Introduction to Ecologically Unequal Exchange in Comparative Perspective

Gellert, Paul K.; Frey, R. Scott; Dahms, Harry F.

doi:10.5195/jwsr.2017.733

Cited by 46 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Pioneered by Bunker (1984), this area of sociological inquiry theorizes the unequal material flows structured by trade and the corresponding movement of ecological footprints of economically strong regions to economically weaker ones (Gellert et al, 2017;Foster & Holleman, 2014) Cocoa exports (Noble, 2017) Coffee trade (Austin, 2017) Deforestation (Jorgenson, Austin, & Dick, 2009)…”

Section: Unequal Ecological Exchangementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The displacement of environmental impacts has been well represented in research from a range of disciplines including economics, sociology, environmental policy, natural resource management and conservation, and environmental sciences (Alix‐Garcia et al, ; Aukland et al., ; Gellert, Frey, & Dahms, ; Hornborg, ; Searchinger et al., ). Disciplinary convergence has led to the development of many field‐specific terms and concepts that describe how resource use and extraction can lead to displacement and, in some cases, magnification, of environmental impacts across boundaries (Table ).…”

Section: Connecting Research Across Disciplinesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Accounting for unintended consequences of resource policy: Connecting research that addresses displacement of environmental impacts

Lewison

Johnson²,

Pelc

et al. 2019

CONSERVATION LETTERS

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Natural resource policies enacted to protect environmental integrity play an important role in promoting sustainability. However, when resources are shared ecologically, economically, or through a common, global interest, policies implemented to protect resource sustainability in one domain can displace, and in some cases magnify, environmental degradation to other domains. Although such displacement has been recognized as a fundamental challenge to environmental and conservation policy within some resource sectors, there has been little cross‐disciplinary and cross‐sectoral integration to address the problem. This suggests that siloed knowledge may be impeding widespread recognition of the ubiquity of displacement and the need for mitigation. Here, we connect research across multiple disciplines to promote a broader discussion and recognition of the processes and pathways that can lead to displaced impacts that countermand or undermine resource policy and outline a number of approaches that can mitigate displacement.

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Section: Unequal Ecological Exchangementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Connecting Research Across Disciplinesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Accounting for unintended consequences of resource policy: Connecting research that addresses displacement of environmental impacts

Lewison

Johnson²,

Pelc

et al. 2019

CONSERVATION LETTERS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…These imports are integral to the social metabolism of the Gulf states and are manifest in societal organisation, consumption and economic growth, which "depend on a continuous throughput of energy and materials in order to maintain their internal structure" (Walter and Martinez Alier, 2012: 5). However this form of exchange is difficult to quantify, especially in cases where there is an absence of statistics, such as is the situation here (Gellert et al, 2017). With this considered, this article will qualitatively argue that land grabs and their function within Gulf commodity production represents a process of EUE.…”

Section: Commodity Chains and Ecologymentioning

confidence: 90%

Land grabs reexamined: Gulf Arab agro-commodity chains and spaces of extraction

Henderson

2020

Environ Plan A

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Research on land grabs has identified the Gulf Arab states as major actors in the acquisition of agricultural land. However the role of these investments in the economies of the Gulf remains underexplored in the scholarly literature. In response, I propose that these projects are part of commodity chains that are articulated to the agribusiness industry in the Gulf states. I argue that they are extractive zones; enclaves created through articulation to the investor states, and disarticulation from their host society. With this considered, the commodity chains that link these projects with the Gulf economies transfer surplus value in the form of labour time, but also biophysical matter such as water, energy, and soil nutrients. This focus on the appropriation of nature allows a better understanding of these schemes and their role in the Gulf’s economic growth. As will be demonstrated, the cycle of exhaustion of water impells the location of these land grabs, and this context connects them with the history of domestic projects. This article uses a framework that integrates theory on the spatial contestations of commodity chains with work on political ecology, and by doing so it contributes to a growing body of work that examines the relationship between networks of commodity production and nature.

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“…These natural resources and waste are linked to all stages along global commodity chains, including extraction, production, consumption, and disposal. These material flows result in both the unequal distribution of environmental harms and suppressed human well-being of populations within Global South nations (Gellert, Frey, & Dahms, 2017;Hornborg, 1998bHornborg, , 2009Jorgenson, 2006Jorgenson, , 2016bJorgenson & Clark, 2009a, 2009bRice, 2007aRice, , 2007b. EUE theory draws attention to the displacement of some environmental harms spatially, to other locations across the planet, and temporally, to future generations; these spatial and temporal dynamics are commonly referred to as environmental load displacement (Hornborg, 2006(Hornborg, , 2009Muradian & Martinez-Alier, 2001a;Muradian, O'Connor, & Martinez-Alier, 2002).…”

Section: Ecologically Unequal Exchange Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecologically unequal exchange: A theory of global environmental injustice

2019

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In this article, we review the theory of ecologically unequal exchange and its relevance for global environmental injustice. According to this theory, global political–economic factors, especially the structure of international trade, shape the unequal distribution of environmental harms and human development; wealthier and more powerful Global North nations have disproportionate access to both natural resources and sink capacity for waste in Global South nations. We discuss how the theory has roots in multiple perspectives on development, world‐systems analysis, environmental sociology, and ecological economics. We detail research that tests hypotheses derived from ecological unequal exchange theory on several environmental harms, including deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, and water pollution as well as related human well‐being outcomes. We also discuss research on social forces that counter the harmful impacts of ecologically unequal exchange, including institutions, organizations, and environmental justice movements. We suggest that ecologically unequal exchange theory provides an important global political–economic approach for research in environmental sociology and other environmental social sciences as well as for sustainability studies more broadly.

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Introduction to Ecologically Unequal Exchange in Comparative Perspective

Cited by 46 publications

References 15 publications

Accounting for unintended consequences of resource policy: Connecting research that addresses displacement of environmental impacts

Accounting for unintended consequences of resource policy: Connecting research that addresses displacement of environmental impacts

Land grabs reexamined: Gulf Arab agro-commodity chains and spaces of extraction

Ecologically unequal exchange: A theory of global environmental injustice

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