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Neoliberal Natures – The Limits of Financialisation in Scotland’s Conservation

van Rooij, Daniël LU (2024) HEKM51 20241
Department of Human Geography
Human Ecology
Abstract
With the acceleration of climate change and biodiversity loss in recent years, the neoliberal economic response to environmental challenges has been to integrate nature into market mechanisms, hoping to account for ecological degradation while funding nature conservation and restoration. This study critically examines the resulting financialisation of conservation, focussing on Scotland in particular. Two emerging policy frameworks related to conservation, namely the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy (SBS) and the Natural Capital Market Framework (NCMF), are critically examined. The analysis reveals that the NCMF represents an escalation of financialisation in environmental policy, while the proposed expansion into new financial products... (More)
With the acceleration of climate change and biodiversity loss in recent years, the neoliberal economic response to environmental challenges has been to integrate nature into market mechanisms, hoping to account for ecological degradation while funding nature conservation and restoration. This study critically examines the resulting financialisation of conservation, focussing on Scotland in particular. Two emerging policy frameworks related to conservation, namely the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy (SBS) and the Natural Capital Market Framework (NCMF), are critically examined. The analysis reveals that the NCMF represents an escalation of financialisation in environmental policy, while the proposed expansion into new financial products beyond carbon and biodiversity credits raises significant concerns about the long-term viability and ecological integrity of conservation efforts. The study identifies multiple fundamental flaws in the NCMF’s approach which suggest that the NCMF’s market-based solutions are not only ecologically unsound but also risk perpetuating 'fictitious conservation,' where the appearance of biophysically grounded conservation is maintained through economic transactions while actual conservation outcomes are absent. Additionally, the SBS’s reliance on private investment to address funding gaps reflects a neoliberal economic agenda that prioritises market mechanisms over public accountability and ecological integrity. The absence of robust public conservation funding and the failure to address key environmental threats, such as fossil fuel extraction, further undermine the strategy’s effectiveness. The study concludes that the policy trajectory shown by the SBS and NCMF is stalling on effective biodiversity restoration and climate action, rendering the achievement of Scotland’s conservation aims improbable. (Less)
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author
van Rooij, Daniël LU
supervisor
organization
course
HEKM51 20241
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Financialisation, Biodiversity, Scotland, Conservation policy, Natural capital markets
language
English
id
9174224
date added to LUP
2024-09-12 08:51:31
date last changed
2024-09-12 08:51:31
@misc{9174224,
  abstract     = {{With the acceleration of climate change and biodiversity loss in recent years, the neoliberal economic response to environmental challenges has been to integrate nature into market mechanisms, hoping to account for ecological degradation while funding nature conservation and restoration. This study critically examines the resulting financialisation of conservation, focussing on Scotland in particular. Two emerging policy frameworks related to conservation, namely the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy (SBS) and the Natural Capital Market Framework (NCMF), are critically examined. The analysis reveals that the NCMF represents an escalation of financialisation in environmental policy, while the proposed expansion into new financial products beyond carbon and biodiversity credits raises significant concerns about the long-term viability and ecological integrity of conservation efforts. The study identifies multiple fundamental flaws in the NCMF’s approach which suggest that the NCMF’s market-based solutions are not only ecologically unsound but also risk perpetuating 'fictitious conservation,' where the appearance of biophysically grounded conservation is maintained through economic transactions while actual conservation outcomes are absent. Additionally, the SBS’s reliance on private investment to address funding gaps reflects a neoliberal economic agenda that prioritises market mechanisms over public accountability and ecological integrity. The absence of robust public conservation funding and the failure to address key environmental threats, such as fossil fuel extraction, further undermine the strategy’s effectiveness. The study concludes that the policy trajectory shown by the SBS and NCMF is stalling on effective biodiversity restoration and climate action, rendering the achievement of Scotland’s conservation aims improbable.}},
  author       = {{van Rooij, Daniël}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Neoliberal Natures – The Limits of Financialisation in Scotland’s Conservation}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}