The Political Ecology of 'Incursions

Livestock, Protected Areas and Socio-Ecological Dynamics in the Mara Region of Kenya

Bibliographic Data

ID2102991
AuthorsBilal Butt (0000-0002-1613-0921, University of Michigan, corresponding author)
Year2014
Volume84
Issue4
Pages614-637
Publication date2014-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrica (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0001-9720 • E-ISSN: 1750-0184
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0001972014000515
OpenAlexW2160066180
LanguageEN
Citations received11
References cited43

Across the world, the presence of domestic animals in protected areas (PAs) is considered an 'incursion' that threatens the economic and ecological viability of these areas. Dominant narratives about incursions inaccurately describe the relationships between people and PAs because they lack adequate contextualization. In this paper, I rely on a political-ecological framework to argue for an alternative narrative. Through a case study from a PA in southern Kenya, I demonstrate how incursions are instead modern co-productions that arise from the intersections between changing political geographies of resource control and variable animal geographies of resource utilization - thus clarifying a long-standing debate about the presence of domestic animals in PAs. I rely on direct empirical and supporting evidence from place-based studies to illustrate the spatial and temporal differences in resource access strategies of wildlife and livestock within and outside the PA. I contrast these against changing land tenure and resource management policies to highlight how livestock movements into PAs are patterned in ways that reflect the changing nature of PA management, the material conditions of the landscape, and the agency of animals. Through these investigations, this paper provides a more accurate and nuanced explanation for livestock movements into PAs

Agency (philosophy · Biology · Contextualization · Economics · Environmental resource management · Geography · Livestock · Narrative · Political ecology · Political science · Politics · Resource (disambiguation · Social science · Sociology · Wildlife · Wildlife management · Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management · Ecology · Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology · Wildlife Ecology and Conservation

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub