370
views
2
recommends
+1 Recommend
1 collections
    0
    shares
      scite_
       
      • Record: found
      • Abstract: found
      • Article: found
      Is Open Access

      We Don't Know That We Have Been Left Behind: The Neoliberalization Of Conservation In The Burunge Wildlife Management Area, Northern Tanzania

      Preprint
      In review
      research-article
        1 ,
      ScienceOpen Preprints
      ScienceOpen
      Neoliberalism, Poverty alleviation, Community, Community-based, Wildlife Management Areas, WMA, Tanzania, Africa, Conservation
      Bookmark

            Abstract

            Poverty alleviation policies in Tanzania are focused on market development and local economic transformations as primary contributors to the countrys growth. These policies are intertwined with government legislation creating Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) near protected areas which encourage local people to use village land for ecotourism activities which will add value to natural resources while providing local opportunities for expanded livelihood options. Actively promoted by international conservation NGOs, WMAs are marketed as a people-friendly way to protect wildlife while encouraging conservation-friendly livelihood strategies. This study uses qualitative ethnographic methods to determine the effects of the Burunge WMA in northern Tanzania on people living in nearby villages. Results indicate that the needs and priorities of local people were not adequately or equitably identified and that WMAs actually reregulate land and resources in a way that allows external stakeholders to gain control of village assets, exclude local people, and capitalize on newly available economic opportunities. Moreover, because WMAs merge economic and conservation objectives in a way that is consistent with both the global neoliberal framework and powerful Western images and beliefs about nature and consumption, the rhetoric regarding this newest form of community-based conservation has been transformed into an officially legislated truth that is difficult to challenge. Suggestions forcountering this discourse and for future research into the effectiveness of community-based conservation as a viable mechanism for environmental protection and economic development are offered.

            Content

            Author and article information

            Journal
            ScienceOpen Preprints
            ScienceOpen
            6 March 2020
            Affiliations
            [1 ] University of Colorado Denver
            Author information
            https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2585-8543
            Article
            10.14293/S2199-1006.1.SOR-.PPSBAPF.v1
            47482d02-a9ee-46e7-be89-62bd1a41a7e9

            This work has been published open access under Creative Commons Attribution License CC BY 4.0 , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Conditions, terms of use and publishing policy can be found at www.scienceopen.com .

            History

            All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article (and its supplementary information files).
            Anthropology
            Neoliberalism,Poverty alleviation,Community,Community-based,Wildlife Management Areas,WMA,Tanzania,Africa,Conservation

            Comments

            Comment on this article