This thesis explores the inadvertent consequences of conservation-induced displacement utilizing a case study of Batwa, who were forcefully displaced from their ancestral forest lands to make way for three protected areas in southwest Uganda. It also provides a context to understand and make visible underlying sociopolitical forces driving the processes of exclusion from areas of conservation.
By Natalie Dianne Rodriguez
Thesis directed by Professor David G. Havlick
B. A., University of Colorado Colorado Springs, 2018.
A thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Colorado Colorado Springs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, 2021.
This thesis for the Master of Arts degree by Natalie Dianne Rodriguez has been approved for the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies by David Havlick (Chair), Emily Skop, and Jamie Van Leeuwen.
Rodriguez, Natalie Dianne (M.A., Applied Geography)
Consequences of Conservation-induced Displacement: A Case Study with Batwa Participants in Southwest Uganda
Introduction
Internal Displacement and Protected Areas
Imagine being forced to flee your home at gunpoint with no notice, nothing to your name, and nowhere to go. Losing everything you have ever known your property, your livelihood, and your entire way of life. For Batwa, an internally displaced peoples (hereinafter IDPs) in southwest Uganda, this was the devastating reality; forcefully evicted from their ancestral forest lands, amid the formation of three protected areas (hereinafter PAs); Echuya Central Forest Reserve (ECFR), Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (MGNP), and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP).'
Internal displacement is a global phenomenon, impacting Sub-Saharan Africa disproportionately, accounting for more than 17.8 million of the world's internally displaced peoples (IDMC, 2019). The process of internal displacement occurs when populations flee their homes to avoid the adverse impacts of conflict (e.g., war and violence), disaster (natural and human-caused), and development (e.g., infrastructure and protected areas) (IDMC, 2014). Notably, IDPs are displaced within their country of origin, with no borders crossed during their flight. On this account, IDPs remain under the protection of their respective state government. In the case of development-induced displacements (such as PAs), the state is responsible for providing resources to support the reconstruction of displaced communities (Cernea and SchmidtSoltau, 2003). This dynamic becomes exceptionally challenging when the forces accountable for carrying out these (often violent) displacements are the very institutions responsible for providing asylum.
A mainstay in conservation efforts, PAs encompass national parks, forest reserves, wildlife sanctuaries, and biosphere reserves. Due to the misguided belief that for successful conservation, the exclusion of people from nature must occur (Jacoby, 2003); displacement from PAs is almost always permanent with no option to return (Agrawal and Redford, 2009). Chiefly, during the establishment of PAs, "the compulsory removal process [is] initiated when a project's need for a right of way is deemed to override the right to stay of the inhabiting populations" (Cernea and Schmidt-Soltau, 2006). Thus, many well-intended conservation projects result in devastating consequences for IDPs.
Given the recent goal under the UN Convention on Biodiversity to protect 30% of the world's territorial and marine surface by 2030 and 50% by 2050, the establishment of PAs will likely only intensify, making the processes leading to conservation-induced displacements and the ensuing implications, a relevant topic of research.
To answer the question, "What are the long-term consequences of conservation-induced displacement as experienced by Batwa people in the Lake Bunyonyi region of southwest Uganda?" I adopt an informal community needs assessment to identify outstanding challenges faced by this marginalized population. I build on the framework of Community Geography, which calls for a pragmatist or action-oriented model of inquiry to address real-world problems by informing systematic change (Shannon et al., 2020). As Shannon and colleagues note, Community Geography is "...a praxis rooted in collaborations between academic and public scholars, resulting in mutually beneficial and co-produced knowledge" (Shannon et al., 2020, p. 2). Thus, I undertook this research in partnership with Global Livingston Institute (GLI), a nongovernmental organization with an established presence in the study area (Appendix A). To truly understand the needs of a community, GLI encourages listening and thinking before acting. To listen, engaged in conversation-driven methods, documenting community needs and gaps in services as experienced by Batwa. To think, I used findings as a catalyst for exploring possible solutions.
To act, I call upon GLI, the local government officials of Kabale district in Uganda, and other organizations with a similar goal of improving Batwa's impoverished realities to collaborate and implement community-led livelihood reconstruction initiatives in an attempt to rectify past injustices.
This thesis begins with a delineation of the study area and a historical overview of Batwa, followed by an exploration of literature situated in the political ecology of militarized conservation. It continues by outlining the three complementary qualitative methods utilized: participant observation, semistructured interviews, and mental mapping. After contextualizing Batwa's identified needs and gaps in services from field notes, interview transcripts, and mental map data, I use content analysis to discuss what these findings mean for Batwa in Ishunga, Makanga and Murambo settlements. I conclude with two recommendations to advance the findings of this study. Firstly, I recommend utilizing the reversed Impoverished Risks and Resettlement Model (IRR Model) as a tool to guide community development initiatives, beginning with land-based livelihood reconstruction to achieve self-sufficiency. Secondly, I recommend redressing past injustices by taking an ID rights-based approach.
