Violent enclosures, violated livelihoods: environmental and military territoriality in a Philippine frontier

This research reveals how overlapping environmental and military governance in the buffer zone of Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park exacerbates livelihood vulnerabilities for indigenous communities, particularly the Tagbanua. The study demonstrates that 'violent enclosures'—where conservation and military interventions converge—create coercive governance structures that criminalize local behavior, merging ecological and political control. By analyzing local experiences in Palawan, Philippines, the authors show that these contested frontiers, though seemingly less governable, are highly politicized spaces where scarce resources are tightly managed. The findings underscore the need for policy makers to critically engage with how governance processes yield structural violence, enabling indigenous peoples to navigate the double bind of overlapping enclosures. This work contributes to understanding the complex interplay between conservation, militarization, and agrarian change in protected areas.

Dressler, W. H., & Guieb, E. R. (2015). Violent enclosures, violated livelihoods: environmental and military territoriality in a Philippine frontier. The Journal of Peasant Studies, 42(2), 323–345. https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2014.991718