Conserving the peace: resources, livelihoods and security

This book developed from meetings between conservationists and those in the UK government concerned with security and conflict prevention.The book is based on the premise that environmental mismanagement and resource scarcity, alone or in conjunction with other forces, can have such a destabilizing impact on communities and societies that they may experience high levels of insecurity and even succumb to violence and conflict. This has three major implications:that better resource management practices might contribute to peace and stability, conditions that are, in turn, essential for development and social justicethat planned conservation of biodiversity can and often should continue during times of conflict and particularly in post-conflict reconstructionthat conservation practices may provide a basis for bringing parties who have been or are engaged in conflict together to begin the process of peace building around common environmental concernsThe editors provide a historical overview of thinking around the relationship of environment to security; they give an introduction to different types of conflict for conservationists and a summary of the livelihood concept, which is used throughout the book.The book divides into two parts, the first begins with an overview of the relationship between biodiversity conservation of tropical forests and war. It goes on to present five cases exploring the theme of “nations on the edge,” where the combination of weak governments and resource-related competition contributes to violence. These studies are based on:population growth and environmental mis- management in Pakistanillegal harvesting of timber in Indonesiaarmed rebels looting natural resources in Nicaraguathe contribution of resource scarcity to conflict in Rwandainequitable distribution of land in ZimbabweThe second part of the book focuses on environmental degradation as a contributor to disaster vulnerability, using the effects of Hurricane Mitch on Central America as an example. It also looks at the Northern example of conflict between OECD countries over fishing rights in the North Atlantic.The book ends with a synthesis of recommendations drawn from the case studies and experiences of the authors. They consider periods before conflict, calling on conservationists to be better attuned to to social and political contexts and trends, and to plan for contingencies. During conflict, they stress the importance of judicious planning so as to minimize risk to personnel while retaining and building local capacity, outside the conflict zone so that personnel can return once peace is restored. They focus particularly on the post-conflict period, noting that the scramble for foreign exchange after many conflicts can lead to un-sustainable and speedy depletion of valuable natural resources. They note that this period is also an opportunity to integrate conservation into post-conflict development planning,