525: Agonistic Entrepreneurship: Collaborations Between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Entrepreneurs (14399)

Using a longitudinal case study, we explored a collaborative venture by Indigenous Coya and Western entrepreneurs to further social progress in the Puna, Argentina’s most impoverished region. Our results deduce ‘agonistic entrepreneurship’ as an ongoing struggle to explore and exploit potential opportunities by respecting the other party and engaging in constant deliberations despite differing perceptions of value. Our study furthers the literature on Indigenous entrepreneurship by illustrating an entrepreneurial process in Latin America in which Indigenous entrepreneurs adapt to a global economy dominated by Western market perspectives without necessarily engaging in colonization dynamics and Western perceptions of value. We also contribute to the literature on partnerships between Indigenous and Western actors by showing how each negotiates value creation by continually navigating conflict around common frames of reference, and extend theories on agonistic pluralism by applying it to entrepreneurship phenomena in that political frameworks can illustrate the tensions inherent to collaborative ventures with marginalized populations.

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