Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book expresses 'the nature state' as a term that both describes the varied roles played by myriad states as nature's manager, as distinct from its uninhibited exploiter, and one which is sufficiently flexible to enable comparative historical analyses, whether framed by international, transnational or global perspectives. It brings together work from around the world by geographers, sociologists, anthropologists and historians on the history of national parks and other forms of nature conservation that place the state centre-stage. The book also focuses on the recent historiographical move to locate nature conservation in global and transnational contexts and takes environmental history closer to those other disciplines – political science, sociology, anthropology and, indeed, mainstream political history – that have been at the forefront of studies of state building and functioning.