Recognising 'conservationism of the poor' towards holistic sustainability: study of an Indian national park

Abstract

This paper analyses perceptions of poor households living in and around an Indian national park, the Bhitarkanika National Park (BNP), towards conservation, in the lens of the concepts 'conservationism of the poor' and 'environmentalism of the poor' as a theoretical tool. Values and motives held to conserve this pristine beauty are determined based on raison d'etre cited by respondents. The paper analyses the matrix of values perceived about conservation at this park. Despite their low income, respondents assign non-use value as a reason to conserve this mangrove wetland. It is noteworthy that their willingness to pay (WTP) for the conservation of the BNP, in terms of labour hours is 295.6 times more than their WTP in terms of cash per annum. This paper insists on studying different types of values associated with conservation of the park and conjectures that non-use values form an important part in conservation, which must be recognised in a policy decision-making process for sustainability.