Interview with Research Assistant Lukas Becker at CIES

You are currently in Bogotá, Colombia doing fieldwork for the Anthroposouth: Latin American Oil Revolutions in the Development Century project. Can you tell us more about the work you have been doing there ?

I am above all laying the groundwork for a longer investigation in a year’s time; seeing which kinds of archives will be useful for me and which institutions I should visit to find adequate material for my research.

I visited the national archives to have a look at what kinds of materials they have compiled on the history of petroleum exploration in the 20th century and, since my main focus is on labour history and particularly the oil union USO, I visited an educational foundation of that very same union to establish contact and prepare for a longer stay there next year.

Why is Colombia a focus on the project ?

Colombia and particularly its major oil city, Barrancabermeja, provide for an interesting showcase of the general dynamics and tensions inherent in 20th century oil extraction. From a segregated politics of enclave, to pioneer leftist unionism, anti-imperialism, and discussions around resource-sovereignty and nationalism, the history of oil extraction in this part of Colombia is not only illustrative of the country and the entire region of Latin America, but also for a broader understanding of discussions about sovereignty in regards to energy and natural resources.

What are you expecting to do with your findings?

The documents I found at the national archives should serve to provide me with an idea of what the state’s vision of the oil industry was, how the different actors of the state’s various institutions approached the discussions around oil as a public or private resource, and how that impacted ideas around energy sovereignty.

The material I’ll look into at the oil union foundation should, hopefully, provide me with a different narrative to the hegemonic discourse and broaden my understanding of the tense discursive field that was, and continues to be, the politics of oil and natural resources.

Is the work you are doing in Colombia also related to your PhD research? Can you tell us more about it?

My project will focus on the role of labour and social activism in discussions around resource nationalism and sovereignty. I will aim to provide a comparative approach between different countries and movements within Latin America. Colombia, however, is my main area of interest and will serve as my focus point. Therefore, it was a valuable trip to already make some steps forward in my research.