POLITICAL ECOLOGY OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT; A CRITICAL REVIEW OF SOME RELEVANT ASPECTS (original) (raw)
POLITICAL ECOLOGY OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT; A CRITICAL REVIEW OF SOME RELEVANT ASPECTS The tremendous increase in the scale of human impact on earth together with our increased although imperfect understanding of ecological processes means that the environment can no longer viewed as a relatively stable background factor. Rather the interaction between economic development and complex and often fragile ecosystems on which that development depends has become a major political issue both locally and globally (Maigua & Musyimi, n.d.). It is no longer possible to treat ecology and politics as separate spheres. The institutions that matter most are no longer specifically environmental but rather are the core institutions that govern or at least seek to govern the workings of the world politics and economy. A major focus is actually the integration of environmental concerns into the sphere of economic planning and policy making rather than the development of an entirely separate thus peripheral sphere (Maigua & Musyimi, n.d.). This study therefore aims to make a critical analysis of some important aspects regarding the political ecology of environmental management. Political ecology informs political makers and organizations about the complexities surrounding environment and development thereby contributing to better environmental governance. It helps understand the decisions that communities make about the natural environment in the context of their political environment, economic pressures and societal regulations. Political ecology also looks at how unequal relations in and among societies affects the environment especially in the context of government policy (Grieber, 2009). The study therefore at various political aspects and their influence on environmental management. Firstly it looks at the issue of environmental democracy and how it influences environmental management. This includes the aspects of participation, environmental justice and information access. It then elaborates environmental governance including global environmental governance and implications on environmental management. The study then looks at other political aspects of relevance to environmental management including: the global commons, geopolitics, environmental movements and the conduct of politicians. It then looks at trends in the political ecology of Africa and then Kenya specifically. Policy making and how it influences environmental management is then explained. The study then winds up with a review of. The legal and policy frameworks for environmental management in Kenya.
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