Abstract: This study examines the complex relationship between humans and horses in the context of the prestigious sport of turf racing with its captivating history and strong market appeal. Based on ethnographic research conducted among turf racing bettors and enthusiasts, the article explores the diverse modes of production involved, encompassing the sport’s material and symbolic dimensions. It investigates the meanings and uses of horses in this specialized market, tailored for an increasingly discerning public fascinated by the spectacle. By highlighting the unique attributes and capabilities of these equines, the study sheds light on the interplay between humans and horses, enriching our understanding of the multifaceted dynamics underlying the horse racing phenomenon. The economic significance of racehorses as commodities and investments is also emphasized, foregrounding the uncertainty and chance inherent to the industry. This control over nature is reflected in the economic and symbolic value attributed to the animals, shaping the structured market behind the racing spectacle.

Abstract With the rapid advancement of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) trials, psychedelic clinics are set to become a tangible reality in the near future. Questions abound concerning the therapeutic modalities that will be adopted, the human and material infrastructures that will enable the delivery of this novel form of healthcare, and their funding model - which will have direct implications for who can access PATs. In this paper, we reflect on the process of designing, organizing and holding a speculative space to imagine possible future ayahuasca care spaces. Ayahuasca healing practices are (still) mostly indissociable from their ritual settings, placing them in complex and ambivalent relation to “psychedelics” and PATs. Speculation enabled us to collaboratively address questions of appropriation, commodification, standardization and pharmaceuticalization of plant medicines, and explore the more-than-human contours of care. Our goal was to shift the parameters of our interactions with key interlocutors in “the field” in ways that enable co-laboration and co-re-definition. We discuss the process of creating this speculative space of encounter, defining its parameters, and designing the framework within which such a conversation is even possible.

Abstract Far from being linear and regular, the time of debt is characterized by the alternating sequences and contrasting rhythms of repayment. This is examined in this article, which analyses the concept of “government through debt” (Lazzarato, 2012) based on an ethnography of the debt fairs organized in many Brazilian cities. These events bring together debt collectors from banks, credit institutions, large service companies (electricity, telephone, water, etc.), and their debtor customers. The article analyses the debt negotiations that take place in the booth of a major consumer credit institution during one of these events. It shows that, although their debts are not cancelled by their creditors, debtors manage to obtain a temporary respite and further time to pay.

Resumen: Este estudio, derivado de una etnografía más amplia sobre los tianguis (mercadillos callejeros) mexicanos, examina el caso de una vendedora de ropa y objetos usados. Sus prácticas ilustran cómo los elementos mercantiles se entrelazan con actos rituales de dones y contra-dones. Un análisis más detallado revela que su eficacia social es aún más significativa. En torno a las dificultades diarias de los vendedores de ropa usada, se establece un mecanismo altamente ritualizado de apoyo social, creando circuitos de economía del don que se intercalan con una economía mercantil convencional. En conjunto, estas prácticas han sido fundamentales para la subsistencia material de los tiangueros y sus familias. Aunque en una visión simplista el rito podría asociarse exclusivamente a su función mágica instrumental, la separación entre rito religioso y rito secular se ha desvanecido. Incluso en un mundo secular, los rituales persisten y desempeñan roles cruciales.

Abstract This article emerges from my contemplation of a question that surfaced recurrently among black teachers and students: what role do white teachers play in studies and research on ethnic-racial relations? I propose a moment of reflection, following the lead of anthropologist Marylin Strathern (2017) who challenges us to undertake anthropology in slow motion, taking seriously the importance of reflection without rushing to find quick and ready-made answers. In the words of philosopher Isabelle Stengers (2018), we need to slow down and pause to think. Taking up Strathern’s proposal for a slow-motion anthropology, I explore ethnic-racial relations by first understanding the notion of relation. In this confluence of ideas, Nego Bispo’s thought (2015) encounters Isabelle Stengers’ cosmopolitical proposition, as well as the notion of the crossroads advanced by anthropologist José Carlos dos Anjos (2008) and the Pombogiras.

Abstract In response to the increased flow of Venezuelans arriving in Brazil via the state of Roraima, in the north of the country, thereby generating a ‘humanitarian crisis,’ the Brazilian government created Operation Welcome, configured around the neoliberal notion of ‘shared governance.’ Thus, the management of people classified as ‘refugees’ and ‘immigrants,’ including indigenous peoples, relied on collaboration between Brazilian ministries, the Armed Forces, United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations. Based on the mapping of the main actors and institutions involved in the operation - focusing primarily on the military and humanitarian workers - I describe and analyse the leading role assumed by the Brazilian military in recent years, situating them in a broader international context where humanitarian reason has been used to justify military interventions. Likewise, the description of the forms of management exercised over Indigenous peoples arriving from Venezuela, emphasizing the case of the Warao, helps shed light on the Army’s long-standing participation in the design and implementation of Brazilian indigenist policies.

Abstract: This work seeks to trace the trajectories that techno-political devices of environmental governance follow within the bureaucracy by focusing on the relationships among technical staff working within a state agency located in western Pará. Based on ethnographic research conducted between January and October 2023, in an office situated in an Amazon region under pressure from mineral and agricultural frontier expansion, the text describes the practices of technical staff, their interactions with consultants, and the daily negotiations between work and intimacy. It highlights how the state is performed through contingent and unstable associations between individuals, roles, and motivations. The purpose is to examine how the context of Amazonian exploitation intersects with the everyday actions of individuals who, linked to the state, operate environmental bureaucracy. The research indicates that environmental policy is shaped by a revolving-door logic, characterised by circulation and simultaneity, which tends to favour large-scale extractive activities that show limited adherence to environmental regulations. By drawing attention to these intricate relationships and their effects, the article aims to contribute to understanding the limits and contradictions that environmental policy faces.

Resumen: Este artículo tiene como objetivo central situar, en un cuadro comparativo más amplio de sistemas regionales amerindios, a la organización social de los Muiscas, indígenas de los Andes orientales colombianos que, en tiempos previos a la conquista española, estaban organizados en cacicazgos. Por medio de un ejercicio teórico de etnología comparada, se hace un contraste entre sistemas regionales amazónicos -donde la jerarquía es importante (Alto Xingú y Alto Río Negro) - y trabajos arqueológicos e históricos sobre los Muisca. Se tratan los temas de la producción de diferencias, la integración regional en sistemas regionales abiertos y la relación, entre jefes y caciques, con las fiestas, para explorar la tensión estructural, en perpetuo desequilibrio, entre jerarquía y heterarquía, e identificar algunas características generales de estos sistemas.