scholarly journals Integrating Pixels, People, and Political Economy to Understand the Role of Armed Conflict and Geopolitics in Driving Deforestation: The Case of Myanmar

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 4589
Author(s):  
Kevin M. Woods ◽  
Panshi Wang ◽  
Joseph O. Sexton ◽  
Peter Leimgruber ◽  
Jesse Wong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Political Ecology ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Integrated Analysis ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
The North ◽  
Deforestation Rates ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Political Economic

Armed conflict and geopolitics are a driving force of Land Use and Land Cover Change (LULCC), but with considerable variation in deforestation trends between broader and finer scales of analysis. Remotely-sensed annual deforestation rates from 1989 to 2018 are presented at the national and (sub-) regional scales for Kachin State in the north of Myanmar and in Kayin State and Tanintharyi Region in the southeast. We pair our multiscaled remote sensing analysis with our multisited political ecology approach where we conducted field-based interviews in study sites between 2018 and 2020. Our integrated analysis identified three common periods of deforestation spikes at the national and state/region level, but with some notable disparities between regions as well as across and within townships and village tracts. We found the rate and geography of deforestation were most influenced by the territorial jurisdictions of armed authorities, national political economic reforms and timber regulations, and proximity to national borders and their respective geopolitical relations. The absence or presence of ceasefires in the north and southeast did not solely explain deforestation patterns. Rather than consider ceasefire or war as a singular explanatory variable effecting forest cover change, we demonstrate the need to analyze armed conflict as a dynamic multisited and diffuse phenomenon, which is simultaneously integrated into broader political economy and geopolitical forces.

A connected history of political economy in Asia and Europe, ca 1750–1914

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-2
Author(s):  
Alessandro Stanziani
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Ottoman Empire ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Economic Thought ◽  
The North ◽  
History Of ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
History Of Political Economy ◽  
Political Economic

The history of political-economic thought has been built up over the centuries with a uniform focus on European and North American thinkers. Intellectuals beyond the North Atlantic have been largely understood as the passive recipients of already formed economic categories and arguments. This view has often been accepted not only by scholars and observers in Europe but also in many other places such as Russia, India, China, Japan, and the Ottoman Empire. In this regard, the articles included in this collection explicitly differentiate from this diffusionist approach (“born in Western Europe, then flowed everywhere else”).

Forest cover change patterns in Myanmar (Burma) 1990–2000

2005 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 356-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
PETER LEIMGRUBER ◽  
DANIEL S. KELLY ◽  
MARC K. STEININGER ◽  
JAKE BRUNNER ◽  
THOMAS MÜLLER ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Forest Cover ◽  
Mangrove Forests ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Charcoal Production ◽  
Important Species ◽  
Agricultural Conversion ◽  
Deforestation Rates ◽  
Commercial Logging ◽  
Closed Canopy ◽  
Landsat Satellite

Myanmar is one of the most forested countries in mainland South-east Asia. These forests support a large number of important species and endemics and have great value for global efforts in biodiversity conservation. Landsat satellite imagery from the 1990s and 2000s was used to develop a countrywide forest map and estimate deforestation. The country has retained much of its forest cover, but forests have declined by 0.3% annually. Deforestation varied considerably among administrative units, with central and more populated states and divisions showing the highest losses. Ten deforestation hotspots had annual deforestation rates well above the countrywide average. Major reasons for forest losses in these hotspots stemmed from increased agricultural conversion, fuelwood consumption, charcoal production, commercial logging and plantation development. While Myanmar continues to be a stronghold for closed canopy forests, several areas have been experiencing serious deforestation. Most notable are the mangrove forests in the Ayeyarwady delta region and the remaining dry forests at the northern edge of the central dry zone.

scholarly journals Rebuilding Bridges: Toward a Feminist Research Agenda for Postwar Reconstruction

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (04) ◽  
pp. 715-721 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Bergeron ◽  
Carol Cohn ◽  
Claire Duncanson
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
International Political Economy ◽  
Security Studies ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Postwar Reconstruction ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Political Economic

