Many people investigating the operation of large-scale environmentalist organizations see signs of power, knowledge and governance in their policies and projects. Virtualism, Governance and Practice indicates that such an analysis appears to be justified from one perspective, but not from another. The chapters in Virtualism, Governance and Practice show that the critics, concerned with the power of these organizations to impose their policies in different parts of the world, appear justified when we look at environmentalist visions and at organizational policies and programs. However, they are much less justified when we look at the practical operation of such organizations and their ability to generate and carry out projects intended to reshape the world.
List of Figures, Tables and Boxes
Preface
List of Abbreviations
Introduction James G. Carrier and Paige West
Chapter 1 Virtualism and the Logic of Environmentalism Vassos Argyrou
Chapter 2 New Nature: On the Production of a Paradox Maarten Onneweer
Chapter 3 A Culture of Conservation: Shaping the Human Element in National Parks Kathy Rettie
Chapter 4 A Bridge Too Far: The Knowledge Problem in the Millennium Assessment Colin Filer
Chapter 5 Creolising Conservation: Caribbean Responses to Global Trends in Environmental Management Tighe Geoghegan
Chapter 6 Uncivil Society: Local Stakeholders and Environmental Protection in Jamaica Andrew Garner
Chapter 7 'The Report Was Written for Money to Come': Constructing and Reconstructing the Case for Conservation in Papua New Guinea Flip van Helden
Conclusion: Can the World Be Micromanaged? Josiah McC. Heyman
Notes on Contributors
Index
James G. Carrier has taught and done research in Papua New Guinea, the United States and Great Britain. For the past decade he has studied the relationship among local fishers, conservationists and the tourism sector in Jamaica. He has published extensively on this research and on environmental protection generally.
Paige West is Associate Professor of Anthropology at Barnard College, Columbia University. She had conducted research on the linkages between environmental conservation and international development, the material and symbolic ways in which the natural world is understood and produced, and production, distribution, and consumption of various commodities. Her work is focused on Papua New Guinea.
"This collection is an exciting, important and cutting-edge contribution to the literature from some leading contributors. The individual chapters are well written and provide some fascinating case studies."
– Daniel Brockington, Manchester University
"This is an excellent and fascinating study of ethnographic studies and conceptual essays .The breadth and detail of these studies, combined with the excellent conceptual framework provided by editors, make this a highly valuable collection for scholars, policy makers, and applied practitioners."
– James Igoe, Dartmouth College