Conservation is failing worldwide!
Big international NGOs (BINGOs) spend increasing amounts of money on conservation initiatives that often do not have a direct effect on forest and species conservation or, in other cases, create antagonism and even retaliation from the local population. They present to the public varying narratives, some being doom-and-gloom situations focusing on mass extinctions and others are phenomenal conservation successes led by these same NGOs. Both of these narratives ignore the contradictions and challenges of conservation interventions and avoid any type of explanation as to why so many phenomenal successes add up to such devastating results.
Smaller, national NGOs inevitably engage in perpetual competitions over branding and minimal, sporadic funds that trickle down from international organizations. Petty rivalries and the need to constantly produce rapid success stories for their funders make them unable to cooperate or to create real, long term positive conservation change.
Neoliberal doctrines leave governments increasingly powerless and unable to efficiently enforce their own laws. Derived of economic means, capable staff and state officials often turn to corruption and contraband. Corruption and poor law enforcements are the main catalysts for environmental crimes but this issue is very rarely tackled by conservation NGOs.
Mainstream conservation is becoming ever more militarised, “fines and fences” have been elevated to “shoot to kill” policies in many countries. Global numbers of conservation refugees (people who are displaced from their land with the creation of protected areas) are constantly growing. These conservation interventions alienate local people, making them enemies of nature, the same nature that they protected for thousands of years.
The dominant conservation ideology is based on racism, colonialism and capitalism. It is arrogant, inefficient and sometimes harmful to both humans and nature. If we want to protect nature and our future on this planet we must dismantle and restructure dominant conservation systems.
Reclaim Conservation aims to collect testimonies and expose wrongdoings to humans, animals, or nature in the name of conservation. Please contact us with any information you think can help us in exposing this corruption.
Reclaim Conservation 