Political ecology of pandemics in Latin America - intersectionality between their causes, the socio-biodiversity, and the current agri-food system [Ecologia política das pandemias na América Latina: interseccionalidade entre suas causas, a sociobiodiversidade e o sistema agroalimentar atual]

The purpose of this article is to find intersectionality points between the theme of biodiversity and associated traditional knowledge, including the current agri-food system and the generation of pandemics and epidemics. To do this, we first present a theoretical framework that encompasses: a) the environmental precautionary principle, which differs from the environmental prevention principle; and b) the concept of organized irresponsibility found within the theory of the Global Risk Society from Ulrich Beck. An additional specialized literature review included the interface between the destruction of terrestrial ecosystems and the COVID-19 pandemic. Next, we address how the current agri-food system threatens socio-biodiversity, and more especially, the traditional knowledge that is linked to biodiversity, and how both are related to the pandemic.