Over-educated and Underfunded
Weird, wacky and wonderful stories and sketches from biologists in the field.
By Ariana LoehrLeadership in conservation biology is a topic that, while rather taboo, needs to be discussed. Thousands of young people are entering the extremely tight job market every year eager to make a difference, but are left at the whims of a select few individuals in leadership. As this new generation of environmentalists age, can they step up to the challenge of improving leadership in conservation? Or will they burnout even before they get there? This series is meant to open up frank and honest discussions on how to make our workplaces as enjoyable as the wildlife that we work with. “Ah they’re lazy”, ”they’re only driven by money”, ”they won’t last long in the field” are all microaggressions I’ve heard from several of my supervisors regarding their local staff, quickly followed by a stuttered “...besides Iliana she’s one of the good locals around” added in an attempt to save their ass. In all of these instances, my supervisors were not from the country or region in which we worked. They considered themselves highly educated and even politically liberal. After all, they were working to improve the environment, and that’s a good thing, right? But while most people working in conservation have an ultimate goal of doing good for the world, the way that we’re going about it sometimes seems like just another relic of our colonial history. Many conservationists forget that the roots of our industry lie far earlier than John Muir and Alfred Wallace. Long before the grandiose protected wildlife sanctuaries that drove indigenous communities from their lands, were Mayans and Orang Asli alike, regulating farming and industry to ensure that the land could be fruitful for years to come. Yet, when I think back on my environmental science education, we focused only on the words of white male conservationists that hailed from colonial powers in the 19th and 20th centuries. So why have only a select few voices been shared throughout our conservation education? I sat down with naturalist Emma Su and M.Sc. climate, society and economics candidate Ananya Iyer to find out. Both echoed the sentiment that colonialism in conservation had not been discussed in their education in the U.S. and U.K. Ananya shared that “the conversation is near non-existent in the UK. Most of my peers said they never learnt about it in school.” While Ananya’s education was split between the UK, Singapore, The Netherlands and India she mentioned that “In India we learned a lot about how the British helped us...I think celebrating the west prolongs the effects of colonialism. ” Unfortunately for those of us who grew up in the U.S. and U.K. the western ideal of conservation made up most of our education. "Local people are often portrayed as ignorant and in need of “teaching”, but there are many different systems of knowledge" Our textbooks seemed to have missed out thousands of years of indigenous groups managing the land just fine without the help of white men. Instead the idea of the “white savior” coming to fix all environmental woes, continues to be perpetuated. “Conservation groups tend to place blame on local people for the issues such as plastic pollution, shark fishing, or selling turtle eggs” states Emma Su. Often times, what local communities may see as a cultural norm, western conservationists see as a problem, “Local people are often portrayed as ignorant and in need of “teaching”, but there are many different systems of knowledge...local and indigenous people know so much more about their environment than you could ever learn at a university.” This knowledge allowed for humans and nature to thrive side by side using systems of agriculture that were integrated within the ecosystem. The need for isolated and separate places for wildlife only emerged to counter the western led mass production seen today. The way conservation projects are funded adds fuel to the colonial flame. Pay-to-work or volunteer schemes are too often seen as the main source of funding for conservation initiatives abroad. The high fee and lack of income prohibit many locals from joining such work. Conservation projects are typically found in rural communities that are already underserved, and “based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs if everyone’s basic physiological needs are not satisfied, they are unlikely to spend money on environmental conservation.” noted Ananya. Instead, the only people who can fill these roles come from wealthier western countries. "Conservation needs to be from and for marginalized communities and communities which bear the brunt of environmental degradation" Some may say that volunteering with or donating to environmental groups is the least we in the west can do, especially after destroying much of the land for our goods and food. Ananya thinks it all depends on the particular group, “I think it varies based on what work the organisation is doing. If they are helping countries that are poor, but by empowering their citizens and creating local solutions, I think donating to the organisation is good because it helps give these countries what was taken from them back.” Emma agrees stating “We all need to do research and demand change and accountability. That being said, I think everyone should donate their money directly to local organizations.” The key takeaway here being that as conservationists we need to empower local communities to act in their own best interest in terms of natural resources. Doing this will involve growing our trust in this knowledge and incorporating it into our own work going forward. Another way to push away from colonialism in conservation- seek out projects that put community leaders at the forefront. ”Leadership needs to come from the communities” Emma continues, “Conservation needs to be from and for marginalized communities and communities which bear the brunt of environmental degradation”. If you’re unsure about a particular project, ask yourself these questions: Does the makeup of the organization represent the makeup of the community? Are there any community members in leadership positions? Is there a clear effort to engage with the community through forums or events as opposed to lecturing at or about the community’s problems? By choosing where you direct your time or money you can exercise your voice. For those that are already working in an organization, look for where you can include more local voices. This may be through hiring locals regardless of their formal education, or creating a board comprised of local, indigenous and minority peoples to help advise on policy. Researchers can look through historical documents to even find who used to inhabit the land, and what flora and fauna used to live in the area. Several organizations that I’ve worked with have included blessings or ceremonies from native groups before working at your field site, ensured that employees had regular cultural and language trainings, or even changed their seed mixes to reflect how humans and wildlife had historically used the land. Emma Su has also seen great strides made towards cultural inclusion from the leadership in her workplace, “We are really making an effort to include Native Hawaiian culture into everything we do. My boss is Native Hawaiian and leads culture and language workshops for all incoming staff.” These efforts are still far from perfect, and cannot make up for years of colonial powers taking people away from their land, but it is a start. Going forward, we can pass on more inclusive definitions of conservation to those studying the topic in school. Hopefully in the near future, a community member running a conservation project is no longer a surprise, local knowledge is seen as worthwhile as a college degree, and microaggressions are totally a thing of the past. An additional note from Emma: “Money is power and funding systems to grassroots and local conservation groups is lacking. Almost all conservation problems stem from exploitation in the name of money. This is why I have been volunteering with Key Conservation, an app that is making funding more transparent and direct to the local grassroots sources” Do you know of any organizations that are working to decolonize conservation? What other issues with leadership have you seen in conservation? Let us know in the comments below or get in touch with us today!
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About the AuthorsThese stories come from several biologists working in the field around the globe. Archives
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