Inhabiting the Energy Frontier:

Sociotechnical Imaginaries, Communicational Mediations, and Educational Justice in Intercultural Rural Contexts

Abstract

This article presents a critical and situated analysis of the implications of access to electrical energy and digital connectivity at Rural School No. 4261 in Santa Bárbara, located in the Quebrada de las Conchas region (Salta, Argentina). Drawing on a longitudinal qualitative research design (2022–2025) that triangulates student surveys, participant observation, and in-depth interviews, the study examines the tensions between material infrastructure and processes of symbolic appropriation within a context of cultural diversity. The article incorporates categories from communication theory (mediations, digital divide), Latin American philosophy (geoculture), and critical pedagogy in order to interpret energy not merely as a technical input, but as a condition of possibility for citizenship. Preliminary findings reveal a fracture between the school’s energy precariousness—marked by intermittency and technological obsolescence—and the accelerated digitalization of households through satellite internet access. The study concludes that energy justice in rural territories requires moving beyond the logic of physical access in order to advance toward technological sovereignty that integrates local knowledge systems and guarantees the right to inhabit the territory with dignity.