Protecting Nature and Displacing People

Abstract

We usually think that national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and other areas reserved for the protection of nature are good things but the displacement effects of protected areas have made them highly controversial in many parts of the world. However, many environmental groups see an expanded protected areas system as central to the preservation of both biodiversity and the "charismatic megafauna" which are the basis of their funding drives. Based on a discussion of the historical roots of protected areas, the globalization of nature protection and local people in conservation, this article offers alternatives to the displacement of rural populations in the name of nature conservation.