CONSERVATION AND SUBSISTENCE IN SMALL-SCALE SOCIETIES
https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.anthro.29.1.493

Eric Alden Smith
Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, 
Seattle, Washington 

Mark Wishnie
School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, New Haven,
Connecticut

Key Words collective action, sustainability, common property resources,
biodiversity

■ Abstract
 Some scholars have championed the view that small-scale societies are
conservers or even creators of biodiversity. Others have argued that human populations have always modified their environments, often in ways that enhance short-term
gains at the expense of environmental stability and biodiversity conservation. Recent
ethnographic studies as well as theory from several disciplines allow a less polarized
assessment. We review this body of data and theory and assess various predictions
regarding sustainable environmental utilization. The meaning of the term conservation
is itself controversial. We propose that to qualify as conservation, any action or practice
must not only prevent or mitigate resource overharvesting or environmental damage,
it must also be designed to do so. The conditions under which conservation will be
adaptive are stringent, involving temporal discounting, economic demand, information
feedback, and collective action. Theory thus predicts, and evidence suggests, that voluntary conservation is rare. However, sustainable use and management of resources
and habitats by small-scale societies is widespread and may often indirectly result in
biodiversity preservation or even enhancement via creation of habitat mosaics.