Sowing seeds of hope in California's fields of resistance to Pharm rice and Frankenfish

This paper is an introduction to a special issue of the Journal of Political Ecology on "Ecologies of Hope." The authors argue that discrete, specific, and often, local actions can create spaces that are bettering human lives and livelihoods. The five papers identify actions and movements that are situated in the "middle" between the individual and larger social and economic formations, and inbetween social and economic status- quo and revolution. They are everyday initiatives that do not make revolutionary claims, but which in small but significant ways, help transform the lives of people and communities. These "ecologies of hope" resonate with the work of Karl Polanyi, and his identification of the modern disembedding of the economy and the environment from its societal and cultural context. Polanyi argued that processes that result in a loss of cultural "habitation" engender movements by societies to protect their social solidarity, and distortions of their relationship with the natural environment. Creating and carving out "ecologies of hope" may not mitigate catastrophic global change or miraculously transform the unjust into the just, but does make life and livelihoods a bit more habitable. For people whose lives are affected, this matters. Political ecology should recognize the importance of creating spaces for "habitation" that are not necessarily structural and scalable.Key words: Karl Polanyi, ecologies of hope, habitation, self-organized communities.

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The Edible Birds' Nest Boom in Indonesia and South-east Asia

Thorburn

2014

Food, Culture & Society

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The nests of the edible-nest swiftlet (Aerodramus spp., Apodidae: Collocaliini), constructed entirely of hardened saliva, have long been a highly prized delicacy in China, and are reputed to have a number of beneficial medicinal properties. Swiftlet nests are among the most expensive animal products consumed by humans, sometimes referred to as "the caviar of the East." Recently, the trade in edible birds' nests has expanded rapidly to meet the demands of an increasingly prosperous consumer society in China. Investors erect special buildings with interiors created to resemble the limestone caves naturally inhabited by the swiftlets, transforming the skyline and ambiance of towns across Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and especially Indonesia, source of around 80 per cent of the global nest supply. Focusing primarily on Indonesia, this paper presents an overview of the birds' nest trade, exploring some of the drivers and impacts of this latest round in the long history of domestication.

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Sowing seeds of hope in California's fields of resistance to Pharm rice and Frankenfish

Abstract: Absent the head of the household doing the right thing… we need the next strongest member of the household to do the right thing… the state government.Former University of California representative, interview, July 15, 2005

Cited by 3 publications

References 36 publications

Energy and Global Production Networks

Energy and Global Production Networks

Ecologies of Hope: environment, technology and habitation - case studies from the intervenient middle

The Edible Birds' Nest Boom in Indonesia and South-east Asia

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