Megan Youdelis
A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO
THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR THE DEGREE OF
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
GRADUATE PROGRAM IN GEOGRAPHY
YORK UNIVERSITY
TORONTO, ONTARIO
December, 2017
ABSTRACT
The rescaling of conservation globally is engendering an increase in private sector stakeholders in conservation practice. Recent moves to allow private interests to develop and manage
services within national parks have sparked significant countermovements in several states, including Canada and Thailand. Political ecologists have widely elucidated the socio-economic
implications of the neoliberalsiation of conservation, but have been rather quiet on the political
implications in terms of public and Indigenous participation in conservation governance. This
research explores the relationship between political economy and the politics of conservation
governance through two case studies of public protest against private tourism development within protected areas: Jasper National Park, Canada and Doi Suthep-Pui National Park, Thailand. I
analyze the nature and scope of both countermovements, looking at how and why situated actors
articulate different visions of conservation and the role of national parks, what strategies proponents and opponents employ to enrol allies, and how and why certain knowledge claims about
conservation gain currency over others. I argue that neoliberalisation, and austerity politics more
specifically, create the structural conditions for the post-politicization of conservation governance, reducing democratic oversight of public provisioning. In such conditions, park authorities
employ a series of strategies to remove debate from the public sphere, orchestrate the appearance
of consensus and ultimately to legitimize unpopular tourism development decisions.
https://yorkspace.library.yorku.ca/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10315/34960/Youdelis_Megan_C_2017_PhD.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y
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