Conservation, Markets & the Environment in Southern and Eastern Africa: Commodifying the 'Wild'

This book explores the controversial topic of commodification of nature, examining how it can contribute to biodiversity conservation, economic development, and social emancipation. It highlights the practices, discourses, and materialities surrounding the commodification of the wild, particularly in newer iterations where human management plays a significant role. The book challenges the dominant neoliberal approach to addressing global environmental challenges through the commodification and marketization of nature, raising concerns about the pitfalls and challenges associated with this approach.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 512 pages
Publication date: 16 May 2023
Publisher: James Currey

Winner of the 2023 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title Award, this book delves into a highly debated and contentious aspect of conservation: the commodification of nature. Can the successful marketization of what is commonly perceived as wilderness contribute to biodiversity conservation, economic development, and social emancipation? Amidst mounting concerns about the detrimental effects of human activities on nature and the catastrophic consequences of climate change, including the sixth mass extinction, invasive species, and rapidly spreading zoonotic diseases, this volume engages with the practices, discourses, and materialities surrounding the commodification of the wild. With a particular focus on the relationship between commodification and wilderness, the contributors examine the newer iterations of commodification, where human management plays a significant role, such as wildlife-park tourism, trophy hunting, and trade in herbal medicines, perfumes, and luxury exotic food items.

Dominant neoliberal approaches have sought to address global environmental challenges by commodifying and marketizing nature. By valorizing nature, they argue, biodiversity can be safeguarded and wild landscapes protected. It is believed that this will not only create a new frontier for sustainable, non-exploitative, participatory capitalist expansion but also invigorate rural livelihoods, reduce poverty, and add valuable assets to otherwise vulnerable rural economies. However, this important book challenges this future trajectory. By investigating a diverse range of cases across southern and eastern Africa, from illegal sandalwood trade to legal trade in devil's claw and honeybush, to trophy hunting and wilderness safaris, the contributors unveil the pitfalls and challenges of commodification and its implications for the continent.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781847013408