This thesis explores relationships between consumption and conservation, via a case study of North American conservationists. I conducted an online survey (n=24), and examined respondent statements about their own consumption and that of others. Here, I consider these within contexts of community messaging, and related literatures (political ecology; consumption studies; social marketing). Four key themes emerge: 1) a primarily negative association with the term consumption, which influences and limits engagements with consumption; 2) mixed messaging about some encouraged consumption (e.g. sustainable seafood is promoted within this community, but is debated by respondents and researchers); 3) over-confidence in information provision as key to changing consumer behaviour, despite evidence to the contrary; and 4) limited recognition of ISTCC community success and power with respect to promoting and benefitting from “consuming to conserve” activities. This thesis ends with academic and applied recommendations for more comprehensive engagements with intersections between consumption and conservation.
Drawing on theories of critical legal geography and critical development studies, this thesis examines how law shapes processes of repression and resistance in conflicts over resource extraction. Through the lens of Canadian mining in Guatemala and the specific case of Tahoe Resources’ El Escobal Mine, I reflect on how law impacts the production, control, and remaking of space and place. A discourse analysis of documents obtained via Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) requests, as well as an analysis of fieldwork notes and semistructured interviews conducted in Guatemala and Canada between May and September 2018, demonstrate that a lack of government oversight and accountability reinforces a status quo of impunity for human rights abuses related to Canada’s extractive sector. While home state litigation may enforce a measure of accountability for parent companies in their operations abroad, the ideological structures enabling mining corporations to operate with ease across borders remain intact.