As feminists who think about war and peacebuilding, we cannot help but encounter the complex, entwined political economic processes that underlie wars’ causes, their courses, and the challenges of postwar reconstruction. For us, then, the increasing academic division between feminist security studies (FSS) and feminist (international) political economy (FPE/FIPE) has been a cause for concern, and we welcomed Politics & Gender’s earlier Critical Perspectives section on efforts to bridge the two (June 2015). We noticed, however, that although violence was addressed in several of the special section's articles, war made only brief and somewhat peripheral appearances, and peacebuilding was all but absent. While three contributions (Hudson 2015; Sjoberg 2015; True 2015) mentioned the importance of political economy in the analysis of armed conflict, the aspects of war on which the articles focused were militarized sexualities (Sjoberg 2015) or conflict-related and postwar sexual and gender-based violence (Hudson 2015; True 2015).

scholarly journals Understanding 34 Years of Forest Cover Dynamics across the Paraguayan Chaco: Characterizing Annual Changes and Forest Fragmentation Levels between 1987 and 2020

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Emmanuel Da Da Ponte ◽  
Monserrat García-Calabrese ◽  
Jennifer Kriese ◽  
Nestor Cabral ◽  
Lidia Perez de Perez de Molas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Natural Habitat ◽  
Remote Sensing Data ◽  
Rapid Expansion ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Landsat Images ◽  
Forest Clearing ◽  
Deforestation Rates ◽  
Degree Of Fragmentation

Over the past 40 years, Paraguay has lost the majority of its natural forest cover, thus becoming one of the countries with the highest deforestation rates in the world. The rapid expansion of the agricultural frontier, cattle ranching, and illegal logging between 1987 and 2012 resulted in the loss of 27% of original forest cover, equivalent to almost 44,000 km2. Within this context, the present research provides the first yearly analysis of forest cover change in the Paraguayan Chaco between the years 1987 and 2020. Remote sensing data obtained from Landsat images were applied to derive annual forest cover masks and deforestation rates over 34 years. Part of this study is a comprehensive assessment of the effectiveness of protected areas, as well as an analysis of the degree of fragmentation of the forest. All classification results obtained accuracies above 80% and revealed a total forest cover loss of approximately 64,700 km2. Forest clearing within protected areas was not frequent; however, some natural reserves presented losses of up to 25% of their forest cover. Through the consideration of several landscape metrics, this study reveals an onward fragmentation of forest cover, which endangers the natural habitat of numerous species.

22. Global Political Economy

2020 ◽  
pp. 508-534
Author(s):  
Stephanie Lawson
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
International Political Economy ◽  
International Economic Order ◽  
Global Political Economy ◽  
Post Cold War ◽  
The North ◽  
System P ◽  
Liberal Political Economy ◽  
Political Economic

This chapter provides an overview of the field of Global Political Economy (GPE), also known as International Political Economy (IPE). It begins with a discussion of how GPE/IPE has developed as a major focus of study within the broader field of global politics over the last four decades. It then considers the rise of mercantilism as a theory of GPE, along with its relationship to nationalism and colonialism. It also examines the emergence of liberal political economy, Marxism and critical IPE, and the international economic order after World War II. In particular, it looks at the Bretton Woods system, which emerged after the war as a compromise between liberalism and nationalism. The chapter concludes with an analysis of international political, economic, and social problems associated with the North–South gap, globalization and regionalization in the post-Cold War period, and financial crises that rocked the global economic system.

Developing environmental governance research: the example of forest cover change studies

2011 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 234-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
LUCA TACCONI
Keyword(s):  
Political Ecology ◽  
Mixed Methods Research ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approach ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Interdisciplinary Study

SUMMARYEnvironmental problems are often complex and it is widely recognized that they cannot be satisfactorily addressed by single disciplines. The review of forest cover change studies points to the need to carry out research integrating economic, political, social and environmental aspects. Existing interdisciplinary study areas, namely ecological economics, political ecology, sustainability science and Earth system governance do not yet fully integrate all the required aspects. This paper points out that the establishment of greater synergies between those study areas would be beneficial in developing the broader study area of environmental governance. A definition of environmental governance as a subject of study is developed. Lack of an all encompassing theory of environmental governance is highlighted, while the improbability of such a theory is acknowledged. In relation to normative work, the refinement of principles of good environmental governance could support the design and prioritization of policies. Empirical research needs to include the testing of hypotheses arising from theoretical developments, assessment of policy uptake and new exploratory research. Methodologically, environmental governance might start from an interdisciplinary approach followed by further integration leading to a transdisciplinary study area that uses a mixed methods research approach.

scholarly journals The political economy of landslides and international aid relief: a qualitative investigation in rural Uganda

