Ethical Approaches to Conservation

What is it about?

Chapter in the book Conservation Integrating Social and Ecological Justice. This chapter demonstrates the link between social theories and environmental policies and advocates Argues that an integrated approach to social and ecological justice is key to successful environmental management and provides tools to improve current conservation practices

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Photo by Tyler Casey on Unsplash

Photo by Tyler Casey on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This book takes as its point of departure today’s pressing environmental challenges, particularly the loss of biodiversity, and the role of communities in protected areas conservation. In its chapters, the authors discuss areas of tension between local livelihoods and international conservation efforts, between local communities and wildlife, and finally between traditional ways of living and ‘modernity’. The central premise of this book is while these tensions cannot be easily resolved they can be better understood by considering both social and ecological effects, in equal measure. While environmental problems cannot be seen as purely ecological because they always involve people, who bring to the environmental table their different assumptions about nature and culture, so are social problems connected to environmental constraints. While nonhumans cannot verbally bring anything to this negotiating table, the distinct perspective of this book is that there is a need to consider the role of nonhumans as equally important stakeholders – albeit without a voice.

Perspectives