Energies Beyond the State: Anarchist Political Ecology and the Liberation of Nature

Resource and environmental management often involve attempts to dominate, reroute, and tame natural flows, growth of forests, and control nature for specific purposes, often under the guise of conservation, economic development, and sustainable management. This control extends beyond the natural environment, allowing for the management of human and non-human populations to maintain power and enact sovereignty. Anarchist political ecology seeks to critique current anthropocentric environmental destruction, focus on environmental justice and decentralized ecological governance, and address the legacies of colonialism and human/nature dualisms.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 242 pages
Publication date: 15 August 2023
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Resource and environmental management involve efforts by governing authorities to control and manipulate natural processes, including water flow, forest growth, non-human population management, and nature control, often under the guise of conservation, economic development, and sustainable management. These practices aim to "civilize" and exert control over all aspects of nature for specific purposes. The outcomes of this approach to environmental management and governance are numerous, but they have led to the establishment of a specific notion of nature and the environment by governments worldwide. These forms of control extend beyond the natural environment, allowing for the management of human and non-human populations to maintain power and assert sovereignty. This volume contributes to the advancement of an "ecology of freedom" that challenges current anthropocentric environmental destruction and focuses on environmental justice and decentralized ecological governance. Three major themes emerged from the chapters: the legacies of colonialism in resource management and governance practices, the need to overcome human/nature dualisms for environmental justice and sustainability, and discussions and critiques of extractivism as a governing and economic mentality.

Weight: 390g
Dimension: 230 x 153 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538162187