Legitimacy and Exclusion in the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement
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Neoliberal conservation: Legitimacy and exclusion in the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement by Stephanie Kittmer A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Political Economy Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario ©2013, Stephanie Kittmer Library and Archives Bibliotheque et Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du 1+1 Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-94605-3 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-94605-3 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distrbute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. 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Canada Abstract Through the lens of poststructural political ecology this thesis critically interrogates the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement (CBFA), which was struck in 2010 between nine environmental non-governmental organizations, the Forest Products Association of Canada, and the 21 member companies. Drawing on of the work of Foucault, this thesis performs a discourse analysis, and explores why signatories excluded First Nations and government from the negotiations, how these decisions were normalized, and considers the effects that these developments have had on solidarity and democratic processes within Canadian boreal forest politics. This thesis argues that CBFA signatories operated under the rationale of sustainable development and neoliberal conservation, which facilitated their use of crisis narratives in order to prioritize their joint interests in the boreal forest. However, these efforts have largely been resisted by several opponents of the CBFA, who have called for signatories to respect First Nations right to free, prior and informed consent. Acknowledgements One of the greatest lessons that I have learned during the course o f this degree is that I have a lot to be thankful for. I would like to start by thanking everyone who participated in this research project, for giving their time and sharing their stories. Our conversations brought this research to life. I would like to express my deepest thanks to my supervisor, Patricia Ballamingie, for her unwavering encouragement, mentorship, and guidance. My sincere appreciation goes to my committee member, Emilie Cameron, and my external examiner, Noel Salmond, for providing such thoughtful and thorough insight and feedback. I could not have asked for a better committee to see me to the end. I would also like to thank John Buschek, Justin Paulson, John Milton, and Peter Andree for creating such incredible classroom experiences, and for never hesitating to challenge me intellectually. My time in the Institute of Political Economy has been life changing, and would not have been so fulfilling if it were not for the dedication of former-Director Janet Siltanen and current- Director Laura MacDonald. My special thanks goes to Donna Coghill for being committed to the success of every student in IPE, and for being such a remarkable friend and ally. There is an amazing sense of community within the Institute, and I am forever grateful for the opportunity to be a part of it, and for being surrounded by such an outstanding group of peers. I am so fortunate to have the love and support of so many people, including my parents, Brian and Sandy, my brother and sister, Danny and Sarah, my grandmother, Ruth Kittmer, as well as my adoptive families in the Ottawa Valley - the Stewart’s and the Buck’s. I am eternally grateful to my partner, Allan, for believing in me, and for putting up with my mess piles while I completed this project. My dear friends became an eclectic group of cheerleaders, and I would like to thank Vanessa, Gab, Eric, Frederick, Anna, Simon, Tyler, Brynne, Chris, Avery, Nathan and Torrie for being such faithful friends. And last, I would like to thank the good people at OPIRG-Carleton and the Garden Spot for making the Carleton campus a better place. This research was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) program. This thesis is dedicated to my Papa, and to my dear friends, Emma and Max, all o f whom I lost along this journey. Table of Contents Abstract.................................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements...............................................................................................................iii Table of Contents.................................................................................................................. Iv List of Figures........................................................................................................................ v List of Acronyms...................................................................................................................vi Chapter 1: Introduction........................................................................................................ 1 Chapter 2: Theoretical Approach: Poststructural Political Ecology...........................16 Chapter 3: Methodological Approach..............................................................................36 3.1 Approaching research through feminist geography .......................................................37 3.2 Research methods ..........................................................................................................44 3.3 Research process and materials reviewed .....................................................................49 Chapter 4: The exclusion of First Nations from the negotiations .......................table 53 4.1 Bilateral alliances and negotiations in the boreal forest: a risk worth taking? ............. 54 4.2 Inside the CBFA: six goals for greater peace and prosperity in the boreal forest ........63 Chapter 5: Normalizing hegemonic discourses in the CBFA....................................... 78 5.1 CBFA radicals and poster boys: Greenpeace, David Suzuki, and Avrim Lazar ..........79 5.2 Taking the CBFA out of the boardrooms and into the limelight .................................. 86 5.3 Responding to exclusion: First Nations divided (and conquered?) .............................. 99 Chapter 6: Troubling trends in the boreal forest: democracy from the benches....115 6.1 "What happens to solidarity?" ....................................................................................116 6.2 Re-positions of power: the erosion of democratic processes in boreal forest politics 137 6.3 The democracy of free, prior and informed consent: the right to say no ....................144 Chapter 7: Conclusion.......................................................................................................152 Appendices......................................................................................................................... 163 Appendix A .............................................................................................................................. 163 Appendix B ............................................................................................................................... 164 Appendix C ...............................................................................................................................167 Appendix D .............................................................................................................................169 Appendix E ............................................................................................................................... 170 Appendix F ..............................................................................................................................174 Appendix G .............................................................................................................................176 Appendix G .............................................................................................................................180