Conservation and Human Rights: Challenging the Colonial Legacy in the Global South

News Context

1. Source and Context of the Critique

• Accessing the Research. This analysis is based on an article published in *Nature* and reported by *The Hindu*, which can be found here: The Hindu – Conservation Rights Report https://epaper.thehindu.com/ccidist-ws/th/th_international/issues/165840/OPS/GMFFD491I.1+GFFFE8BIJ.1.html.
• A Global Collaboration. The paper was authored by a group of international researchers, including prominent Indian scientists from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and The Shola Trust.
• The Central Argument. Researchers argue that modern conservation in the Global South remains a “colonial legacy” that privileges individual wildlife over the fundamental human rights of local communities.

2. The Tragedy in Chitwan: A Case Study

• Documenting Human Cost. The report highlights the 2004 death of Shikharam Chaudhary, a Nepalese farmer who was tortured by forest rangers in Chitwan National Park over a suspected rhino horn theft.
• Institutional Accountability. Despite the gravity of the incident, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) campaigned for the charges against the rangers to be dropped, prioritizing the protection of conservation staff over justice for the victim.
• Symbol of “Othering”. This case serves as a stark example of how indigenous lives are often treated as expendable in the pursuit of “pristine” nature.

3. The Concept of “Othering” in Conservation

• Defining the Narrative. “Othering” refers to the treatment of indigenous people as different or inferior, creating an “us” (conservationists/elites) versus “them” (local dwellers) dynamic.
• Historical Roots. The researchers note that this practice is exacerbated in the Global South, where legal protections for collective rights are often weaker than in the West.
• Exclusionary Governance. Governance systems frequently inherit the colonial penchant for “fortress conservation”—the idea that nature must be a wilderness devoid of human presence.

4. Racism and Colonial Foundations

• Rationalizing Expropriation. The modern conservation movement, born in the 1800s, portrayed indigenous people as “uncivilized” to justify the seizure of their territories in India and Africa.
• Impact of Global Movements. The 2020 Black Lives Matter protests renewed the discourse on racism within conservation, highlighting how BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities remain marginalized.
• Valuing Animals Over People. Current campaigns aimed at Western audiences often prioritize charismatic megafauna over the human rights of the communities living alongside them.

5. Urban-Rural Divisions in India

• The Case of Tigress Avni. The 2018 killing of the tigress Avni, who had killed 13 villagers, triggered massive urban outrage and demands for “justice” for her cubs, with little regard for the orphaned children of the victims.
• Elite Domination. Wildlife conservation in India is described as being dominated by the “urban elite” and specific privileged castes, who hold Western-centric views of environmentalism.
• Neglect of Conflict Victims. While animal deaths cause public outcry, human casualties from crop-raiding elephants or predators often result in limited compensation and administrative indifference.

6. Violations of the Forest Rights Act (FRA)

• Criminalizing Traditional Life. In Nagarahole National Park, 192 cases were registered against tribal communities between 2001 and 2011 for “offenses” such as collecting honey or trespassing on ancestral lands.
• Systemic Dispossession. Groups like the Jenu Kurubas and Van Gujjars in the Himalayas continue to face displacement and the loss of their traditional livelihoods despite legal protections.
• The Nilgiris Example. Barely 200 years ago, the Nilgiris landscape was entirely managed by indigenous communities who today have almost no voice in its governance.

7. Shifting the Paradigm: Madhav Gadgil’s Legacy

• Expanding the Scope. The late conservationist Madhav Gadgil argued that conservation should not just be about “air and water” but must include “men, money, and economic reforms.”
• Empowering Communities. Gadgil championed People’s Biodiversity Registers to document local knowledge and ensure communities have a say in how their resources are used.
• Mainstreaming Coexistence. While the “fortress model” is increasingly seen as non-viable, researchers note that progress has largely remained at the level of ideas rather than grassroots implementation.

8. Indigenous People as Stewards

• Custodians of Nature. The research challenges the view of local people as “enemies” of nature, arguing instead that Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) are the most effective stewards of biodiversity.
• Traditional Management. Indigenous management systems, such as sacred groves or seasonal grazing, have maintained ecological balance for centuries before the advent of modern “protected areas.”
• Countering Dehumanization. Re-humanizing these communities is seen as essential for any long-term conservation success in the 21st century.

9. Statistical Disparities in Global Conservation

• Land Ownership. While indigenous people comprise less than **5%** of the global population, they manage or hold tenure over roughly **25%** of the world’s land surface, which contains **80%** of its remaining biodiversity.
• Underfunding Human Rights. A tiny fraction of global conservation funding is directed toward securing land rights for indigenous people, despite evidence that secure tenure leads to better forest protection.
• Exclusion in Policy. Representation of BIPOC scientists and community leaders in top-tier conservation organizations and journals remains significantly lower than their Western counterparts.

10. A Four-Step Framework for Inclusive Conservation

• Supporting Human Rights. The paper proposes that all conservation projects must actively engage with and support the fundamental human rights of BIPOC communities.
• Ensuring Agency and Space. Space must be made for the agency of IPLCs, allowing them to lead projects rather than merely being “consulted” by outside organizations.
• Challenging Norms. The framework calls for challenging the accepted standards of how global institutions engage with non-Western communities.
• Educational Opportunities. Finally, it suggests seeking new educational pathways—both for providing opportunities to BIPOC youth and for learning traditional ecological knowledge from them.