some manner of attraction to the natural landscape. This is also influenced by the worldviews of indigenous peoples of Latin America. The close relationships between indigenous communities and their territories and landscapes have influenced the rest of the Latin American society. Thus, we deem the need for landscapes and their relationships with individuals important to mention as a central aspect of quality of life.

Nonetheless, poor people generally lack quality landscapes and green areas. They live not only in crowded conditions but also amid rough, degraded, polluted, barren, and dirty landscapes. Poor landscapes make people sick, depress them, and infect them with their vulnerability. Therefore, every human needs a territory in which to settle, put down roots, create a story, reproduce, and build hopes. Where the social groups that inhabit it, through social practices and the set of social relationships in the territory, take ownership of the space, making it part of their identity and uniqueness [15], in this space, there is a confluence of the basic elements of the social identity of the community and the historical elements of the common past and the community's worldview. However, in Latin America there have been severe externalities, negatively affecting natural systems, territories, landscapes, and quality of life. Even so, in most Latin American countries, there is enough space to allow each person, family, and community access to adequate territorial sustenance, thereby improving quality of life.

*Citizen participation* is another substantial factor in individual quality of life and modern society, as in the current modern society those who do not participate remain on the margins of life and events and ultimately the margins of society. From a quality-of-life perspective, participation cannot be limited—as it is often understood in our countries—to the mere act of keeping informed of the decisions that will change some important aspect of our daily existence (whether a megaproject, a constitutional change, an educational reform, the installation of a dump near a residential area, etc.). Participation in a modern sense entails citizen involvement, the ability of people (individually and collectively) to decide and influence the social, political, and cultural matters that will affect and shape life in the society. This means broadening and deepening democracy, respecting the people and cultural diversity, and strengthening regions and social organizations. We are still far from establishing a fully democratic system that allows and ensures citizen participation. Elections are a minimum modality of democracy. In developed countries, there has recently been discussion on the "democratization of democracy" [16], a concept that indicates structural and paradigm changes regarding the components

**195**

*Quality of Life from the South, Local Knowledge, Socio-Ecological Relationships, and Citizen…*

and characteristics of the first modernity. It also involves the behavior and role of the people and the active exercise of citizenship, which is still far from occurring in

**5. New criteria for the study of quality of life: social baseline—a tool for** 

As we have seen, today there are various aspects of quality of life; it appears necessary to us to create an instrument with which these aspects can be analyzed and the quality of life of individuals protected amid interventions such as the development of projects. Taking international experiences into account, the social baseline can be understood as a tool that allows a deep assessment of the community affected by an intervention and encompasses the set of factors and dimensions that make up and shape quality of life [1]. A project should not worsen current qualityof-life conditions, as it tends to occur. Rather, it should improve the living conditions of the community, which rarely happens. It is known that in general every project or intervention alters social life. It can do so positively or negatively, and the alterations can be of very diverse sorts. They depend on personal perceptions, which must be considered and respected. Perceptions can be studied and measured

Social baseline means being aware of and understanding the system that makes up individual quality of life, spanning the productive, social, cultural, and interpersonal aspects of the community ([1], p. 25). It does not mean, as it often occurs in Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), that only some general socioeconomic characteristics are described in order to subsequently deduce possible social impacts, which the consultants responsible for the sociocultural studies tend to minimize ([1], p. 25). Only deep knowledge of the human habitat in all its systemic complexity and interdependence with the nature that surrounds it allows the projected social impacts of an energy megaproject or other such development on

In an investigation that we carried out in Patagonia related to the possible impact of the HidroAysen megaproject on community values, we were able to establish that in the Cochrane community, for example, one of the main fears regarding the project was that the arrival of outside workers, without families, would disrupt the good customs, values, and traditions of the community ([1], p. 25). The construction of dams, according to the people of Cochrane, would bring money, prostitution, corruption, and crime, which would affect their community life based on trust, respect, and neighborliness. Trust is a fundamental value that has been present throughout the difficult history of the settlement and (isolated) subsistence of the Aysén Region. It has allowed the formation of social networks and friendships and the organization of communities based on solidarity and mutual support, indispensable values in geographic regions isolated from the rest of the country and, in a sense, abandoned by the government, as has been the case with the Chilean

As EIAs discuss the baseline of the natural system, a *social baseline* that describes the impacts that implementation of a project would have on the basic makeup of neighboring communities, taking into account the various aspects of quality of life, should also be considered. Indeed, a community has history, organization, culture, traditions, social practices, modes of action and interaction, norms and values that regulate it, and desires and aspirations to improve individual and collective living conditions. Society, furthermore, is not a mere statistical data point, but rather a dynamic, changing reality

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88953*

**the defense of the common**

with scientific precision.

the human community to be analyzed.

Patagonia, as various investigations have shown [1].

Latin America.

*Quality of Life from the South, Local Knowledge, Socio-Ecological Relationships, and Citizen… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88953*

and characteristics of the first modernity. It also involves the behavior and role of the people and the active exercise of citizenship, which is still far from occurring in Latin America.
