Raymond L. Bryant

Political ecology: An emerging research agenda in Third-World studies

Abstract This paper is a preliminary exploration of Third-World political ecology. In the first part of the paper, a framework for understanding the emerging research agenda is developed that embraces three critical areas of inquiry. These are: the contextual sources of environmental change; conflict over access; and the political ramifications of environmental change. Each of these areas of inquiry is addressed by way of a two-fold strategy—the relevant literature is first reviewed, and then central analytical issues are discussed. Throughout, it is suggested that Third-World political ecology represents an attempt to develop an integrated understanding of how environmental and political forces interact to mediate social and environmental change. In a world where environmental problems assume growing political significance, this form of integrated understanding is long overdue.

Power, knowledge and political ecology in the third world : a review

Political ecology examines the political dynamics surrounding material and discursive struggles over the environment in the third world. The role of unequal power relations in constituting a politicized environment is a central theme. Particular attention is given to the ways in which conflict over access to environmental resources is linked to systems of political and economic control first elaborated during the colonial era. Studies emphasize the increased marginality and vulnerability of the poor as an outcome of such conflict. The impact of perceptions and discourses on the specification of environmental problems and interventions is also explored leading on to debates about the relative merits of indigenous and western scientific knowledge. Future research needs also to address issues linked to changing air and water quality, urban processes, organizational attributes and the human body.

Non‐governmental Organizations and Governmentality: ‘Consuming’ Biodiversity and Indigenous People in the Philippines

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are playing an increasingly important role in the process Foucault called ‘governmentality’. Drawing on the Foucauldian literature, this paper uses a case study of biodiversity conservation as well as indigenous peoples ancestral domain in the Philippines to show how two quite different NGO-led conservation agendas nonetheless share a common underlying purpose: persuading indigenous people to internalize state control through self-regulation. Ironically, it is this sort of NGO contribution to the elaboration of government (in the Foucauldian sense) that may turn out be the most significant and lasting contribution that NGOs make to social change.

Politicized moral geographies: Debating biodiversity conservation and ancestral domain in the Philippines

Abstract Research in political ecology has paid inadequate attention to the multifaceted cultural politics surrounding discourses of environmental conservation in the developing world. Specifically, it has tended to neglect the rich politicized moral geographies integral to conservation debates. This paper, then, makes the case for thinking about conservation as an envisioning process sensitive to these politicized moral geographies as well as their linkages to political and economic processes. After a brief critique of political ecology, the paper sketches a theoretical approach in which environmental conservation is understood as a process of envisioning social relations, moral discourse and socionatural place. The approach is used to explain two contrasting visions of conservation based on the notions of integrated protected areas management and ancestral domain which are prominent today in the Philippines. The conclusion reiterates the call for a discursive political ecology alive to the politicized moral geographies that condition conservation trajectories.

Third World Political Ecology : An Introduction

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Shifting the Cultivator: The Politics of Teak Regeneration in Colonial Burma

One of the most innovative aspects of forest policy in colonial Burma was the employment of shifting cultivators in order to create teak plantations. As developed in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, this system of plantation forestry represented an far-sighted attempt to establish teak production on a long-term basis. Indeed, its adaptation of what many colonial officials viewed as a destructive and primitive form of agriculture to more ‘useful’ end, guaranteed its popularity in a broader imperial context. Even today, the use of shifting cultivators for commercial tree planting remains an acknowledged agroforestry technique, and is promoted as a cure for various social and ecological problems.

The International Handbook of Political Ecology

The International Handbook features chapters by leading scholars from around the world in a unique collection exploring the multi-disciplinary field of political ecology. This landmark volume canvasses key developments, topics, issues, debates and concepts showcasing how political ecologists today address pressing social and environmental concerns. Introductory chapters provide an overview of political ecology and the Handbook. Remaining chapters examine five broad themes: issues and approaches; governance and power; knowledge and discourse; method and scale; connections and transformations. Across diverse topics and perspectives, these chapters amount to a wide-ranging survey of current research, making the International Handbook an indispensable reference for scholars and students in political ecology.

False Prophets? Mutant NGOs and Philippine Environmentalism

Nongovernmental organization (NGO) popularity has led to the emergence of NGO-like organizations that seek to acquire a stake in that popularity. Mutant NGOs are established for ostensibly moral and altruistic purposes but their main purpose is primarily to promote the political and economic interests of sponsors. This essay explains the nature and function of these impostors and considers the possible benefits accruing to affiliated elites in the environmental sector. A Philippine case study conveys some of the dynamics surrounding the mutant NGO. I briefly consider the response of Philippine NGOs to mutant counterparts. The findings raise intriguing questions about the wider politics of NGO-elite relations.

Explaining State-Environmental NGO Relations in the Philippines and Indonesia

This paper explains how the notion of “critical engagement” has been a popular basis for NGO-state relations in the Philippines and Indonesia. It has been used, moreover, in both liberal democratic (post-1985 Philippines) and authoritarian (late 1960s to late 1990s Indonesia) political regimes. For both states and reform-minded NGOs, critical engagement has represented a flexible means by which to pursue assorted political, economic and social ends. In a context of regional political and economic upheaval, it is likely to remain popular with both states and many NGOs for the foreseeable future.

La política ecológica y la gestión ambiental en un mundo en desarrollo

RESUMEN: Este artículo aborda diversos aspectos clave de la gestión ambiental en el mundo en desarrollo desde la perspectiva de la ecología política. Comienza con un breve repaso de la evolución de la ecología política. Posteriormente se abordan dos casos de estudio en el Sudeste de Asia con el fin de explorar espacios de confrontación y espacios de cooperación que aglutinan elementos clave de la historia y la actualidad de la gestión ambiental en el mundo en desarrollo. En este proceso el artículo concluye que las multifacéticos políticas de transacción que tienen lugar en el mundo no pueden ser transformadas simplemente a través de apolíticas llamadas a “salvar la naturaleza”.