Unpacking the Ecuadorian Spatial Planning Law: Policy Mobilities in Latin America between Transnational Agency and Path-dependent Logics

The paper engages with the policy mobilities debate by examining the 2016 Ecuadorian spatial planning law. It explores the existing tensions between the constitutional framework and the spatial planning tools outlined by the law which were the result of a process of adaptation of external planning models influenced by international organizations. It shows how the long-term consequences of property rights and a rural understanding of indigeneity shaped spatial planning tools, therefore suggesting the implication of path dependence in the outcome of policy mobilities. The contribution is based on participant observation, desk-research and semi-structured interviews.