The Permanent Working Group on Alternatives to Development which was set up in the Andean region from 2010, created and developed the book “Beyond Development”. This book compiles a handful concrete examples of efforts and practices on ecological knowledge, from activists in various spheres of civil society, to those working in institutions and the ancestral knowledge of indigenous groups, etc. It is of great importance to bring this diversity into the book, to carry and distribute the message of those who are outside the hegemonic system and the critical thinking of intellectuals from different disciplines. It proves that the changes and political strategies our society needs surpass the limit of ideas within the hegemonic concept of development. In this sense, the group’s name, “alternatives to development,” indicates a political position with regard to this concept which, historically, has usually been perceived in Latin American countries as something positive.

In order to bring the knowledge of Alternatives to the region, RLS SEA was working with our partners to get the book translated into Khmer and Burmese languages.