ABSTRACT
This chapter explores connections in more detail and develops a stronger instrumental case for justice. A key limitation of the evidence linking inequality to environmental degradation is that it merely describes an association, without seeking to understand the underlying reasons. The chapter seeks to remedy this – initially by exploring the reasons why inequality is bad for the environment, but then extending this analysis to the broader phenomenon of justice. The ways in which injustice is linked to environmental outcomes is fundamentally different to the ways in which equality is linked to environmental outcomes. The chapter focuses on largely negative cases that illustrate the way in which the perceived injustices of conservation undermine its effectiveness. It considers some evidence of more positive outcomes, where greater attention to social justice issues is leading to improved conservation outcomes. Alienation and resentment is one way of conceptualising the connection between (perceived) injustice and the undermining of conservation effectiveness.
