ABSTRACT
This chapter uses an anthropological lens to understand the nature of women’s choices in the context of legal and illegal wildlife economies as well as the broader context of continual socioeconomic and cultural shifts across time. Ethnography and historical analysis of the Dzanga-Sangha Protected Areas Complex in Central African Republic support the authors’ arguments that women have demonstrated choices to engage in an illicit economy in fleeting and yet fruitful ways. It is paramount to consider the everyday obstacles and barriers that serve as preconditions to these moments for women in protected areas if sustainable conservation and development is to be successful.
