Territory, environment, and production: a historical perspective on the misionera-correntina frontier

Abstract

From the colonial era to the expansion of contemporary society, the environment has influenced patterns of territorial occupation, conflicts over land use, and frontier dynamics between the current provinces of Misiones and Corrientes (Argentina). The natural landscape —rivers, forests, wetlands, and fertile soils— has served both as a setting and as an active agent in the territorial, economic, and cultural formation of these regions. In this study, we focus on the central role that the landscape and the environment have played in the development of agricultural and livestock production, as well as in shaping the Misiones-Corrientes frontier during the 19th and 20th centuries. We base our approach on the analysis and interpretation of contemporary sources in order to understand how environmental conditions influenced productive processes, particularly the development of yerba mate and livestock activities along both sides of the territorial boundary. Finally, from a theoretical and interdisciplinary perspective, the article seeks to reflect on the need to integrate territorial and environmental dimensions into the teaching of regional history, thereby contributing to a more complex understanding of the interrelationships between nature, economy, and society in this specific frontier area.