Activist usage of smartphones in territories affected by mining operations

Abstract

This paper, being an experience report of the extension project Affected territories and the production of video as evidence, from the Federal University of Ouro Preto, proposes, initially, a look at the activist usage of smartphones for video production to be used as evidence of human rights violations as well as for the production of autonomous narratives, outside the media agenda. Afterwards, it contextualizes the situation of the territories of Mariana and Ouro Preto, cities located in Minas Gerais, where residents live the consequences of previous socio-environmental disasters caused by mining. Thus, based on the articulation between research and university extension, this report points out the gains and the challenges experienced in the two editions of the project, between 2020 and 2022, also directing our attention to the next stage of the work: the creation of a protocol for establishing video production as legal evidence in territories affected by mining.