Lekil Kuxlejal - an alternative to development? A field study in Chiapas, Mexico

Sammanfattning: The development ideals of linear progress, modernization and economic growth are based on one worldview among many, but have nonetheless been able to dominate global politics. Critical development literature has shown how indigenous peoples’ cosmologies have been pushed aside since colonialism, deemed traditional and backwards. There is a growing interest in searching for alternatives to the development paradigm in non-Western cosmologies, for example represented by the Bolivian and Ecuadorian notion of Buen Vivir, meaning ’good living’. In Chiapas, Mexico, the Mayan concept Lekil Kuxlejal, translates to something similar. With the message ”Another world is possible”, the indigenous movement in Chiapas, has become known for its autonomy project and resistance towards neoliberalism. This thesis aims to explore how the concept of lekil kuxlejal forms part of this political struggle and the ways in which it provides an alternative to neoliberal development discourse.