Victor Felix, a Potiguara from Paraíba, aims to “tropicalize” soil research

Art by Julia Jabur

By Meghie Rodrigues

Agroecologist Victor Felix argues that using a one-size-fits-all approach to study and practice agriculture is a recipe for disaster. He notes that Brazilian agricultural sciences and institutions have adopted the European research modus operandi, which are influenced by colonialist biases and tailored for temperate environments. “We know that it doesn’t work [here] because you have to consider different criteria, environments, and factors,” he explains.

Felix, who holds a Ph.D. in soil science from the Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), seeks to  “tropicalize” soil research by integrating Western and Indigenous knowledge to create a new—and richer—perspective on the relationship between humans and the earth beneath our feet. “When we work more closely with Indigenous peoples, who have a deep knowledge of their territories and tropical ecosystems, we can develop solutions not only for agriculture, but also for territorial management at the local and even national levels.”

Felix speaks from experience. Born and raised in the Potiguara village of Baía da Traição, a coastal town of fewer than 10,000 people in Paraíba, he combines the land management practices he observed growing up with the principles of pedology, a branch of Western soil science that focuses on soil formation, classification, and morphology.

The result is ethnopedology, a technique that Felix used last year to enhance soil mapping in the Potiguara Indigenous Territory in Paraíba. Currently, in his post-doctoral research with the Observatory of Sustainable and Healthy Territories of Bocaina —a collaboration between Fiocruz and the Forum of Traditional Communities of Angra dos Reis, Paraty, and Ubatuba (FTC)–he plans to further his studies in the Potiguara territory and test the soil mapping methodology in communities in Serra da Bocaina, situated in the south of the State of Rio de Janeiro.

Soil mapping is a way of cartographically representing the characteristics and properties of the soil in a given area. The technique is very useful in agriculture because it helps with crop planning and land management.

In 2013, while completing his degree in agroecology, Felix updated the soil maps of his community, the village of São Miguel. “The official maps were based on data from the 1970s, lacked detail, and identified only one soil type,” he explains. The updated survey documented four different soil types. Guided by the knowledge of Indigenous villagers, who pointed out the locations of these soils, Felix used academic pedology to record their details. The results surprised only the scientists. “For the community itself, nothing really changed. The Indigenous people were long aware of this diversity of soils and had been farming accordingly. The key difference is that now it is documented officially,” he says.

Recording this with scientific rigor and value is particularly crucial, considering the centuries-long erasure of Indigenous knowledge in Brazil. “Not only erased, but also usurped,” Felix stresses.

Felix, an ethopedologist, emphasizes the importance of preserving Indigenous knowledge, much of which is passed down through oral tradition, by documenting it with scientific rigor. This approach ensures its survival for future generations. “This way, it can be shared beyond the villages, even in academic spaces,” he states. “I’m part of an Indigenous generation that is entering university in significant numbers. We are the result of the struggles of the elders who paved the way for us.”

This text was originally publicated on Serrapilheira’s Ciência Fundamental blog on Folha de S.Paulo