Peace Parks: Conservation and Conflict Resolution

Front Cover
Saleem Hassan Ali
MIT Press, 2007 - Nature - 406 pages

An analysis of the potential for environmental cooperation in multijurisdictional conservation zones to contribute to political conflict resolution; includes case studies of existing parks and proposals for new ones.

Although the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to a Kenyan environmentalist, few have considered whether environmental conservation can contribute to peace-building in conflict zones. Peace Parks explores this question, examining the ways in which environmental cooperation in multijurisdictional conservation areas may help resolve political and territorial conflicts. Its analyses and case studies of transboundary peace parks focus on how the sharing of physical space and management responsibilities can build and sustain peace among countries. The book examines the roles played by governments, the military, civil society, scientists, and conservationists, and their effects on both the ecological management and the potential for peace-building in these areas. Following a historical and theoretical overview that explores economic, political, and social theories that support the concept of peace parks and discussion of bioregional management for science and economic development, the book presents case studies of existing parks and proposals for future parks. After describing such real-life examples as the Selous-Niassa Wildlife Corridor in Africa and the Emerald Triangle conservation zone in Indochina, the book looks to the future, exploring the peace-building potential of envisioned parks in security-intensive spots including the U.S.-Mexican border, the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea, and the Mesopotamian marshlands between Iraq and Iran. With contributors from a variety of disciplines and diverse geographic regions, Peace Parks is not only a groundbreaking book in International Relations but a valuable resource for policy makers and environmentalists.

ContributorsDram -Yay Aissetou, Saleem H. Ali, Rolf D. Baldus, Charles Besan on, Kent Biringer, Arthur G. Blundell, Niger Diallo Daouda Boubacar, K. C. (Nanda) Cariappa, Charles Chester, Tyler Christie, Sarah Dickinson DeLeon, Bill Dolan, Rosaleen Duffy, Christina Ellis, Wayne Freimund, Stephan Fuller, Rudolf Hahn, Anne Hammill, Bruce Hayden, Ke Chung Kim, Juliette Biao Koudenoukpo, Jason Lambacher, Raul Lejano, Maano Ramutsindela, Michael Schoon, Belinda Sifford, Anna Spenceley, Michelle L. Stevens, Randy Tanner, Yongyut Trisurat, Michele Zebich-Knos

 

Contents

Introduction A Natural Connection between Ecology and Peace?
1
Definitions and Experiences
23
Theorizing about Transboundary Conservation
41
The Paradoxes and Challenges of Global Governance
55
Understanding Glocalization
69
Testing Environmental Resilience in Southern Africa
83
Bioregional Management and Economic Development
105
The SelousNiassa Corridor
109
Redefining Security and Realism
201
An Unfinished Agenda for Peace Parks along the USMexico Divide
205
Securing the Peace through Parks
227
A Green Approach to Conflict Resolution
239
Envisioning a RussoJapanese Peace Park in the Kuril Islands
261
Reconfiguring the Kashmir Conflict?
277
Challenges and Prospects
291
The Mesopotamian Marshes and the HawizehAzim Peace Park
313

Transforming Conservation and Conflict in West Africa
127
An Opportunity for Regional Collaboration on Transboundary Biodiversity Conservation in Indochina
141
The Antarctic Paradigm
163
Conservation amid Border Security
183
Implementing the Vision of Peace Parks
333
References
343
Index
379
Copyright

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About the author (2007)

Saleem H. Ali is Associate Professor of Environmental Planning at the Rubenstein School of Natural Resources at the University of Vermont and holds adjunct faculty appointments at Brown University and the United Nations mandated University for Peace. He is the author of Mining: The Environment and Indigenous Development Conflicts.