GEOG 382 - Neoliberalism, Environmental Governance, and the Commons

1 unit(s)

In an era characterized by many as one of neoliberalism, processes of enclosure, privatization, and commodification have become central to the governance of natural resources and nature-society relations, often in ways detrimental to both environmental and human systems. Yet interdisciplinary human-environment research has also demonstrated the ability of local groups to manage commons, or community-based resources, in sustainable, equitable, and resilient ways. Ranging between these two poles of neoliberalism and the commons, this course examines political, economic, and cultural dimensions of the management of nature and natural resources, drawing on cases from various sites across the globe, including Africa, South and Southeast Asia, the Mideast and North & South America. With focus on the contested forms of access to and control over natural resources and their intersection with environmental change and social justice in both rural and urban areas, topics include large-scale resource extraction; markets and environmental institutions; the production of environmental knowledge; conservation and common property; and environmental social movements and resistance.

Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.

Not offered in 2014/15.

One 3-hour period.