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 720
Author(s):  
Kelly F Austin ◽  
Maria Theresa Mejia
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Political Ecology ◽  
Social Factors ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
International Aid ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Unequal Exchange ◽  
Political Economic ◽  
Relief Efforts ◽  
Aid Relief

<p>This is a qualitative study of perspectives from community members on landslides in Bududa, Uganda. Interviews with community members reveal their perceptions of the causes, effects, and aid response to landslides. We employ a 'structural fieldwork' approach to explain community member's thoughts and experiences using critical macro-comparative perspectives relating to political ecology. This research brings attention to how large-scale unequal relationships in trade and international aid increase landslide vulnerability and there are ineffective relief efforts in a particular locale. Linking environmental degradation in Bududa to political, economic, and social factors provides a broader context in which to view risk from landslides in this community, as a critical case in demonstrating how economic globalization benefits some at the expense of others.</p><p><strong>Keywords: </strong>Landslides, unequal exchange, disaster, NGOs, political economy<strong></strong></p>

scholarly journals Direct Measurement of Forest Degradation Rates in Malawi: Toward a National Forest Monitoring System to Support REDD+

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 426
Author(s):  
David Skole ◽  
Jay Samek ◽  
Cheikh Mbow ◽  
Michael Chirwa ◽  
Dan Ndalowa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Forest Monitoring ◽  
National Forest ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Deforestation Rates ◽  
Degradation Rates ◽  
The Government ◽  
Agricultural Areas

Spatial time-series measurements of forest degradation rates are important for estimating national greenhouse gas emissions but have been challenging for open forests and woodlands. This lack of quantitative data on forest degradation rates, location and biomass is an important constraint to developing national REDD+ policy. In Malawi, and in most countries in Africa, most assessments of forest cover change for carbon emissions monitoring tend to report only deforestation in the public forest estate managed by the government, even when important forest degradation also occurs in agricultural areas, such as customary forests and other tree-based systems. This study has resulted in: (a) a new robust forest map for Malawi, (b) spatial and quantitative measurements of both forest degradation and deforestation, and (c) a demonstration of the approach through the introduction of a tool that maps across the broad landscape of forests and trees outside of forests. The results can be used to support REDD+ National Forest Monitoring Systems. This analysis produces new estimates of landscape-wide deforestation rates between 2000–2009 (22,410 ha yr−1) and 2009–2015 (38,937 ha yr−1). We further produce new estimates of the rate of forest degradation between 2000–2009 (42,961 ha yr−1) and 2009–2015 (71,878 ha yr−1). The contribution of these new tools and estimates to capacities for calculating carbon emissions are important, increasing prospects for full REDD+ readiness across semi-arid Africa.

scholarly journals A long-term perspective on deforestation rates in the Brazilian Amazon

2015 ◽  
Vol XL-7/W3 ◽  
pp. 539-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. D. Velasco Gomez ◽  
R. Beuchle ◽  
Y. Shimabukuro ◽  
R. Grecchi ◽  
D. Simonetti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Brazilian Amazon ◽  
Thematic Mapper ◽  
Tree Cover ◽  
Amazon Forest ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Visual Interpretation ◽  
Deforestation Rates ◽  
Arc Of Deforestation

Monitoring tropical forest cover is central to biodiversity preservation, terrestrial carbon stocks, essential ecosystem and climate functions, and ultimately, sustainable economic development. The Amazon forest is the Earth’s largest rainforest, and despite intensive studies on current deforestation rates, relatively little is known as to how these compare to historic (pre 1985) deforestation rates. We quantified land cover change between 1975 and 2014 in the so-called Arc of Deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon, covering the southern stretch of the Amazon forest and part of the Cerrado biome. We applied a consistent method that made use of data from Landsat sensors: Multispectral Scanner (MSS), Thematic Mapper (TM), Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) and Operational Land Imager (OLI). We acquired suitable images from the US Geological Survey (USGS) for five epochs: 1975, 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2014. We then performed land cover analysis for each epoch using a systematic sample of 156 sites, each one covering 10 km × 10 km, located at the confluence point of integer degree latitudes and longitudes. An object-based classification of the images was performed with five land cover classes: tree cover, tree cover mosaic, other wooded land, other land cover, and water. The automatic classification results were corrected by visual interpretation, and, when available, by comparison with higher resolution imagery. Our results show a decrease of forest cover of 24.2% in the last 40 years in the Brazilian Arc of Deforestation, with an average yearly net forest cover change rate of -0.71% for the 39 years considered.

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