ABSTRACT
The fifth chapter, ‘Our “Other Species” Capabilities and Capabilities of Other Species’, sets conservation context for Nussbaum’s other species capability, namely, human-wildlife conflicts. Delving into the issue of individual versus collective agency, the chapter critiques Nussbaum’s argument that wilderness cannot be an excuse for not protecting individual ‘sentient’ animals that can feel pain and be thwarted. In the name of wilderness protection, local communities have been disentitled and capabilities thwarted. Differentiating wildlife conservation from urban animal welfare, the chapter compares conflict, capability and adaptive tendency in Lalung and Rammam villages.
