LIMONCOCHA BIOLOGICAL RESERVE, LAGOON: MEANINGS FROM AN ANTHROPIC PERSPECTIVE

This article seeks to understand and deepen the main meanings of the Limoncocha lagoon for the Kichwa community of Limoncocha, located in the buffer zone of the Limoncocha Biological Reserve (RBL), province of Sucumbíos, Ecuadorian Amazonian north. The research was ethnobiological and transdisciplinary, oriented from two theoretical approaches: Political Ecology and Ecological Anthropology. The fieldwork was carried out from January to June 2019. The meanings were presented in eleven categories: the symbol of collective identity, living being, part of the territory, means of livelihood, transport route, a place to fish, ancestral wisdom, sacred and vital, tourism and recreation site, environmental education and conservation, and changes have emerged. Finally, the need to consider the meanings and values of the environment of local communities for the construction of more inclusive forms of management in protected areas is supported.