Current perceptions on climate change in Uruguay: Actors and visions with a focus on the Northeast region

Abstract

The change of government in Uruguay in March 2020 led to some modifications of the country's environmental and climate institutions, including the creation of the new Ministry of Environment and the transfer of the National Climate Change Response System (SNRCC by its acronyms in Spanish) to that orbit. The departmental elections of September 2020 brought also some changes in the Northeast region of Uruguay (departments of Rivera, Tacuarembó and Cerro Largo). Considering this context, this work assumes a theoretical perspective of multilevel and multi-stakeholder governance, adopting a qualitative methodological strategy. The objective here is to analyze the current perception of national and territorial actors regarding the policies and mechanisms of climate governance in Uruguay and the region. Consequently, it examines diverse articulations at different levels of government, as well as different dynamics of participation with a focus on climate issues at the national as well as within the territory analyzed. Doing so, the paper aims at evaluating some progress and challenges in this area, in order to contribute to the design and implementation of assertive policies on climate change.