Transicion socioecologica y sostenibilidad de la frontera agricola en el valle geografico del rio cauca: un analisis desde el metabolismo social y la ecologia del paisaje (1960-2015).

The intensification of agriculture since the industrial revolution has generated drastic changes in the socioecological metabolism (MSE) of large regions of the planet. Given the current global scenario of population growth, it is forecasted that land for agriculture will double in the next 30 years, in order to meet the demand for raw material, energy and food per capita. In this scenario, the human species faces one of the greatest challenges in its history: to feed itself in a sustainable way without destroying the environment and maintaining the ecological processes that guarantee its permanence in the planet. This research analyzes the effects of the socioecological transition (TSE) of an organic-based agriculture to an industrial one, on the sustainability of the agricultural frontier, in the period 1960-2015, in the geographical valley of the Cauca River, through two case studies (Palmira and Santander de Quilichao). The originality of this study lies in the interdisciplinary approach that allows the quantitative as well as qualitative, material and immaterial analysis of the social and natural systems of a region little explored from this perspective, and which is framed analytically and methodologically in the field of metabolism Social and landscape ecology. The results of this research can contribute to the understanding of the socioecological processes that have shaped the current agricultural landscape of the region in order to generate planning strategies for more sustainable landscapes in areas that historically have been the scene of the Colombian armed conflict, and therefore important sociopolitical spaces in the postconflict. These spaces require relevant information to support public policies for the construction of a model of sustainable agricultural development that fosters the responsible use of natural resources and promotes territorial peacebuilding.